Nov. 3, 2005
Duquesne University men's soccer players seniors Scott Gibson (Carlin Howe, Redcar (England)/Huntcliff Sec.), Noah Salsi (North Huntingdon, PA/Norwin) and Zach Varga (Mountville, PA/Hempfield) and junior Jared Helfrich (Pittsburgh, PA/North Hills) were all named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District II First Team as voted on by the district's sports information directors.
Gibson leads the Dukes with five goals scored and is third on the team with 10 points. He is second on the squad with two game-winning goals, scoring game-winners versus Cleveland State and Saint Joseph's. Gibson, who boasts a 3.57 cumulative grade point average in mathematics, leads the team with a .278 shot percentage. He was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week on Sept. 26 after scoring two goals, including the game-winner over CSU.
Salsi is a two-time All-District selection and was a 2004 CoSIDA Second Team Academic All-American. This year he is fifth on the team in scoring with eight points, tallying three goals and two assists on 16 shots. He scored the game-winning goal versus Western Michigan and also scored in wins versus Marshall and George Washington. The 2004 Atlantic 10 Student-Athlete of the Year owns a 3.95 gpa as a physician assistant major.
Varga boasts a 3.50 gpa in psychology and leads the Atlantic 10 Conference in several goal-keeping categories. He leads the A-10 with a 0.66 goals against average and is third in saves percentage at .811. In addition, he is the league leader with 12 victories and also paces the conference with eight shutouts. He was named the Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Week on Oct. 17 and has five shutouts in his last six contests.
Helfrich makes his first appearance on the Academic All-District list after posting a cumulative gpa of 3.94 in legal studies. A midfielder, he started the first 10 games of the season before an injury has kept him out of the past five. He has provided a goal an assist this season for his first collegiate points and he has helped hold opponents to under a goal a game thus far.
To be eligible for this award, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve and maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a scale of 4.00. He must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at the institution and must have completed at least one full academic year at the institution. Sports information directors nominate eligible athletes from their schools who are named to district teams prior to being voted upon on the national level. CoSIDA has been selecting Academic All-America teams since 1952.
CoSIDA's District II covers Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
