Briefs: UCI men’s soccer trio honored
UC Irvine senior Cameron Iwasa has been named first-team All-Far-West Region by the National Soccer Coaches Assn. of America.
Sophomore Michael Sperber represented UCI on the second team, while Anteaters junior Lalo Calzada was a third-team honoree.
Iwasa, one of 16 semifinalists for the MAC Hermann Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top player, shared the team lead with 18 points with six goals. His six assists tied for the top spot among Big West Conference players and his 81 shots also topped the conference.
Iwasa helped Coach Chris Volk’s ‘Eaters reach the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament, allowing him to tie for the top spot in school annals with 85 career matches. A catalyst in the postseason with four goals and one assist in six games, Iwasa’s 235 career shots rank No. 3 in Big West history.
He was a second-team all-conference performer
Sperber, who joined Calzada on the all-conference first team, made his only goal of the season a game-winner to upset No. 6-seeded Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. That win gave UCI two postseason triumphs for the first time in program history.
A tenacious and physical defensive midfielder, Sperber helped UCI record 10 shutouts.
Calzada, a forward in his first season after transferring from Cal State Bakersfield, led UCI with seven goals. He added four assists to match Iwasa’s team-best 18 points. He had three game-winning goals.
UCI finished 16-6-3, matching the program record for single-season victories.
— From staff reports
—
UCI’s Nelson honored
UC Irvine Senior Associate Athletic Director Darrin Nelson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame at the 57th annual National Football Foundation Awards Dinner Tuesday night at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City.
Nelson, in his fourth year at UCI, played college football at Stanford from 1977-81 (including a redshirt year in 1979) and became the first player in NCAA history to rush for more than 1,000 yards and catch 50 passes in one season (1977). He duplicated that feat in 1978 and 1981, finishing sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting after his senior season.
Nelson earned first-team All-American honors in 1981 and ended his career as Stanford’s all-time leader in rushing yards (4,033), receptions (214), scoring (242) and touchdowns (40). He also wound up as the NCAA leader for all-purpose yards, which remains a school record at 6,885.
The only four-time first-team All-Pac-10 performer in Stanford history, he became the first freshman running back in conference history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season.
He was selected in the first round (seventh pick overall) of the 1982 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings and played 11 seasons with the Vikings and San Diego Chargers. Nelson finished his professional career with 4,442 rushing yards, 2,559 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns, and he led the league with 4.9 yards per carry in 1987.
“It obviously is a great honor,” Nelson said in a statement. “I’m very happy and excited to be in the Hall of Fame with people I played with such as John Elway and Ken Margerum.
“Of the 5.06 million people that have played college football, only 948 players are in the Hall of Fame. That is absolutely amazing and I am honored to not only represent Stanford University, but the coaches and players that helped me achieve this honor.
“I was also pretty lucky. I arrived at Stanford the same year that Bill Walsh was hired as head coach and Denny Green was the running backs coach. I was also coached the last two years by Paul Wiggins, who is also a Hall of Fame player,” Nelson said.
“To be the first person in college football history to rush for 1,000 yards and catch 50 passes in a season is truly a testament to Bill Walsh and his offense.”
— From staff reports