The Valparaiso men’s soccer team placed a league-high four student-athletes on the Horizon League men’s soccer Academic All-League team, as Kevin Miller (Jefferson City, Mo./Helias), Todd Vervynckt (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth), Wei Ming Wong (Hong Kong/Hong Kong International [SMU]) and Kyle Zobeck (Coralville, Iowa/Iowa City West) all earned the accolades after helping the Crusaders to the 2011 Horizon League regular season title while also excelling in the classroom.

Miller, a junior midfielder, started 19 of Valpo’s 20 games in 2011 and tallied the Crusaders’ game-winning goal in their victory over Milwaukee.  The junior also recorded a team-best four assists on the season as well.  A physics major who carries a 3.952 cumulative GPA, Miller earned Academic All-League honors for the second straight season and has also been a member of the league’s Academic Honor Roll each semester eligible.

Vervynckt, a sophomore midfielder, appeared in 19 contests this season for the Crusaders, starting on 17 occasions.  He scored three goals over the course of the 2011 campaign, including the game-tying marker in Valpo’s draw against Pitt.  Vervynckt also picked up an assist on the Crusaders’ match-winning goal against Northwestern.  The sophomore is a mechanical engineering major and holds a 3.952 cumulative GPA.

Wong, a fifth-year senior defender, was a crucial cornerstone at center back for the best defensive team in program history.  An NSCAA Third Team All-Great Lakes Region honoree and Second Team All-Horizon League honoree, Wong started all 20 games at center back for the Crusaders in 2011 as part of a unit which surrendered a school record-low 14 goals while posting 11 shutouts.  An international business and finance major who carries a 3.804 cumulative GPA, Wong was named to the NSCAA Scholar All-North/Central Region First Team this season and is a repeat member of the league’s All-Academic squad.

Zobeck, a redshirt junior goalkeeper, earns the Academic All-League accolade after being named an NSCAA Third Team Scholar All-American for his work in 2011.  The Horizon League Goalkeeper of the Year and NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region Third Team honoree set a new Valpo single-season record with 11 shutouts, tied for the seventh-most shutouts in a single year in Horizon League history, and broke the Crusaders’ career record in Valpo’s final game with his 18^th career clean sheet.  In addition, he easily topped Valpo’s single-season goals against average mark, closing the season with a 0.66 GAA.  Zobeck led the league at the close of the season in both GAA and shutouts as well.  In the classroom, Zobeck, also a member of the NSCAA Scholar All-North/Central Region First Team, holds a 3.966 cumulative GPA as a mechanical engineering major and is also a repeat member of the Academic All-League team.