Bucknell University Athletics
Three Bucknell Men's Soccer Players Earn All-Region Honors
12/4/2003 7:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Dec. 4, 2003
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell junior Michael Lookingland II (Fallston, Md./Loyola), and sophomores Scott Visnic (Hillsborough, N.J./Hillsborough) and Adam Edwards (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown) have earned themselves a spot on the 2003 Mid-Atlantic Men's Soccer All-Region Team, released by the NSCAA/adidas All-America Committee on Thursday, December 4. Lookingland landed himself on the first team for the second-straight year, while Visnic nabbed a spot on the second team and Edwards was a member of the third team.
"Having three All-Region players is great exposure for the Bucknell men's soccer program on a national level," commented Bucknell men's soccer head coach Brendan Nash. "It shows that other programs are taking notice to what we are developing at Bucknell. It also confirms that we have been recruiting the right type of student-athletes who can excel on the soccer field as well as in the classroom. All three of these players will be returning next year, so we are very excited about the future of our program."
Lookingland recently concluded his junior season with his second-straight appearance on the All-Patriot League squad, earning his first selection to the first-team. The defender was tabbed the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year and is just the second player in school history to earn the award, following in the footsteps of Bill Epley in 2000. A starter in every game of his career, Lookingland was the defensive leader on a squad that posted nine shutouts this season, just one shy of the school record set a year ago. In addition to his defensive abilities, the co-captain also got involved offensively, scoring once and assisting on two goals. His lone goal of the season was a penalty kick in a 1-0 victory over Lafayette.
"Mike has been the cornerstone of our defense the last three years," remarked Nash. "Each year, we have faced new teams and every one of them seems to point out Mike as one of our top players. We have set higher goals for him each year and this is yet another one he has met."
 Sophomore Scott Visnic made his first appearance on the Mid-Atlantic Regional All-America team.  |
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Visnic caps an outstanding sophomore campaign with his first selection to the All-Region squad. The 2003 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year, Visnic becomes the first Bison player to ever achieve the honor. This season, Visnic scored a team and league-best 12 goals to go along with three assists for 27 points. The first Bison since the 1993 season to score 12 goals in a single-season, his goal total ranks eighth on the Bucknell single-season list, and 10th on the Patriot League's same list. The speedy forward also stands in eighth and 10th, respectively, on the Bucknell and Patriot League single-season points lists. On the year, half of Visnic's scores were game-winners, also tops in the league. Included in his offensive onslaught throughout the season was the first Bucknell hat-trick since 1999 in a 6-3 win at Philadelphia University, and the lone goal in a 1-0 upset victory over No. 2 Maryland, the biggest upset in school history.
"This season was a breakout year for Scott, and I am glad the other coaches we competed against took notice," said Nash. "We asked him to play a new position this year and he gladly took on the role. Other teams knew they would have to try to control Scott's speed on the attack every game. He constantly had a defender on him, but he still found a way to score 12 goals, showing his nose for the goal."
 Sophomore Adam Edwards joined Visnic as a first-time selection to the All-Region team. |
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Edwards, also making his first appearance on the Mid-Atlantic All-Region team, picked up his sophomore campaign right where he left off as a rookie, capturing his first selection to the All-Patriot League First-Team. The 2002 Rookie of the Year and a second-team all-star at his goalkeeping position, Edwards allowed just three goals in seven Patriot League contests this season for a league-best 0.34 goals against average in conference play. He registered eight of Bucknell's nine shutouts on the year, giving him 18 in his career and placing him eighth on the Patriot League list. Edwards ended the regular-season with a solid stretch of play, not allowing a goal in his last 201:08 minutes of action. Included in that stretch was an eight-save shutout against No. 2 Maryland, earning him the NCAAsports.com Student-Athlete of the Week selection.
"Adam has been solid since the first day he walked on campus," remarked Nash. "We increased our level of competition this year, and changed our system to one with one-less defender. By doing this, we were asking Adam to take on a much bigger role for the team, and more specifically, the defense. He not only accepted his role successfully, but more importantly played his best in the most important games of the year."
The Orange and Blue finished the 2003-04 season at 11-7-2 overall and 5-0-2 in the Patriot League. BU completed the first unbeaten PL season in school history, in the process claiming the regular-season title for just the third time.
Following is a complete listing of the 2003 Mid-Atlantic All-Region Teams:
Complete Listing of Teams in PDF Format
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