FORMER Dynamos starlet Tinashe Simbo has scored a major milestone in US collegiate football after being named in the 2021 NAIA Men’s Soccer All-America Team announced on Wednesday last week.
Five players from Simbo’s team Ottawa University popularly known as OUAZ Spirit namely Tom Cohen, Victor de la O Kebba Jobe, Angel Ramirez, and the Zimbabwean made it into the team.
All five of the selections from OUAZ are first-time NCCAA All-America recipients and are also the most from OUAZ in a single season.
Simbo teammate and Cohen were given honourable mention and this is the first honourable mention nod for each player as they become the second and third players in program history to earn the designation.
The 22-year-old, who was registered by Harare giants Dynamos as one of the five junior players in 2019, starred for the university side with five goals and five assists during the season.
The freshman from Harare, Zimbabwe, put 17 of his 28 shots on goal while posting a pair of game-winning goals. He tallied a two-goal game in the road win at The Master’s on October 4, and the team went 3-1 when Simbo scored a goal.
Simbo adds this honour to being named the GSAC Freshman of the Year and selected to the NCCAA All-America Second Team.
However, it was Cohen who was the star player for Spirit managing 11 goals and 13 assists. He tied for the GSAC lead in assists, ranked fifth in the NAIA, and set a new program record for assists in a season.
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Along with being named NAIA Honourable Mention All-America, Cohen was named to the GSAC All-Conference Team, the NCCAA All-America First Team, and he was twice the GSAC Player of the Week.
de la O led played the most minutes, 1,627, in the OUAZ team and the senior from Ripon, California, scored three goals on 12 shots. He played a crucial role in the Spirit defense finishing the season with a 0.92 goals-against-average.
Jobe ended the season second on the team with six goals and nine assists while Ramirez played every minute in goal for the Spirit, and the senior from Tempe, Arizona, finished 13-5-1 with a program-record nine shutouts and 0.92 GAA.
Ramirez made 55 saves for a .753 save percentage, and his 277 minutes, 49 seconds shutout streak to start the season set a new program record.
