Dec. 30, 2010
PHILADELPHIA - Ryan Richter and Nick Dundon added to their postseason honors as they were both named to the National Soccer Coaches' Association of America (NSCAA) First Team Scholar All-America squad, the highest academic honor bestowed by the national organization.
They became the La Salle men's soccer program's second and third Scholar All-Americans, following Cesidio Colasante's two Scholar All-America nods in 1996 (Second Team) and 1997 (First Team).
The duo finds themselves in elite company, as only 16 Division I players nationally were named Scholar All-America. La Salle is also one of three Division I schools - along with Notre Dame and Drake - to have two players recognized and the only Atlantic 10 school
Dundon, whose grade point average of 3.95 was the highest among all the Division I honorees, capped off a strong season for the midfielder-turned-defender. He was a big part of a defense that posted eight shutouts en route to the Atlantic 10 title game, including a semifinal shutout of defending Atlantic 10 champion Saint Louis. Dundon has a plethora of academic honors to his name this season. In addition to NSCAA Scholar All-America and Academic All-East Region First Team, he was named to the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Third Team and Academic All-District First Team. He was also an Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference pick.
Richter's Scholar All-America honor capped off an award-winning season for the senior. The Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Year and Student-Athlete of the Year was the offensive force behind the Explorers' run to the Atlantic 10 title game. He scored a league-best 14 goals with seven of those being game-winners, including a hat trick against Xavier and 1-0 win over Dayton to push the Explorers into the No. 2 seed for the tournament.
In addition to the NSCAA honors (Scholar All-America and First Team Academic All-East Region), Richter's academic honors also include CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team and Atlantic 10 Student-Athlete of the Year.
Richter and Dundon will be honored on January 15 at the annual luncheon held as part of the 2011 NSCAA Convention.
