Five Spartans Earn Postseason A-Sun Honors
11/7/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
A-Sun All-Conference Release | A-Sun All-Conference Team
A-Sun Academic All-Conference Team
Spartanburg, S.C. – After completing arguably its best season playing on the Division I level and in the Atlantic Sun Conference, the USC Upstate men's soccer team was well represented as the league announced its postseason honors Monday with five Spartans earning postseason awards.
Upstate had three players named A-Sun Second Team All-Conference, one on the All-Freshman team and one on the Academic All-Conference team. Dylan Hoop (Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio), John Kadane (Jr., Garland, Texas) and Jason McCabe (Irmo, S.C.) earned second team All-Conference honors, Dave Musambi (Ottawa, Ontario) was named to the All-Freshman team and Timo Foerster (Oberkirk, Germany) was named to the Academic All-Conference squad.
"I am very happy that these players have received these recognitions," said Upstate head coach Dr. Greg Hooks. "It is a reflection of our entire team. I believe our program is heading in the right direction in competing within our conference."
The five postseason selections mark the most ever in the A-Sun for the Upstate men's soccer team. Prior to this season, the Spartans had earned one second team all-conference honor on two different occasions, Troy Simon (defender) in 2007 and Pat Regna (goalkeeper) in 2009. The Spartans have never had an all-freshman team selection, nor multiple all-conference picks in any year since joining the A-Sun in 2007. The league is in its first year awarding academic all-conference honors.
Hoop was a solid addition to the Upstate offensive attack in his first season with the Spartans after transferring from Cincinnati State. He became the top forward in the Spartans' attack. He finished the year as the team's leading scorer with nine points on four goals and an assist, despite being the focal point of the opponent's defensive scheme. He tallied a pair of goals in A-Sun play. He scored the game winner against Southern Wesleyan and totaled key goals in wins over Presbyterian, Lipscomb and North Florida. He also assisted on the game winner against Presbyterian.
Kadane was the leader of the back line for the Spartans. He was consistently the top defender on the unit. He played in and started all 15 games for the Spartans and helped lead Upstate to six shutouts on the year. The six shutouts currently ranks third in the A-Sun and 48th in the nation. Despite playing the defender position, he pushed up on the attack for two goals, recording the game winners against Presbyterian and North Florida, finishing fourth on the team in scoring.
McCabe turned in a tremendous season in goal for the Spartans. He played every second in goal for the Spartans, totaling 1,309 minutes between the posts. He consistently ranked at the top of the A-Sun in several categories. He currently tops the conference with an .826 save percentage, 90 saves and 6.0 saves per game. He ranks third with six shutouts and fourth with a 1.22 goals against average. He not only ranks among the best in the A-Sun, but also ranks among the best in the nation. He ranks fifth in the nation in saves, sixth in saves per game and 19th in save percentage.
A three-year starter in goal, McCabe finished his career as the top goalkeeper in several statistical categories during the Division I era at Upstate. He leads the Spartans in the era with nine wins, five ties, 248 saves, 1.74 goals against average, 48 matches played, 45 matches started and 4,250 minutes played. Overall, he ranks third all-time in minutes played and saves, ranking behind two keepers who are members of the USC Upstate Athletics Hall of Fame. He also ranks ninth all-time in goals against average.
Musambi turned in a solid freshman campaign for Upstate. He served as a solid target up top for the Spartans and possessed speed to get behind defenders. He finished the year with a goal and two assists, all during conference play. He scored the game winner in the 3-1 victory over Lipscomb and dished out a pair of assists in the 3-2 loss against Stetson. An active player, he currently ranks seventh in the A-Sun in shots.
Foerster turned in another strong season for Upstate as the catalyst for the Upstate offense. Playing as an attacking central midfielder, he often started the offense and helped distribute the ball. He led the Spartans and currently ranks sixth in the conference with five assists. He assisted on the game-winning goals against Southern Wesleyan and Lipscomb.
Foerster's selection to the A-Sun Academic All-Conference team, though, is due in large part to the excellence he has shown in the classroom. Carrying a 3.96 GPA as an accounting major, Foerster has earned a perfect 4.0 GPA in four of the six semesters he has completed at the University. He is a three-time member of the A-Sun All-Academic team and is an A-Sun Conference Scholar. He earned Capital One Academic All-District first team honors last week and will be considered for Academic All-America selection later this month.
