ROCK HILL, SC - For the second time this season, Bram Kaarsgaren has earned SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors the conference announced on Tuesday, Nov. 2.
Kaarsgaren earns the honor after recording six saves and holding the #11 Limestone Saints off the scoreboard in the Eagles 2-0 win on Saturday, Oct. 30. It is just the second time this season that the Saints have been shutout this season and is the fourth shutout of the year for Kaarsgaren. Kaarsgaren now ranks fourth in program history with 15.1 shutouts in his career.
The Dutchman came up big for the Eagles in the 77th minute of the match this past weekend, saving a Jacob Hancock penalty kick that would have cut into the C-N advantage in the final third of the match. The Carson-Newman defense also held the highest scoring offense in the SAC to just 11 shots, their second lowest output of the season.
"Bram's save was a huge moment in the match," says Carson-Newman men's soccer head coach Stephen Lyons. "That could've been a momentum shifter but he was strong in net for us."
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— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) October 31, 2021
Clean sheet intact! PK thwarted!
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It was the second match in a row where Kaarsgaren recorded six saves. His 51 saves this season are the fifth most in the SAC. Kaarsgaren is now recording a save percentage of .797, first in the SAC and 26th in the nation. His goals against average of 0.98 currently ranks as the eighth best in program history and 46th in the nation.
The shutout victory helped Carson-Newman capture their 11th SAC regular season championship, the most of any team in the SAC. It is also the first time Carson-Newman has won back-to-back SAC regular season championships since the Eagles won three straight championships from 2008-2010.
This is the seventh career SAC player of the week honor for Kaarsgaren in his career, the most in program history. Kaarsgaren became the first goalkeeper in SAC history to earn multiple weekly awards in one season in 2019. Since then, he has earned at least two weekly awards in every season since his first year in Mossy Creek. During the 2021 spring season, Kaarsgaren became the second player in SAC history to earn three weekly awards in one season.
This is the third straight week that Carson-Newman has had a player earn SAC Player of the Week honors. Thaylan Silva earned SAC Offensive Player of the Week Oct. 19 and 26. It is the first time a SAC school has earned three straight SAC Player of the Week honors for men's soccer since Carson-Newman earned three straight honors to end the 2019 season and at the start of the 2021 spring season. Kensho Yoshikoshi earned defensive player of the week honors on Nov. 5, 2019, Theo Hardenby Öhrwall earned offensive player of the week on Feb. 17, 2021 and Kaarsgaren earned defensive player of the week honors on Feb. 24, 2021.
Kaarsgaren and the Eagles close out the regular season on Wednesday, Nov. 3, at Lenoir-Rhyne. Kickoff is set for 7:30 P.M. from Hickory, with a live video stream and stats available atl lrbears.com. Fans can also follow along with updates on Twitter at the new home of Carson-Newman athletics at @cn_eagles.
2021 SAC AstroTurf Men's Soccer Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week
Sept. 7 – Carles Montoliu Lobo, Lenoir-Rhyne
Sept. 14 – Alexandre Cox-Ashwood, Anderson
Sept. 21 – Tristyn De Laaf, Limestone
Sept. 28 – Noah Tiefel, Lenoir-Rhyne
Oct. 5 – Victor Cascon, Lenoir-Rhyne
Oct. 12 – Sebastian Bertilsson, Mars Hill
Oct. 19 – Thaylan Silva, Carson-Newman
Oct. 26 – Thaylan Silva, Carson-Newman
Nov. 2 – Nicolas Bohigues, Lenoir-Rhyne
Defensive Player of the Week
Sept. 7 – Camden Coleman, Lenoir-Rhyne
Sept. 14 – Jasper Rump, Coker
Sept. 21 – Johann Hipper, Limestone
Sept. 28 – Andres Cabranes, Limestone
Oct. 5 – Bram Kaarsgaren, Carson-Newman
Oct. 12 – Nolan McMillen, Mars Hill
Oct. 19 – Bastiaan Jager, Coker
Oct. 26 – Johann Hipper, Limestone
Nov. 2 – Bram Kaarsgaren, Carson-Newman
