Wittenberg Soccer Student-Athletes Collect Academic All-Ohio Honors

Springfield, Ohio – The Ohio Collegiate Soccer Association has handed out Academic All-Ohio awards in recognition of athletic and academic success during the 2013 season, and the Wittenberg Tigers are well represented, with three members of the conference champion women’s team and one member of the men’s team earning recognition. 

For the women, who captured their second straight North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) regular season title with a record of 5-1-2 in 2013, junior defender Mary Clare Yerke (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) led the way with first-team honors. Senior defender Erin Rowell (Evanston, Ill./Evanston Twp.) and sophomore forward Kate Burns (Granger, Ind./Penn) were both selected to the third team. 

On the men’s side, senior forward Kevin Bond (Bexley, Ohio/Bexley) collected third-team Academic All-Ohio honors. 

To earn Academic All-Ohio honors, student-athletes must be nominated by their coach after maintaining at least a 3.2 cumulative grade point average through a minimum of two semesters. 

Yerke earned NCAC Defensive Player of the Year, first-team All-NCAC, second-team All-Great Lakes Region and first-team All-Ohio honors following a remarkable 2013 campaign. A two-year starter in the center of the Tiger defense, Yerke spearheaded a unit that allowed just 18 goals in 21 games while recording nine shutouts to rank second in the league in 2013. She is majoring in biology. 

Rowell stepped into the starting line-up for the first time in 2013 and played a key role alongside Yerke in the center of the Tiger defense. She scored one goal while appearing in 20 games and making 15 starts en route to honorable mention All-NCAC honors. She is on track to graduate in May with a degree in education. 

Burns appeared in 18 games and started 12 of them for the Tigers, contributing two goals and one assist. She has not declared a major. 

Bond, a second-team All-NCAC selection and third-team All-Ohio choice, saved the best for last when it came to his collegiate career. After three years of solid contributions in a largely supporting role, Bond stepped into the spotlight as a senior and led the Tigers with nine goals and three assists for 21 total points. Two of his goals were game-winners. Bond will graduate from Wittenberg in May with a degree in chemistry. 

In addition, Wittenberg’s women’s team was recently recognized by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America with a Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Silver Award. The College Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Silver Award is given to squads that accumulate no more than five yellow cards and no red cards during a season. Wittenberg finished the 2013 season with just three yellow cards. 

Wittenberg’s women finished the 2013 campaign with an overall record of 9-7-5 and runner-up honors in the NCAC Tournament under first-year Head Coach Matt Fannon. The Tiger men finished 6-12-1 overall and 2-6-1 in the league, good for a tie for seventh place.

Written By: Ryan Maurer