UAB senior defender Rumbani Munthali has been named All-American by the
National Soccer
Coaches Association of American. Named to the third team, he is the first
Blazer to be honored as an All-American by that organization.
Senior goalkeeper David Clemente was named second team All-South Region by
the NSCAA. He was the 2000 Defensive Player of the Year in Conference USA.
Munthali and Clemente helped lead the Blazers to a 14-5-2 record and a
second straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
From Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada, Munthali is a two-time first team
All-Conference USA performer. He was honored by the league each year at UAB,
winning Freshman of the Year honors in 1997, second team all-league as a
sophomore and then first team his junior and senior year.
This year Munthali's one-on-one defensive ability was one of the main
reasons the opposition averaged just nine shots per game in the regular
season. UAB outshot the opposition 289-225 during the season. The opposition
averaged just 1.1 goals per game compared to the Blazers 2.1 a game.
For his career Munthali played and started 57 games for the Blazers. He
played and started all 21 this season.
Clemente set school records for goals against in both a season and for a
career. He recorded an 0.96 goals against average in 2000. The old record
was 1.06, set by Loukas Papasconstantinou in 1994. For his career Clemente's
goals against average was 1.17 bettering Popaconstantinou's mark of 1.29.
This year Clemente was twice named as C-USA's Player of the Week. The first
time after helping UAB defeat NCAA Elite Eight participant North Carolina
2-1 and win the UAB/Nike Classic. He also earned the honor after a 2-0
shutout of C-USA opponent South Florida.
Clemente, from Brampton, Ontario, was part of 23 shutouts for his career,
recording 17 solo shutouts and six shared shutouts. He started 69 of the 73
matches he played in four years at UAB, including every match the last three
years. He was named All-C-USA first team this year and second-team as a
junior. He is second on the school's all-time saves list with 303 for his
career.
This was the second straight year and third time overall the Blazers
advanced to the NCAA
Tournament and the first ever trip as an at-large team.