Shaffer, Sommerfeld, Gervers named All-Region VII, ONU coaches named Region Staff of the Year by United Soccer Coaches

By Wes Mayberry

| 2023 United Soccer Coaches All-Region Teams (.pdf) | 2023 United Soccer Coaches Region Coaching Staffs of the Year |

ADA — Ohio Northern senior Will Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) and juniors Ryan Sommerfeld (Dublin/Coffman) and Brenden Gervers (Grand Blanc, Mich.) were named to the 2023 United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division III Men's All-Region VII Second Team.

All three were named to the All-Ohio Athletic Conference First Team earlier this year, and Shaffer and Sommerfeld were also College Sports Communicators Academic All-District selections.

This marks the first All-Region accolade for all three student-athletes.

Shaffer, a midfielder, ranked second on the team this season with 26 points and 10 goals and tied for the team lead in assists with six while starting all 21 games in which he played. He closed the season ranked fourth in the OAC in goals and assists and fifth in points.

Shaffer has started all 43 of his matches in his ONU career and has 37 points on 13 goals and 11 assists.

Sommerfeld played in all 23 games in 2023, starting 20 of them. He finished with a team-high 11 goals and 27 points while adding five assists. He finished tied for the OAC lead in goals and ranked third in the conference in points and 10th in assists.

In 49 games, including 28 starts, at ONU, Sommerfeld has 42 points on 16 goals and 10 assists.

Sommerfeld and Shaffer led a Polar Bear offense that finished the year with an OAC-best 58 goals, 56 assists and 172 points.

Gervers anchored an ONU defense that finished third in the OAC in GAA (1.06) and posted five shutouts while holding opponents to a .117 shooting percentage. Offensively, he posted 11 points on four goals and three assists in 2023.

In 61 games, including 42 starts, at ONU, Gervers has 17 points on six goals and five assists.

Additionally, United Soccer Coaches named the ONU men's soccer coaching staff of head coach Chris Matejka with assistants Seth Owings, Damon Spaeth and Dave Knapp as the NCAA Division III Region VII Staff of the Year for 2023 through a vote of their peers.

As such, they will be recognized at the College Coaches Awards Ceremony at the United Soccer Coaches Convention on Jan. 11, 2024, in Anaheim, Calif. They will also be placed on the ballot for National Staff of the Year consideration within NCAA Division III.

The Polar Bears closed the 2023 season with a 13-6-4 overall record and were second in the OAC with a 7-1-1 mark. They won the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament for the eighth time in program history and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division III Tournament for the second straight year and fifth time overall.

Matejka, the 2022 OAC Coach of the Year, is now 56-27-16 in five seasons at ONU.