Date Posted: 9/15/2008

MACON, Ga. - Jacksonville forward Ramak Niakan Safi had his feet in all three of the Dolphins' goals this week to win his first Player of the Week award while Campbell's Aaron Johnson picked up his fifth career Defensive Player of the Week award for his efforts against ranked opposition, the conference office announced on Monday.

Niakan Safi, a senior from Jacksonville scored two goals and added an assist in the Dolphins' 3-0 win against Presbyterian on Friday at the adidas/Gamecock Classic. The marketing major opened the scoring at the 13-minute mark with an assist to Philipp Meyner. He tacked on his second goal, an unassisted tally at the 51st minute and recorded the assist on the final goal less than three minutes later. He joined Stetson's Eugene Starikov as the only two players in the A-Sun this year to register a five-point game. The huge outburst pushed Niakan Safi to the top of the Dolphins' scoring chart for 2008 with six points (two goals, two assists) and up to third in the conference.

Johnson allowed only one goal in two matches during the week. He recorded his second shutout of the season on Saturday against Georgia Southern, which entered the game ranked 5th in the South Region. Johnson allowed just one goal in a 1-0 loss at No. 23 Loyola (Md.) on Wednesday. The preseason A-Sun all-conference keeper leads the conference in goals-against average (0.50) and save percentage (.833), while playing all of CU's 360 minutes in the nets. The shutout of the Eagles moved Johnson, a Business Administration major from St. Charles, Mo., into third place on Camels' all-time shutouts list with 14.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life, with a focus on academic and athletic integrity and a balance between the two for the student-athlete, and maintaining a high level of sportsmanship. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun encompasses six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun consists of some of the most dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.

Other Top Performers

Sean Hoek, ETSU (Fr. - MF - Newburgh, Ind. - Undeclared) -- Scored the game-winning goal against Elon; Slipped past the back row of the defense to the far right of the goal and rocketed a shot between the Elon keeper and the post; Hoek was also named to the All-Tournament Team as ETSU finished second.

James Holt, ETSU (Fr. - GK - Murfreesboro, Tenn. - Business) -- Earned his third win of the season and his second shutout in the 1-0 win over Elon; The freshman came up big for the Bucs with a season high six saves against the Phoenix; Holt finished the weekend with 11 saves in 180 minutes.

Will Moorad, BEL (Fr. - F - Brentwood, Tenn. - Business) -- Scored game-winning goal in Belmont's 1-0 victory over Centenary at the Central Arkansas Tournament in Conway, Ark. on Sept. 13. It was his first career goal. He also led the team in shot attempts over the week with four.

Wesley Wrey, BEL (So. - GK - Bowling Green, Ky. - Engineering Physics) -- Notched first career shutout in first start in Belmont's 1-0 victory over Centenary at the Central Arkansas Tournament in Conway, Ark. on Sept. 13. He made four saves in the contest.

A-Sun Weekly Notes

The Camels are in the midst of an eight-match span where seven of its opponents are ranked in the Sept. 9 NSCAA regional poll…CU fell at Liberty (8th in the South Atlantic) and Loyola (23rd nation, 1st North Atlantic), before topping Georgia Southern (5th in the South) on Saturday…Campbell travels to (unranked in the South) UNC Greensboro (Wednesday) and to Appalachian State (9th in the South) Saturday…CU also travels to William & Mary (5th in South Atlantic) on Sept. 23 to make up a rained-out game from Sept. 6. The Camels host Stetson (10th in the South) on Oct. 2, and Florida Gulf Coast (tied for 6th with CU in the South poll) on Oct. 4…Campbell plays just twice at home this season before its A-Sun opener against Stetson on Oct. 2…However, the Camels are unbeaten (2-0) and unscored upon (5-0 goals difference) in its first two home matches, triumphs over UNC Wilmington (3-0) and Georgia Southern (2-0)…Since the start of the 2005 season, the Camels have a 20-5-0 record at home.

The Bisons return home this weekend for their own tournament. Friday night they will face Presbyterian at the Lipscomb soccer complex. Sunday afternoon they will play UNC-Asheville. This is second tournament of the season for the Bisons and the first of two in a row…The Bisons played their first nationally-ranked team this season when they visited Louisville Thursday night, 5-2 loss.

USC Upstate dropped three games last week to fall to 1-3-0 on the year…The Spartans began the week with a heartbreaking 2-1 loss at Georgia State…Upstate had a near automatic goal slip by and then tied the game at 1-1 before losing by the 2-1 margin…The Spartans lost a pair of 3-0 games to Winthrop and Gardner-Webb in the Wingate Inn Classic over the weekend…Upstate will continue the tournament format this week, playing in the Nike/Wofford Classic Friday and Sunday, taking on Wofford and Furman in the tournament…Upstate and Wofford, just 3.5 miles away from each other, will play for the first time in 20 years, while the Spartans and Furman will play for the first time in 19 years.

Related Links:
 • A-Sun Men's Soccer