The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Three Blazers Make NSCAA Scholar All-South Region Team
12/16/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
NSCAA Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Three members of the UAB men’s soccer team were named to the NSCAA Divison I Scholar All-South Region early Friday. Lars Willemse earned first team honors while Mathieu Laurent and Henrique Sposito made the second team.
This is the third straight year that the Blazers have featured at least one player placed on the All-Region team. Earlier this year, the team was named a winner of the 2015-16 NSCAA Team Academic Award for exemplary performance in the classroom as a team during the 2015-16 academic year. The UAB women’s soccer team also earned the honor, making the school one of 223 schools to receive the honor for both its men’s and women’s teams.
Willemse started 53 of the last 54 games for the Blazers to close out his exceptional career. The senior played right back for a team that finished the year ranked 61st in the country in goals against average (1.06). He is the active career-leader in assists (10) at UAB and had an assist on the game-winning goal in UAB’s 2-1 victory over No. 15 Kentucky earlier this year. Willemse has been named to the C-USA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll the last three seasons and has a 3.63 GPA as a marketing major.
Laurent earns the honor after anchoring the UAB backline this season. The redshirt sophomore did not miss a single minute of the 17 games he played in. Laurent was named captain as a sophomore, a rare accomplishment for the Blazers. He assisted on the game-winning goal versus Santa Clara (1-0) and was named to the C-USA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll the last two seasons. Laurent ultimately earned Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week that week for his performance in wins against the Broncos and Wildcats. He owns a 3.41 GPA and is majoring in business.
Sposito adds this honor to a laundry list of accolades he has earned this season. The senior made the C-USA All-Academic team last month in addition to making the CoSIDA Academic All-District team. Sposito was stellar both on and off the field for the Blazers this season. He started 17 of 18 games and led the team in goals (3), points (7), and game-winning goals (2). Sposito provided both goals in UAB’s 2-1 win over No. 15 Kentucky. His other goal this season was a game-winner versus Rhode Island and he added an assist in the Blazers’ 3-0 victory over Marshall on September 17. That win was the 100th Conference USA win in school history, making UAB the first program to reach triple-digit victories. Off the field, Sposito holds a 3.821 GPA and majors in sociology. He has been named to the C-USA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll each of the last three seasons and earned the C-USA Academic Medal in 2015 for having the highest GPA on the team, a mark he still boasts.
