The University of Akron Athletics
Zips land four on All-Ohio Men's Soccer Squad
December 28 | Men's Soccer
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ALL-OHIO FIRST- AND SECOND-TEAM RELEASE (PDF)
AKRON, Ohio - The Akron men's soccer team landed a state-best four selections to the All-Ohio Men's Soccer Team as announced by the Ohio Collegiate Soccer Association.
Garnering first-team accolades for the Zips was senior Saad Abdul-Salaam (Gahanna, Ohio), sophomore Adam Najem (Clifton, N.J.) and sophomore Victor Souto (Sao Paulo, Brazil), while junior Andrew Souders (Amherst, Ohio) collected second-team honors.
A first-team All-Mid-American Conference performer, Abdul-Salaam started all 21 games for the Zips this season registering two goals and a team-high six assists. He recorded 17 shots, including five on goal, and finished third on the squad in scoring with 10 points. He ranked 55th nationally in total assists (6) with three of those assists coming on game-winning goals.
A first-team All-MAC honoree, Najem started all 21 games for Akron and led the Zips in goals (14), points (32), shots on goal (27) and game-winning tallies (4), while ranking second in assists (4) and shots (48). He scored goals in 12 of the Zips' 21 games, including a three-goal explosion in a 5-0 win over Cleveland State. He ranked fourth, fifth, eighth, eighth, eighth and 24th, respectively, in the NCAA in total goals, total points, goals per game, points per contest and game-winning goals.
Souto started all 17 games he appeared in for Akron this season, registering a goal on 18 shots, including five shots on goal en route to garnering second-team All-MAC honors.
Souders helped anchor a Zips' defensive unit that registered seven shutouts, en route to collecting first-team All-MAC recognition. He recorded a goal and an assist on three shots from his defensive slot.
Akron (13-6-2) earned its 29th NCAA Tournament berth this season joining an elite group of just six Division I programs that have qualified for the NCAA Championships in each of the past eight seasons. Only Indiana, Louisville, Maryland, UCLA, and Virginia can share that claim.
