CSC Release

GREENWOOD, Ind. - Six Illinois Wesleyan University men's soccer student-athletes were named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team Tuesday, Nov. 19. Seniors Mush Bakirdan (Morton, Ill.-Morton), Declan Nugent (Naperville, Ill.-Neuqua Valley), and Logan Shumaker (Decatur, Ill.-Mt. Zion), juniors Jerry Smazil (Downers Grove, Ill.-Downers Grove South) and Sam Kedzior (Cary, Ill.-Cary Grove) and sophomore Ryder Coleman (Deerfield, Ill.-Bannockburn) earned the distinction. 

The CSC Academic All-District Teams honor the nation's top student-athletes for their combined excellence athletically and academically. In order to be eligible, student-athletes must have a minimum grade point average of 3.50 and compete in at least 90 percent, or start in at least 66 percent, of the team's matches. 

Bakirdan, Nugent, Shumaker, and Coleman CSC Academic All-District for the first time in their careers while Smazil and Kedzior pick up the distinction for the second time.

Bakirdan, a mathematics major with a 3.71 grade point average, totaled 10 points on the season, the third-most on the team. The Morton, Ill. native tallied four goals and two assists. The senior forward played in all 18 games with five starts and produced three game-winning goals, all of which came in conference play. 

A double major in finance and entrepreneurship with a 3.73 GPA, Nugent played in all 18 games. He tallied one assist on the season along with two starts. 

Shumaker, who holds a 3.82 GPA as a graphic design major, played in all 18 games. Playing in both the midfield and at forward, he made 15 starts.

Smazil earned the distinction for the second time with a 3.78 GPA as a finance major. The Downers Grove, Ill. native was a regular starter for IWU, having started and played in all 18 games. Smazil tallied one assist in the regular season, notching a helper against CCIW foe Carthage College. 

Kedzior, the Titans' starting goalkeeper, played 1613 minutes over 18 games in between the posts. A secondary education major, Kedzior has a 3.96 GPA and earns CSC Academic All-District honors for the second straight year. The Cary, Ill. native totaled 65 saves on the season with a save percentage of .747.

Coleman rounds out the group as a sophomore finance major. A forward with a 3.56 GPA, he played in all 18 games and started 13. Coleman was the team's points leader, totaling 14 points by way of seven goals.

The Titans concluded their season 9-5-4 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament Semifinal, Nov. 6, where they fell to nationally ranked North Park University.