Wednesday, December 7, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – Northwest Nazarene senior defender Lorenzo Valentini and senior goalkeeper Sawyer Price are among the top scholar-athletes in the country with their selection to the 2022 College Sports Communicators Division II Men’s Soccer Academic All-America Team.

Valentini leads the NNU pair on the second team while Price was named to the third team. Both players own GPA’s higher than the full team average of 3.86.

Valentini is a three-time Academic All-America Team honoree after being named to the third team in 2020 and 2021. He is one of eight repeat selections on the team and holds a 3.95 GPA in sports management as an undergraduate student and a 3.92 GPA in his MBA program.

Valentini captained the Nighthawks’ run to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Championships, starting all 22 of NUU’s matches and logging just under 2,000 minutes on the back line. The First Team All-GNAC and First Team United Soccer Coaches All-West Region defender also added offensive upside to his game with one goal and an assist.

Price was a steady pair of hands in net for the Nigthahwks all season, starting all 22 matches and playing all but 20 minutes in NNU’s season. Price owns a perfect 4.0 GPA in sports management and is one of 11 members of the team with a 4.0 average. He is a first-time selection to the Academic All-America Team.

In net, Price backed up his academic performances with seven shutouts to rank second in the GNAC and 20th in Division II. His 1,979 minutes played led the conference and rank third in the division.

Nominated and voted upon by members of College Sports Communicators, nominees for the Academic All-America program must be of sophomore eligibility or greater, must be in their second year at the nominating institution, must be a starter or important reserve for their team and must have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or greater.