Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Soccer Places Four on NSCAA Scholar All-East Team
12/20/2010 7:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Dec. 20, 2010
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Continuing its tradition of success both on and off the pitch, the Patriot League champion Bucknell men's soccer team placed four student-athletes on the NSCAA Scholar All-East Team. Junior defender Andrew Powell was a First Team selection, while senior defender Travis Rand, junior midfielder Ryan Sappington and junior goalkeeper Tommy Caso were all Second Team picks.
There were 19 student-athletes selected to the first and second teams, and Bucknell had the most selections in the East region with four.
This is not the first academic honor in 2010 for this Bison quartet. Earlier in the fall, Rand and Caso were named to the ESPN Academic All-District Team, while Powell and Sappington were Patriot League All-Academic Team selections.
Powell earned Second Team All-Patriot League honors for the second year in a row. An accounting major with a 3.40 GPA, Powell overcame an injury during the preseason to have another stong year as a starting back. In addition to his typical strong defense, Powell recorded two goals and two assists this fall, including the game-winning goal on a spectacular 45-yard shot against Army. Powell also scored a goal against Binghamton and assisted on the game-tying goal in Bucknell's critical season-ending win at Lehigh.
Powell, who helped the Bison break the school shutout record in 2009, is a multi-sport All-Patriot Leaguer. He won the decathlon and finished second in the high jump at the 2010 Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Sappington started all 21 games for the Bison this season, playing both right back and a central defensive midfield position. One of the hardest-working players on the squad, Sappington is majoring in both philosophy and psychology with a minor in education, and he has a stellar cumulative grade-point average of 3.86.
Sappington registered one goal this season, coming on opening night against Villanova. He had a goal and four assists for Bucknell's 2009 Patriot League championship team.
Rand was a team co-captain in 2010 and one of the team's starting defenders. A senior political science major with a 3.59 cumulative GPA, Rand is a three-time member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll. He is a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society and is on course to graduate in just 3 ½ years.
Caso is a mechanical engineering major with a 3.80 cumulative grade-point average. This fall he earned Bucknell's Charles F. White Prize for Scholar-Athletes, and he has been a member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll in each of his first two seasons.
In 2009, Caso was a Second Team All-Patriot League selection after posting a 15-6 record while setting school marks for wins and shutouts (10) in a season. This season he made 36 saves in 10 appearances, which includes eight starts. He had one shutout in 2010, and his career total of 14 clean sheets ranks sixth in Bucknell history.
Bucknell captured its second straight Patriot League title and third in the last five years in 2010.
