Three MCLA Men’s Soccer Players Earn CSC Academic All-District Honors

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.— Graduate student midfielder Marcos Lopez (Albany, NY), and sophomore defenders Brennan Archer (Enfield, CT) and Luke Muhlestein (Salt Lake City, UT) have earned All-District recognition by the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-American program.

This was the second CSC Academic All-American program designation for Lopez and the first for Archer and Muhlestein. They join six Women's Soccer team members who earned the honor this fall, and follow 30 athletes from the 2023-24 & 2024-25 school years. Prior to 2023, no MCLA athlete had been honored by CSC since 2019, when softball outfielder Kaitlyn Berghela was named to the Academic All-American Division III third team.

Lopez was one of the Trailblazer team captains for the second time in as many seasons. The midfielder was one of two MCLA players to start all 15 of the team's games and will cap his collegiate career with a streak of 33 consecutive starts. This season he tallied the Trailblazers' lone goal against Salem State in the team's penultimate game and contributed a pair of assists in a 3-1 win over SUNY Cobleskill. Lopez was a four-year member of the men's soccer program and graduated this past spring with a degree in business and is currently working towards his MBA.

Archer was a steadying force for the Trailblazers on the defensive end, frequently being assigned to mark the opponent's top offensive players. The sophomore appeared in 14 of MCLA's 15 games, starting all 14. He is a two-year member of the program and is majoring in business.

Muhlestein joined Archer in providing a solid defensive field for the Trailblazers. Despite his defensive prowess, it also wasn't out of the question for the sophomore to enter the offensive end, including in MCLA's final game of the season when he provided the assist on one of MCLA's two goals that day. The sophomore appeared in all 15 of the Trailblazers 16 games, starting in 14 of them. He is a two-year member of the program and is majoring in physics.

Per the College Sports Communicators (previously known as COSIDA) website, the Academic All-American is a title reserved for college student-athletes who perform at an elite level in their chosen sport and in the classroom. The all-time list of 44,000+ Academic All-Americans includes major sports stars and some of the world's most accomplished individuals in medicine, business, science, and the arts. Established in 1952 and selected by College Sports Communicators, Academic All-America is the longest-running and premier award for athletic and academic success across championship college sports at all NCAA levels, the NAIA, two-year colleges, and Canadian institutions. Teams are announced year-round and amplified by CSC member colleges, universities, and conferences on a wide local, regional, national, and even international scope.

To be eligible for consideration, student-athletes must demonstrate the best traits of a student-athlete, both on and off the playing field. Among the requirements are:

• Outstanding student-athletes are nominated for Academic All-District® recognition by communications directors and must have a minimum 3.50 GPA and meet high athletic standards. (over 30,000 nominations annually)
• A select group of student-athletes advances to the national ballot where CSC members vote on Academic All-America teams. (approximately 2,000 selections annually)
• An Academic All-American Team Member of the Year is selected in each sport and division. (66 recipients)
• An Overall Academic All-American of the Year is selected as the top student-athlete across all sports in each NCAA and NAIA division. (4 recipients)

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