« Men’s Soccer 2014

Alex Ivanov

School
The Ohio State University
Position
Goalkeeper
Major
Electrical and Computer Engineering

Classroom

Ivanov claimed his undergraduate degree last spring with a bachelor’s degree in electrical and computer engineering with a 3.70 cumulative GPA. He is currently pursuing another major to earn a degree for the 2014-15 academic school year.  Last fall, Ivanov became the first Buckeye in program history to be named an Academic All-American after being named to the Capital One Academic All-America Division I Third Team. A 2013 Capital One All-District honoree, Ivanov has earned Academic All-Big Ten honors three times in his career and has been named an OSU Scholar-Athlete the last for years. In 2012, Ivanov also was named a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar.

Character

Ivanov was named team captain for the Buckeyes for the 2014 spring season and will be a leading candidate for his final year. Ivanov can be defined by the 2013 campaign where he held his ground every single game and had a terrific season, keeping a young Buckeye squad in a lot of matches. Without him, the team would have struggled to compete from a competition standpoint. Ivanov has developed not only as a player but as a person since redshirting for the Buckeyes in 2010 and making the fall roster. Ivanov is incredibly well-respected by his teammates and works hard every day at practice. On and off the field, Ivanov leads by example. Ivanov leads his life as a very mature person and is the face of the Ohio State men’s soccer program. He makes everyone on the team pleased that they are Buckeyes with him.

Community

In addition to his engineering program, Ivanov has volunteered with the 2nd and 7 Foundation, reading to elementary students. He also has been a part of three different “Kids Kicking Cancer” events, where the team has held a skills clinic hosted by Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Rainbow & Babies Children’s Hospital and the James Cancer Hospital and Research Institute. Ivanov also will be the point person for the team’s “Friends of Jaclyn Foundation”, which they’ve adopted Sam to the program. The non-profit organization’s mission is to continue to improve the quality of life of children battling pediatric brain tumors. Ivanov has also competed in the Connor Senn Memorial Match, which raises awareness for sudden cardiac arrest in athletes. Ivanov also plans to work with his professor in his department of his major where he will volunteer at local middle schools and high schools that promote math, science and engineering.

Competition

After his junior season, Ivanov was named a second team All-Big Ten selection, being named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week three times during his junior season. The OSU goalkeeper finished the season with 110 saves, which is fifth on the OSU all-time single season saves list. Ivanov finished 2013 the campaign fifth in the country in stops (110), sixth in saves percentage (0.880) and second in saves per game (6.47). He also collected eight shutouts in 24 starts for the Buckeyes.