Two collegiate soccer organizations announced winners of scholar-athlete awards, and Kenyon College was represented by two women and one man on the honor lists.
The Ohio Collegiate Soccer Association (OCSA) recently released its annual list of NCAA Division III women’s soccer players who earned positions on the All-Ohio and Academic All-Ohio teams. Making the All-Ohio team for the Kenyon College Ladies was Olivia Dion, while academic honors went to Leah Anderson. Additionally, United Soccer Coaches announced the association’s 2021 Scholar All-America teams, and included among the first-team selections was Kenyon College senior Luke Muther.
Throughout the 2021 season, Dion, a senior midfielder, and Anderson, a junior goalkeeper, helped steer the Kenyon team to an 8-8-2 overall record and a third-place finish in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) with a 5-2-1 record.
The All-Ohio selections were divided into three teams, while the Academic All-Ohio honorees were split into two teams. Both Dion and Anderson were picked as second-team selections.
Dion started all 18 games for the Ladies this past season and tied for the team lead with 10 points on three goals and a team-best four assists. She was a first-team All-NCAC pick and also a third-team United Soccer Coaches All-Region honoree. In three seasons with the Ladies, Dion played in 52 career games and logged 20 career points on six goals and eight assists.
Anderson jumped into the starting mix this season, playing in 17 games and starting 16 of them. She put in 1,485 minutes of work in front of the Kenyon net and recorded a 0.85 goals against average, as well as a 0.839 saves percentage. She had a personal goalkeeping record of 8-6-2, including nine shutouts, which helped her gain a second-team spot on the 2021 All-NCAC team.
To be eligible for the Academic All-Ohio award, a student-athlete had to have a minimum grade point average of 3.30.
For Muther, the award added to a long list of accolades, as he previously was named a second-team United Soccer Coaches All-American, a first-team All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) honoree, as well as the 2021 NCAC Defensive Player of the Year.
During the 2021 campaign, Muther played a huge role within a Kenyon defensive unit that yielded just 15 goals in 20 games, logged seven shutouts and posted a team goals against average (.730) that ranked second in the NCAC and 34th among all NCAA Division III teams.
Muther, a physics major, started all 20 games for the Lords, who went 16-3-1, won the conference crown and made it to the second round of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. When leaving his defensive position to join the attack, Muther scored one goal and assisted on four others.
To be eligible for the Scholar All-America award, a student-athlete had to be nominated by his or her coach, had to be of junior or senior standing, had to play a minimum of 75 percent of games during the season and had to have at least a 3.40 cumulative grade point average.
