SAC MSOC, WSOC Scholar-Athlete Story - 7/26/21

General 7/26/2021 3:00:00 PM Adam Stanek - MACU Sports Information

Men’s and Women’s Soccer Places 32 on SAC Scholar-Athlete List

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Sooner Athletic Conference announced its men's and women's soccer Scholar-Athlete list, presented by Barnes & Noble College and 32 student-athletes from Mid-America Christian's soccer programs were selected to the esteemed list on Monday.

To be named a SAC Scholar-Athlete, a student-athlete must maintain a 3.5 grade-point average and appear on the eligibility certificate for an NAIA-recognized sport. To qualify, a student-athlete must be a junior by academic standing and attended the nominating institution for at least two full years as an incoming freshman or one full year as a transfer.

The MACU men's soccer team led the entire Sooner Athletic Conference with 16 of the league's 52 recipients while also posting seven of the SAC's eight 4.0 GPAs. Those Evangels that closed out the year with a 4.0 GPA included Josue Alanis, Facundo Clienti, Fabian Forisch, Marli Greaves, Dante Luz, Bruno Sperandio and Simon Wieschemann.

The Evangels put together another banner year on the pitch, finishing the year with a 15-4-3 overall record while advancing to the NAIA National Championships final site for the second time in the last three seasons. MACU won its SAC Tournament Championship at Evangel Field on Apr. 9 when it defeated Central Christian 3-0 in a postgame shootout after playing to 0-0 draw at the end of regulation.

Mid-America Christian also made its presence felt in the NAIA Opening Round. In its first matchup with No. 14 Morningside (Iowa), Mason Gonzalez headed in the game-tying goal in the 89^th minute to force a 2-2 draw. The Evangels advanced in the shootout once again when Mandela Singh-Sharpe booted in the match-sealing PK for the 4-2 win. Singh-Sharpe came up clutch once again against No. 8 Bethel (Tenn.), firing in the golden goal with 1:55 remaining in double overtime to secure the 3-2 victory.

The MACU women's soccer program also boasted a league-high 16 of the SAC's 68 scholar-athletes while also leading the way with four of the conference's seven 4.0 cumulative grade-point averages.

Of those with 4.0 GPA included Rachael Bond, Marga Franco, Kyleigh Gibson and Veronica Lopez Cordero.

The Evangels are also coming off one of their best seasons in program history, finishing the 2020 campaign with a 15-3 overall record and placed second in the SAC standings with an 8-1 league mark. The 15-win season is the second-most wins since joining the SAC in 2008 while the .833 win percentage topped the previous program mark of .786 set during the 2010 campaign.

MACU shattered several offensive record marks during the year, including: goals scored (79), assists (61) and total points (219).

For the complete list of honorees, check out the list below.

Men's Soccer (16)