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Jacob Sither honored; Abby Winterberg named academic All-American
RELEASED: Dec. 17, 2002
DANVILLE, KY—Jacob Sither, a junior from Lexington, has been named a Division III National Soccer Coaches Association of America's second-team All-American.
Sither, a goalkeeper, helped the Centre men's soccer team finish fourth in the conference with an overall record of 13-3-2. The Colonels held a top-25 ranking and eventually moved into the national top 10 this past season. Sither is the first Centre men's soccer player to be named as high as a second-team All-American.
Sither, a co-captain, broke a school record with 11 shutouts, and also set the record for goals against average of .60.
Head Coach Jeb Burch said, "I know Jacob is excited about this award, but he told me yesterday that he feels like he can play even better for us next season."
Sither faced two penalty kicks in 2002 and stopped them both. These stops were turning points in big Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference games giving Centre a win over Rhodes College and preserving a tie against Trinity, then ranked No. 2 in the country.
"Jacob is a unique player," said Burch, "because he always gives us a chance to win. He made big plays all year, and I'm a firm believer that your team is only as good as your goalkeeper. Jacob definitely earned this honor. Centre has had three other All-Americans and Jacob is the first one to make the second team with the others making third team. He did a lot for our team and I'm thrilled he will back next year."
Centre competed in the Central Region in men's soccer, the top-rated region in America. There are approximately 375 schools playing Division III soccer.
Sither will be honored at a ceremony in Kansas City in January.
Abby Winterberg of Centre received Academic All-American honors in cross country for placing in the top 25 percent of the participating runners in the Southeast Regionals and having a GPA of 3.5 or better.
Winterberg is a sophomore from Ryland, Ky.
She finished 38th out of 151 runners and came in third for the team. Centre finished sixth overall out of 27 teams in the 5,060-meter race held in Fredericksburg, Va.
Head Coach Lisa Owens was pleased with Winterberg's performance.
"This is the first time I have had a runner this good in the classroom and on the course. It's a real tribute to Abby's work ethic and discipline."
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