Haigh and Kajiwara Named to USC All-West Region Team

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The University of Dallas men's soccer team placed a pair of players on the United Soccer Coaches All-West Region team when it was released on Wednesday. Eric Haigh (Frisco, Texas) and Nat Kajiwara (Southlake, Texas) received recognition by earning Second and Third Team honors, respectively.

Haigh was the anchor on the back line for the Crusaders as the junior started all 19 matches and was part of seven shutouts by the squad. Even more impressive for Haigh was his role in moving the ball, as his signature flip-throw was among a couple set pieces to lead to a couple UD goals. He scored his first career goal on a penalty kick (PK) and finished with four assists – including the team's first scoring play in the conference semifinals versus Southwestern University.

Kajiwara shined his freshman season with the Crusaders as he led all first-year players with 10 goals (tied for third overall in the SCAC) and points with 23 (fifth overall in the SCAC). He had three game-winners during the season and earned All-Tournament honors as Dallas made its first-ever appearance in a SCAC soccer tournament final. The forward tied team-highs in goals and finished second in points. In his collegiate debut, Kajiwara netted both goals – including the game-winner – in a 2-1 overtime triumph against George Fox University.

The duo have already collected several different postseason accolades this year. Kajiwara claimed SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year, All-SCAC Second Team, and Honorable Mention All-American with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA). Haigh was named All-SCAC First Team and received two votes for conference Defensive Player-of-the-Year. This same pair also swept SCAC Players-of-the-Week for games played through October 15th.

Dallas tied fourth all-time in the program with a .737 winning percentage by going 13-4-2. It was the best performance in the SCAC (10-2-2) as the Crusaders won their first ever conference tournament game, too.