Shaffer, Zebrak, Sommerfeld headline list of 6 Polar Bears named All-OAC in Men's Soccer

By Marissa Myers

| 2024 All-OAC Men's Soccer Team (.pdf) |

ADA — Fifth-year senior Will Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) was named Ohio Athletic Conference Midfielder of the Year and seniors Noah Zebrak (Cleveland/St. Ignatius) and Ryan Sommerfeld (Dublin/Coffman) were named to the All-Ohio Athletic Conference First Team to lead a list of six Polar Bears earning All-OAC honors in men's soccer for the 2024 season.

Seniors Brenden Gervers (Grand Blanc, Mich.) and Lucas Hickey (Conroe, Tex./Oak Ridge) were All-OAC Second Team selections and junior Gage Foster (Mason) was a All-OAC Third Team selection.

Shaffer is now a three-time All-OAC honoree after earning First Team recognition last season.

He has started all 20 games this year and is tied for second on the team in goals (7) and ranks second for ONU in points (20) and assists (6). He ranks tied for fifth in the OAC in assists, eighth in points, and tied for ninth in goals.

Shaffer has started all 63 of his matches in his ONU career and has 57 points on 20 goals and 17 assists.

Zebrak is now a three-time All-OAC honoree after earning Second Team selections the past two seasons.

He anchors an ONU defense that ranks third in the OAC in goals allowed (19) and GAA (0.94).

Offensively, Zebrak had 14 points on five goals and four assists. He has 23 points on nine goals and five assists in 71 career games, including 63 starts.

Sommerfeld, a forward, is now a two-time All-OAC First Team selection.

He started in all 20 games for the Polar Bears and leads the team in points (23), goals (8), and assists (7) for Ohio Northern's offense that leads the OAC in assists (50) and is second in points (158) and third in goals (54). Sommerfeld is fourth in the conference in assists, sixth in points, and tied for sixth in goals.

In 69 career games at ONU, Sommerfeld has 65 points on 24 goals and 17 assists.

Gervers is now a two-time All-OAC honoree.

Gervers joins Zebrak as another key member of the ONU defense. He has also started all 20 games this season and tallied 10 points on three goals and four assists.

In his career, he has 27 points on nine goals and nine assists in 81 games, including 62 starts.

Hickey is now a three-time All-OAC Second Team selection.

He started 14 games in goal for ONU this season, posting a 0.92 GAA with 35 saves, a .729 save percentage and six shutouts. He ranks third in the OAC in GAA and goals against with only 13.

In 48 career games, including 44 starts, Hickey has a 1.07 GAA, 116 saves, a .703 save percentage and 12 shutouts. He is tied for fifth all-time at ONU in shutouts.

Foster, a midfielder, is a first-time All-OAC selection.

He had 16 points on six goals and four assists for the Polar Bears this season. Foster ranked third on the team in points.

In 41 career games and 22 starts, Foster has 21 points on six goals and nine assists.

The No. 19-ranked Polar Bears (13-3-4 overall) finished second in the OAC standings this year with a 7-1-1 record and clinched a bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Making their 11th NCAA Tournament appearance, and third straight, the Polar Bears will face Franciscan at host Denison in the opening round on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.