Holt, Omondi earn national honors

For the first time in program history, the John Brown University men’s soccer team captured a sweep of the NAIA National Player of the Week selections as senior Adam Holt was chosen for the defensive award while junior Kelvin Omondi was tapped for the offensive, the national offices announced on Tuesday (Sept. 26) afternoon.

With a nine-save effort and allowing just one goal, Holt, a Tulsa, Okla., native, helped the Golden Eagles (4-3-0) to upset No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan by a 2-1 final. Making numerous game-preserving stops, Holt’s evening was highlighted by a goal line clear and a diving save in the 84th minute. Holt, and the Golden Eagles, have a 3-0-1 record against OKWU when they held the ranking of No. 5, No. 3, No. 6, and No. 1, respectively, over the past four meetings.

This is the second time Holt has been selected at the national level, with the first coming after his 1-0 clean-sheet effort over Oklahoma Wesleyan in 2015.

Omondi earned his first national offensive honors with a three-goal week, including a pair of gamewinners. Against OKWU, Omondi netted the dagger with just three minutes left when junior Ryan Williams played a ball from the back midfield all the way up the left wing to Omondi. After taking the ball deep into the attacking area, Omondi beat his defender one-on-one and cut into the box, unleashing an eight-yard rip, stunning the home crowd and sending the Golden Eagle bench into a frenzy. Against Texas A&M – Texarkana, Omondi potted his sixth and seventh goals of the season, both outstanding unassisted efforts, to take over the conference lead in game-winning goals on the season.

“I’m proud of the effort our team has given over the past couple weeks, and that group effort has resulted in some fun results,” head coach Brenton Benware said. “It’s great to see Kelvin and Adam honored on a national level; both played a big role in leading their team and securing some big results for us. I’m excited to see how they continue to step up as we pursue bigger things this season.”