BLINN’S MARCO RODRIGUEZ JR. NAMED NJCAA MEN’S PLAYER OF THE WEEK

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Blinn College sophomore midfielder Marco Rodriguez Jr. was named NJCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Player of the Week for his performance in Week 1 of the 2020-21 season.

Rodriguez scored two goals on three shots to help lead the Buccaneers to a 3-1 win over Paris Junior College in last week’s season opener.

“It is an awesome feeling to be named the player of the week,” Rodriguez said. “My favorite moment of that game was when I scored the second goal to give Blinn the lead and then I ran to my teammates. We are off to a great start and want to keep winning, and our main goal is to go to playoffs and win it all.”

Blinn has a 2-0 overall and conference record.

“He is such a hard-working player, so it nice to see him get this honor and recognition,” head coach Michael McBride said. “He was a difference maker in a tight game for us and is the type of player who can turn a game on its head in seconds. He had a dynamic performance and his stats obviously show that, but everything else that he did that wasn’t on the stat sheet was excellent as well.”

Rodriguez leads the Buccaneers with two goals so far this season.

“Marco played incredible, made a huge impact against Paris, and it was definitely the best performance we’ve seen from him since he’s been at Blinn, so his recognition is well-deserved,” assistant coach Jacob Beerman said. “Marco is incredibly hard-working and humble, which represents everything we want in a player in our program. He has such dynamism and flare as a winger where he can impact a game at any moment.”

Next, the Buccaneers look to stay undefeated against Jacksonville College on Friday, April 9, at 5 p.m.

For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.

(COURTESY: Tara Dreyer, Blinn Information)