The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Ruiz, Copeland Named NSCAA All-Region
12/10/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Senior defender Darion Copeland and junior forward Freddy Ruiz of the UAB men's soccer team were named to the NSCAA All-Southeast Region First Team, the NSCAA announced Wednesday.
The honor marks the second for Ruiz after being named to the All-Midwest Region Second Team last year, and third for Copeland after earning third team honors in 2011 and second team honors in 2013.
Ruiz earned C-USA Co-offensive MVP honors after being named the Preseason C-USA Offensive Player of the Year. The Fort Payne, Ala. native was the leading scorer in the C-USA regular season with 10 goals, a mark that ranked 18th in the NCAA and topped all players in the NCAA's Southeast region. His season total 22 points were second best in the conference and 29th in the NCAA. He averaged 0.59 goals per game, which was tops in the league and 20th in the NCAA.
Copeland was also an All-C-USA First Team selection this season, and earned all-conference honors each year while at UAB. The Stockbridge, Ga. native, a key leader of the program since 2011, helped the UAB backline record three shutouts and hold opponents to one goal or less 14 different games.
He played in all but one match for the Blazers dating back to 2011 and scored one goal and one assist for the Blazers in 2014.
For more information on the UAB men's soccer team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_MensSoccer). For more on all Blazer sports teams follow the official Twitter account of UAB Athletics (@UABAthletics).
