Pitt’s Valentin Noel and Jasper Löeffelsend earn school’s first-ever All-American soccer honors

Photo courtesy Pitt Athletics

When it comes to accolades, this year’s edition of the Pitt men’s soccer program has achieved many new heights.

On Thursday, another impressive honor came as sophomore Valentin Noel and graduate student Jasper Löeffelsend each earned All-American honors, with Noel claiming First Team and Löeffelsend Second Team.

The duo become the first Panthers in program history to be named All-Americans.

United Soccer Coaches Awards Page 

Noel, who was named a MAC Hermann Trophy finalist and All-Region honoree earlier this week, is one of the nation’s leaders in multiple offensive categories. The Niort, France, native is second in the country in goals with 14, while his 0.78 goals per game is ninth in the nation. The midfielder is third in the country in total points (30) and 17^th in points per game (1.67).

Earlier this fall, Noel scored a goal in six-straight contests from Oct. 10 to Nov. 22, breaking a single-season record. Noel is currently on a three match goal streak, scoring a one goal in each of Pitt’s three NCAA Tournament matches. He has three multi-goal games on the year.

Löeffelsend quickly made a name for himself as one of the best passers in the country, totaling nine assists and .50 assists per game, good for fourth and 29^th in the nation, respectively. The Cologne, Germany, native tallied three assists in a 4-2 home victory over Virginia Tech Oct. 10. The three assists against the Hokies tied for second in a single-game at Pitt.

Löeffelsend is currently tied for third in assists for a single season at Pitt. He was named All-Region First Team earlier this week.

In addition, two Penn State players, Pierre Reedy and Danny Bloyou earned a spot on the All-American Third Team.

No. 2 Pitt faces No. 3 Indiana in the NCAA College Cup Semifinal Friday, May 14 at 8:30 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU.