St. Peter, Minn. – Gustavus Adolphus senior men’s soccer player Braden Schmid (West Fargo, N.D) has been named to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-America Division III Men’s Soccer Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). After earning Academic All-District honors for the first time in his career earlier this season, Schmid earns a place on this year’s Academic All-America Second Team.
“Very exciting news about Braden’s selection to the Academic All-America Team – the third in four years for the men’s soccer program at Gustavus,” said Head Coach Mike Middleton. “You could not meet a more deserving candidate. He’s a bright lad in the classroom and terrific company outside it. He is always upbeat, is a tremendously hard worker, and is a very talented individual.”
A goalkeeper under Mike Middleton the past four seasons, Schmid served as the backup for three years before being thrust into the spotlight during his final campaign of collegiate soccer. Prior to this season, the senior saw action in a total of 11 matches, logged just over 256 minutes, and wasn’t credited with a result. In 2014, the West Fargo, North Dakota native made the transition to a starting role and played an integral part in Gustavus’s run to an MIAC Playoff Championship and NCAA Tournament berth.
“Braden is absolutely terrific in practice and a very accomplished goalkeeper,” Middleton commented. “He is big, commanding, and lighting quick. His decision-making is first class and he conveys a feeling of confidence to the defense. It speaks volumes for Braden that he has battled away all four years to earn the number one goalkeeping jersey. He had to replace All-American Brett Ylonen to get the starting spot, which he did a lot of this year. That wasn’t an easy challenge, but he kept battling and accomplished it.”
After suffering the loss in a 90-minute effort against Wartburg, Schmid earned his first collegiate victory against Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 3 after shutting the Knights out in 45 minutes of work. He then split time with fellow senior goalkeeper Brett Ylonen (Lake Elmo, Minn.) over the next four matches before taking over for Ylonen after he suffered an injury against UW-Oshkosh on Sept. 14. Braden went on to earn the overtime win over the Titans and then went 4-1-1 over his next six starts against collegiate foes.
Following the MIAC regular season, Schmid was named to the All-MIAC Honorable Mention Team after going 4-1-1 in league play. Within MIAC play, he led the league in goals against average at 0.48 and ranked second in save percentage at .857.
“When Braden was playing behind Brett you never heard a word of complaint or moaning,” said Middleton about Schmid’s work ethic and commitment. “He still came to practice, worked as hard as anyone on the squad, and supported every other person in the soccer program. He was terrific for Brett – both of them pushed each other to the limit of their potential. What more could a coach ask for? He has been absolutely terrific for our program.”
The senior logged 959:30 minutes and went 9-3-1 overall in 2014. He allowed six goals to finish with a goals against average of just 0.56, made 28 saves for a save percentage of .824, and posted three 90-minute shutouts.
A biology major with a cumulative grade point average of 3.83, Braden Schmid is the first Gustavus student-athlete this school year to earn Capital One Academic All-America honors. Beginning with the selection of Brad Baker as the College’s first in 1979, Gustavus is now home to 80 Academic All-Americans who have been awarded the prestigious honor a total of 103 times. Schmid follows in the footsteps of former men’s soccer Academic All-Americans Trevor Brown (2007), Ben Ceder (2011), and Sean Sendelbach (2013).
“Braden is a great ambassador for Gustavus and the definition of a good guy. He also competes for the most stylish dresser alongside Eli Bjerk,” laughed Middleton. “Jokes aside, I could not be more pleased for Braden – a most deserving award. David Lilly being named MIAC Player-of-the-Year and now Braden’s Academic All-American selection have really made my season. Well done Braden, well done.”
To be eligible for Academic All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program’s inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 19,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
For more information about the Academic All-America Teams program, please visit www.cosida.com.