Wingate’s Ander Named United Soccer Coaches Player of the Week

Courtesy of Wingate Athletics

Kansas City, Mo.----Wingate University All-American forward Jon Ander (Bilbao, Spain) has been named the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer National Player of the Week by the United Soccer Coaches. The SAC Tournament MVP earns National Player of the Week honors for the first time in his career after leading the Bulldogs to their second SAC Tournament title in three years.

Ander piled up five goals in three SAC Tournament games last week, adding an assist to lead the four-time defending regular season SAC champs to their second conference tournament title in the last three years. Two of the three goals were game-winners.

The 2015 SAC Player of the Year, Ander started his 2017 SAC Tournament a goal and an assist in the SAC Tournament quarterfinals, leading top-seeded Wingate to a 3-0 victory over Newberry. Ander's two goals in the final 18 minutes of the SAC Tournament semifinal victory over LMU included the game-winner as the 'Dogs prevailed 3-0 to advance to the SAC title match. Ander scored both goals in the championship game, including the title-clincher in double-overtime of the 2-1 victory against Queens.

Ander is no stranger to coming up huge on a big stage. He had five goals and an assist in the NCAA Tournament run last year, leading the Bulldogs to their first ever national title. After scoring both goals in the tournament opener, Ander had an assist on the lone goal of the regional title victory over 2015 national champion Pfeiffer. He scored the game's only goal in the 1-0 win over Tampa in the NCAA National Quarterfinals. Ander scored both goals in the national title match, leading the Bulldogs to a 2-0 win over Charleston while being named the Most Outstanding Offensive Player at the NCAA Final Four.

Ander has nine goals and four assists on the year, ranking second on the team in goals and points while ranking third in assists. He ranks seventh in the SAC in goals and points. The senior has 30 goals and 19 assists in his three-year career as a Bulldog.

Wingate is the number two seed in this week's NCAA Regional. The Bulldogs will serve as the host school for the second straight year, with Lincoln Memorial and Lander playing Friday at 7 p.m. at Pride Park. The Bulldogs will face the winner of that contest Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN3, with the winner of that contest advancing to next week's regional title match.

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