KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- For the third season in a row the Bellevue University men's soccer team has an All-American selection. Junior midfielder/forward Rob Smith (Lincoln, England) was named an Honorable Mention selection as announced today by the NAIA.
Smith led the Bruins to another strong season in 2016 which included claiming the North Star Athletic Association regular-season and tournament championships.
This season Smith appeared in 18 matches for the Bruins, scoring a conference-best 16 goals and tallying a career-high eight assists. The 16 goals scored by Smith represent the second-highest single-season total in program history.
Smith was playing his best soccer in the season's second half. He scored 15 of his goals in the year's final 11 games and during that stretch he netted three hat tricks. He scored a career-high four goals against Hastings on Sept. 18, picked up a hat trick at Presentation on Oct. 22, and scored nine points (a hat trick and three assists) at Grace on Oct. 26.
Through three seasons Smith now has 34 goals, 22 assists, and 90 points. He ranks fourth all-time but is within striking distance of the school record for both goals and points, trailing current head coach Mark Heath-Preston in both categories (45 goals, 107 points). His assist total is second all-time to Jon Pagel's (2004-07) 25.
Bellevue wrapped up the 2016 season on a nine-game win streak capped off with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Waldorf University in the NSAA Tournament Championship. BU compiled a 12-6-2 record and posted a perfect 4-0-0 mark in league play, their third-straight season without a conference loss.
Recent Honorable Mention All-American selections were Manuel Lira (2014) and Alan Carr (2015).
For the NAIA release and complete list of All-Americans, please click here.
