Six Men's Soccer players earn All-OAC accolades

Ryan Smith

By Steven Wright

ADA — Six members of the Ohio Northern men’s soccer team were awarded All-Ohio Athletic Conference recognition, including three First Team, one Second Team and two Honorable Mention selections.

Senior Ryan Smith was the most recognized Polar Bear, being named First Team All-OAC as well as OAC Defender of the Year.

Smith has anchored the ONU defense that has allowed only 16 goals from the center back position all season while dishing out two assists as well.

This is the third time that Smith has been First Team All-OAC and the second time that he has been named OAC Defender of the Year.

Senior Adam Ross and freshman Christian Huelsman joined Smith as First Team All-OAC honorees.

Ross has played in all 23 games and is third on the team in goals with eight and total points with 23. He was named Second Team All-OAC a season ago.

Huelsman has had a record-breaking season, as he already holds the ONU freshman single-season record for goals scored with 16.

He is currently tied for third all-time on ONU’s single-season goals list and is second on ONU’s single-season points list with 39.

Freshman Nate Bascom was Northern’s lone Second Team All-OAC selection, leading the Polar Bears with six game-winning goals on the year.

Bascom is second on the team with 13 goals and 34 points and is tied for the team lead with eight assists.

Senior Ben Jackson and junior goalkeeper Aaron Collins were each named Honorable Mention All-OAC.

This is the third consecutive year that Jackson has earned Honorable Mention All-OAC, as he has also been an integral part of the team’s strong defense.

Collins bounced back from a year off to earn All-OAC honors for the second time in his career by recording a school record 12 shutouts and amassing 85 saves on the year.

He was First Team All-OAC and OAC Goalkeeper of the Year during the 2006 campaign.

These six players will lead the men’s soccer team into the NCAA Tournament where ONU will begin play at Wheaton (Ill.) on Friday at 8:30 pm EST.