Men’s Soccer Columns
Men’s soccer standout Agaba prepares to repay the villagers who helped him stay in school
As an elite student and standout soccer player in Kampala, Uganda, Perez Agaba was poised to make a choice as his time at King’s College Budo Secondary School came to an end.
“You’ve got to choose one of the two; doing both is almost impossible,” Agaba said of the setup in his homeland, where college sports are essentially limited to intramural activities. “You’re either going for the academics or for the soccer, and you’ve got to decide.”
… Continue ReadingCandidate classes include top notch student-athletes
As the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award begins its 11th year, 120 NCAA Division I student-athletes have been announced as candidates for the award in four sports. The credentials of the candidates include stellar performances in the classroom and on the field or court as well as outstanding examples of community service.
The 2011 men’s and women’s soccer candidate class includes 15 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Americans from last season. Half of… Continue Reading
Collegiate goals accomplished…soccer winners move on to compete in other arenas
It should not be surprising that North Carolina midfielder Ali Hawkins and Akron midfielder Anthony Ampaipitakwong earned the women’s and men’s honors for the 2010 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.
After all, it has never about them. It has always been about someone or something else.
Their reaction to winning the awards said it all.
“It’s an honor,” Ampaipitakwong said. “I take it as a team award. My team helped me… Continue Reading
Soccer peers faced adversity and moved past trials for triumph
How someone deals with adversity, challenges and change can tell volumes about that person.
What Samson Malijani and Bobby Warshaw have had to go through are on different ends of the spectrum, yet they handled it with grace, dignity and determination.
Malijani, a senior striker at Fairleigh Dickinson University, lost his parents to a car accident at the age of 10 and had to overcome a serious knee injury that he feared would end his career.
Warshaw, a senior…
Continue Reading
Soccer peers faced adversity and moved past trials for triumph
How someone deals with adversity, challenges and change can tell volumes about that person.
What Samson Malijani and Bobby Warshaw have had to go through are on different ends of the spectrum, yet they handled it with grace, dignity and determination.
Malijani, a senior striker at Fairleigh Dickinson University, lost his parents to a car accident at the age of 10 and had to overcome a serious knee injury that he feared would end his career.
Warshaw, a senior…
Continue Reading
Ministers’ sons make great goalkeepers and community servants
On the soccer field, goalkeepers are the last line of defense.
But most any student of the game will confirm that the best keepers are leaders.
“I would agree with that,” UC Santa Barbara keeper Sam Hayden said. “We’re the quarterback on the field, so to say. We’re in the back and we can see everything that’s going on in front of us. We have to direct our players, let them know where people are at, where runners are coming through, what to do next… Continue Reading
Peterson and Yeisley represent “all the good kids” in winning the Senior CLASS Award
The student athletes who least expect recognition often deserve it most. They are the ones who excel in the classroom and at athletics. The ones who give up their free time to volunteer in their communities. The ones teammates look to for leadership. The ones who stay positive in the face of adversity – whether it’s on the playing field or in life.
Such is a fitting description for Texas A&M’s Emily Peterson and Penn State’s Jason Yeisley, the 2009 recipients of the Lowe’s…
Continue Reading
Juvenile diabetes hasn’t slowed men’s and women’s soccer standouts
It is difficult enough to be a successful student-athlete these days. Add a disease such as diabetes and the challenge becomes even greater.
Two college soccer players have managed not only to survive, but have thrived on every front. That’s a big reason why University of North Carolina-Greensboro defender Lauren Lopez and George Mason midfielder Richard Edgar are candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. They don’t feel sorry for themselves one bit. They go out and… Continue Reading
Life is Measured by Goals Achieved, Not Goals Scored
Maybe I’m old school – although, in the interest of full disclosure, I’m not sure if I’m actually old enough to be that old school – but I come from the school of thought where the idea of going to college is to graduate from college.
That’s why it irks me when I write a piece on a college player who has the potential to become a professional and get the response, “If he’s good enough to go pro, why on earth is he wasting his time going to college?”
It’s… Continue Reading
Classroom, the Most Important “C”
There is little doubt that the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award has several important criteria, which includes classroom work, community involvement and of course, competition.
None should be taken lightly and all should be given proper consideration by the committee when selecting this year’s winners in various sports in the men’s and women’s categories.
Saying that, this writer puts one of the criteria—classroom—slightly above the rest.
…
Continue Reading