Martins Records First POW Award

Oskaloosa–Rafael Martins (Jr., Boca Raton, Fla.) stood strong between the pipes last Saturday in a big rivalry matchup, and for his efforts he was named Heart of America Athletic Conference Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week Monday.

Martins won his first weekly laurel after guiding the Statesmen men’s soccer team (8-6, 8-4 Heart) to a 2-0 win over Grand View.

The junior tallied five saves in the shutout; it would have been his first solo shutout of the fall had he not been removed for a matter of just a few seconds due to injury.

Martins’ performance moves him to 8-3 on the year with a 1.11 Goals Against Average. The junior has 24 saves to his credit in 971 minutes of action.

The weekly accolade is the first for WPU this season.