SAN DIEGO - University of California San Diego men's soccer senior captain Kuba Waligorski has been announced as a San Diego Hall of Champions (SDHOC) Star of the Month for November.
Waligorski, a third-year Triton from Szczecin, Poland, by way of the University of Dayton (Ohio), led UC San Diego to a perfect 5-0 mark during the month of November. UCSD, already a first-time California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) champion at the end of October, proceeded to win the program's first CCAA Tournament title on Nov. 6 in Turlock, followed by a first-ever NCAA Division II West Region crown on Nov. 18 at home, 1-0 in overtime over 2015 national runner-up Cal Poly Pomona.
Waligorski anchored shutouts in three of those five victories, with the only two goals that the nation's No. 4 defense conceded in November, coming from the penalty spot. If that weren't enough, he scored three of his career-best four goals this season, in UCSD's first three NCAA Championship games.
The Tritons navigated their way through to the national semifinals, falling 2-0 to top-ranked eventual national champion Wingate (N.C.) in Kansas City, Mo., last Thursday, Dec. 1. They thus completed the best season in the program's 17-year Division II history at 19-3-2 overall. On Tuesday morning came the final National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll, with UCSD ascending from No. 10 to the No. 4 position, it's highest national ranking in Division II.
On Nov. 30, Waligorski was named to the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) All-America Second Team, marking a first All-America distinction for the 2015 Academic All-American. A day later, he became a consensus All-American by being selected to the NSCAA All-America Second Team as well.
Waligorski is a first-time SDHOC Star of the Month, and gives UCSD 15 for the 2016 calendar year. The other honorees have been Reilly Boyt, Michael Cohn, Colleen Daley and Dari Watkins of swimming, Jamie Katuna and Adam Klie of basketball, Leanne Singleton-Comfort of fencing, Kelsi Maday of softball, Laurel Kistler of water polo, Dan Golubovic and Paige Hughes of track and field, and Meghan Berry, Cameron McElfresh and Katie O'Laughlin of soccer.
The San Diego Hall of Champions honors outstanding athletes from San Diego, as well as athletes who have achieved stardom for local teams.
ABOUT THE HALL OF CHAMPIONS
The "Hall" is dedicated to recognizing and celebrating outstanding local athletic achievement and providing sports programming to the community. The Hall was launched by the Breitbard Athletic Foundation, which was founded in 1946 by the legendary Bob Breitbard to recognize significant athletic achievement in San Diego. Through its awards and recognition programs and vigilant focus on the community of San Diego and its betterment, the Hall is devoted to motivating and inspiring youth of all ages to reach their full potential. For more information, please visit www.sdhoc.com.
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