Marshall University Athletics
Dolabella Named Senior CLASS Award Candidate
3/24/2021 4:13:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Marshall midfielder recognized for leading on and off the pitch
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall men's soccer senior Pedro Dolabella was recognized Wednesday as one of 30 of the top NCAA men's soccer student-athletes for his accomplishments on and off the pitch, as a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award. Dolabella has been a leader for the Herd since he first came to Huntington.
CLASS is an acronym for "Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School." For a player to eligible for the award they must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award is focused on the complete student-athlete and encourages students to use the platform they have as athletes to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. Dolabella is one of three players from Conference USA named to the list along with Patrick Hogan of Charlotte and Bailey Rouse of Kentucky. Future C-USA men's soccer member Coastal Carolina was represented as well by Tor Saunders.
"To me Pedro is the perfect example of why this award was created," Herd head coach Chris Grassie said. "He's diligent in the classroom, active in the community and leads us on the pitch. His academic record is there for all to see. He speaks multiple languages. He works with kids in our community three or four nights per week. He helps our team culture immensely. I'm extremely proud to have him represent us for this award."
Dolabella has been an integral part of the rise of the Marshall men's soccer program, now ranked No. 8 in the country according to the NCAA/United Soccer Coaches top 25 poll. Entering Wednesday night's match at WVU, Dolabella has appeared in 63 matches with 58 starts during his career and has scored 12 goals, with his biggest coming as the game-winning, golden goal in the 103rd minute of the 2019 Conference USA Championship match.
The Brasilia, Brazil native made his way to Marshall from The Pennington School in Pennington, New Jersey. The 6-4 midfielder was turned away by other Division I programs before landing with coach Grassie and Marshall before the 2017 season. Dolabella has been a star ever since.
As a freshman in 2017, Dolabella appeared in all 19 matches with 14 starts and logged over 1,100 minutes on the pitch. He finished second on the team in goals with four and helped take Marshall to the C-USA Tournament where the Herd upset No. 3 seed Kentucky in the first round and advanced to the semi-final. Marshall lost 1-0 to No. 2 seed Old Dominion, who went on to win the tournament. By the end of his freshman year, Dolabella was named to the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll and received the Academic Medal for a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or better, the first of many academic accolades along his journey.
In 2018, Dolabella started and appeared in 18 of the Herd's 20 matches, logging over 1,500 minutes. He played every minute of five matches and scored one goal, coming against Purdue Fort Wayne. Dolabella did notch three assists as again Marshall upset its first round opponent, No. 4 seed FIU, at the C-USA Tournament. The herd advanced to the semi-final in consecutive seasons, and lost again to the eventual tournament champions, this time the No. 1 seed Kentucky Wildcats. Dolabella also repeated as a member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll and received his second Academic Medal.
As a junior in 2019, Dolabella and his teammates were determined to win the championship. Marshall became a ranked team in the top 25 during the season for the first time since 2001, and Dolabella was again a major piece to the team's success. He started 20 matches and tied for second on the team with seven goals and added four assists. Marshall won the C-USA Regular Season Championship and then rolled through the tournament defeating Kentucky and Charlotte, both ranked in the NCAA top 25, on the way to the tournament title and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Herd's first-ever trip to the NCAA postseason.
Dolabella was named the Conference USA Tournament Offensive MVP after scoring the game-winner with a header off a corner kick in the 103rd minute for the championship win. He was also named Second Team All-Conference, Conference USA All-Academic Team and to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-South Region Second Team. And of course, became a three-time member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll and his third Academic Medal in the spring of 2020.
In the spring of 2021, Dolabella has started and played in six matches while helping to lead Marshall to its first-ever top 10 ranking. He is tied for the team lead with three assists.
Off the pitch, along with starring in the classroom, Dolabella has been involved with kids in the community. He has been to several elementary schools to read to kids and has been helping children from the WV Football Club as well as coaching underprivileged kids from Kanawha Valley Soccer.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall men's soccer team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdMSoccer, Facebook at Marshall University Soccer and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
CLASS is an acronym for "Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School." For a player to eligible for the award they must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award is focused on the complete student-athlete and encourages students to use the platform they have as athletes to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. Dolabella is one of three players from Conference USA named to the list along with Patrick Hogan of Charlotte and Bailey Rouse of Kentucky. Future C-USA men's soccer member Coastal Carolina was represented as well by Tor Saunders.
"To me Pedro is the perfect example of why this award was created," Herd head coach Chris Grassie said. "He's diligent in the classroom, active in the community and leads us on the pitch. His academic record is there for all to see. He speaks multiple languages. He works with kids in our community three or four nights per week. He helps our team culture immensely. I'm extremely proud to have him represent us for this award."
Dolabella has been an integral part of the rise of the Marshall men's soccer program, now ranked No. 8 in the country according to the NCAA/United Soccer Coaches top 25 poll. Entering Wednesday night's match at WVU, Dolabella has appeared in 63 matches with 58 starts during his career and has scored 12 goals, with his biggest coming as the game-winning, golden goal in the 103rd minute of the 2019 Conference USA Championship match.
The Brasilia, Brazil native made his way to Marshall from The Pennington School in Pennington, New Jersey. The 6-4 midfielder was turned away by other Division I programs before landing with coach Grassie and Marshall before the 2017 season. Dolabella has been a star ever since.
As a freshman in 2017, Dolabella appeared in all 19 matches with 14 starts and logged over 1,100 minutes on the pitch. He finished second on the team in goals with four and helped take Marshall to the C-USA Tournament where the Herd upset No. 3 seed Kentucky in the first round and advanced to the semi-final. Marshall lost 1-0 to No. 2 seed Old Dominion, who went on to win the tournament. By the end of his freshman year, Dolabella was named to the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll and received the Academic Medal for a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or better, the first of many academic accolades along his journey.
In 2018, Dolabella started and appeared in 18 of the Herd's 20 matches, logging over 1,500 minutes. He played every minute of five matches and scored one goal, coming against Purdue Fort Wayne. Dolabella did notch three assists as again Marshall upset its first round opponent, No. 4 seed FIU, at the C-USA Tournament. The herd advanced to the semi-final in consecutive seasons, and lost again to the eventual tournament champions, this time the No. 1 seed Kentucky Wildcats. Dolabella also repeated as a member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll and received his second Academic Medal.
As a junior in 2019, Dolabella and his teammates were determined to win the championship. Marshall became a ranked team in the top 25 during the season for the first time since 2001, and Dolabella was again a major piece to the team's success. He started 20 matches and tied for second on the team with seven goals and added four assists. Marshall won the C-USA Regular Season Championship and then rolled through the tournament defeating Kentucky and Charlotte, both ranked in the NCAA top 25, on the way to the tournament title and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Herd's first-ever trip to the NCAA postseason.
Dolabella was named the Conference USA Tournament Offensive MVP after scoring the game-winner with a header off a corner kick in the 103rd minute for the championship win. He was also named Second Team All-Conference, Conference USA All-Academic Team and to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-South Region Second Team. And of course, became a three-time member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll and his third Academic Medal in the spring of 2020.
In the spring of 2021, Dolabella has started and played in six matches while helping to lead Marshall to its first-ever top 10 ranking. He is tied for the team lead with three assists.
Off the pitch, along with starring in the classroom, Dolabella has been involved with kids in the community. He has been to several elementary schools to read to kids and has been helping children from the WV Football Club as well as coaching underprivileged kids from Kanawha Valley Soccer.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall men's soccer team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdMSoccer, Facebook at Marshall University Soccer and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
---HerdZone.com---
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