Six Polar Bears named Academic All-District in Men's Soccer for 2023
By Tim Glon
| 2023 Academic All-District Men's Soccer Teams (.pdf) |
ADA — Six Ohio Northern student-athletes were named to the College Sports Communicators NCAA Division III Academic All-District Men's Soccer Team for the 2023 season.
Seniors Will Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) and Cade Winchester (Knoxville, Tenn./Alcoa) and juniors Ryan Sommerfeld (Dublin/Coffman), Noah Zebrak (Cleveland/St. Ignatius) and Stephen Duggan (Saginaw, Mich./Freeland) and sophomore Alex Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) were each named Academic All-District.
This marks the second career CSC Academic All-District accolade for Winchester and Zebrak and the first award for the other four student-athletes.
Will Shaffer was named First Team All-Ohio Athletic Conference and was named to the OAC All-Tournament team this fall.
A midfielder majoring in finance, Shaffer was second on the team this season in scoring with 25 points on 10 goals and five assists.
In his two seasons as a Polar Bear, Shaffer has 13 goals, 11 assists and 37 points in his career.
Winchester has played in all 43 of ONU's games the past two seasons, including 17 starts. The midfielder and sport management major earned Academic All-OAC honors in 2021 and 2022 and has 10 points on five goals this year.
In 55 career games, Winchester has tallied 25 points on 11 goals and three assists.
Sommerfeld recorded a team-high 11 goals and 27 points to go with five assists this season. The mechanical engineering major was an All-OAC First Team selection this season.
In 49 career games at ONU, including 28 starts, Sommerfeld 42 points on 16 goals and 10 assists.
Zebrak and Duggan were key members of the ONU defense that has produced 11 shutouts over the past two seasons.
An exercise physiology major, Zebrak is a two-time Second Team All-OAC Second Team honoree.
In 49 career games, he has four goals and one assist for nine points.
Duggan was named to the OAC All-Tournament Team this season and has started 30 games over the past two seasons.
In 44 career games, the biochemistry major has four assists and four points.
Alex Shaffer played in 22 matches with five starts in the midfield in 2023.
He has tallied two goals, five assists and nine points in his career.
He is majoring in finance and marketing.
The CSC Academic All-District Teams recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom.
Academic All-District honorees advance to the CSC Academic All-America ballot.
First, Second and Third Team Academic All-America honorees will be announced on Dec. 19.
The Polar Bears (13-6-4 overall) have posted back-to-back NCAA III Tournament Sweet 16 appearances and won the OAC Tournament this season under fourth-year head coach Chris Matejka.