CoSIDA Release
CoSIDA Academic All-America Men's Soccer Teams (PDF)

Dec. 7, 2017

AUSTIN, Texas (SMU/CoSIDA) – Philip Ponder was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America Third Team, the organization announced Thursday.

Ponder is in his second year on the Hilltop and carries a perfect 4.00 grade-point average while working towards a bachelor of business administration in management degree. The defender has started 15 matches for the Mustangs and scored his first career goal at Santa Clara to lift SMU to a 1-0 victory on Sept. 9.

The Denton, Texas, native helped the Mustangs become the first team to win the American Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles in the same year. Ponder led a backline that allowed only 13 goals on the season.

Ponder is the 10th Mustang to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and the first since Adam Still in 2011.

The Mustangs finished the regular season ranked No. 10 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll and made their 31st appearance in the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. SMU advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament for the 23rd time and the second time in the last three years (2015, 2017).