Indiana University Athletics
Ambersley, Ring Earn Team Honors
12/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Dec. 20, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Senior midfielder/forward Mike Ambersley and freshman midfielder Brad Ring were named the Indiana Soccer Most Valuable Player and Most Improved Player, respectively, head coach Mike Freitag announced. The pair was selected as MVP and Most Improved Player by their teammates.
Ambersley was a model of consistency during his senior campaign. He finished the year with five goals, six assists and 16 points. His assist total ranked fifth in the Big Ten and third on the Hoosier squad. Ambersley showed a knack for doing the small things that did not show up on the stat sheet.
"I am very happy that Mike Ambersley achieved this award during his senior year," Freitag said. "Mike is a young man who has been a contributor from day one since joining this program. He has grown on and off the field. I was very pleased with his performance this year. He was our most consistent player."
Ambersley had three points with a goal and assist in three contests during his final season with the Hoosiers. He accomplished the feat against then-No. 7 SMU (9/4), Butler (10/19) and Notre Dame (10/26). The Ballwin, Mo., native also notched two goals, including the game-winner, in a 5-0 victory over IUPUI. He was one of 54 college players invited to the Major League Soccer (MLS) Combine, Jan. 12-15, 2006, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.
Ring saw his playing time increase throughout the season. After not playing in the first game of the season against then-No. 10 Wake Forest, the Rockford, Ill., native played in every Hoosier match with the exception of the Notre Dame affair on Oct. 26, which he sat out as a precautionary measure with an injury.
"Brad Ring epitomizes everything that is good about IU soccer," Freitag said. "He has a very bright future and will be a leader in our program. He is the type of individual that shows up every day and goes about his business in the right way. He is just going to get better and better."
Ring made three starts in the defensive midfield position. He started in place of 2005 Big Ten Player of the Year Brian Plotkin, who was out due to accumulation of yellow cards, in the Hoosiers' Big Ten Tournament opening victory against Wisconsin (11/10). Ring scored a goal on a 40-yard bomb against then-No. 25 Cal State-Northridge (9/16) in a 5-0 victory. He was named as one of four midfielders to the Big Ten All-Freshmen Team.
