ALFRED, NY — Richard Lander (Narrowsburg, NY/Sullivan West), a junior midfielder on the Alfred University men's soccer team, has earned academic honors from the College Sports Information Directors Association (CoSIDA).
                
Lander was named a CoSIDA Academic All-District 3 honoree, CoSIDA announced Thursday. District 3 is made up of colleges and universities in New York State. He is now eligible for consideration for CoSIDA Academic All-American honors; CoSIDA will announce its Division III Academic All-American teams Nov. 20.
                
The CoSIDA academic honors program takes into consideration excellence in the classroom and on the playing field. Student-athletes are eligible if they have a grade point average of at least 3.30. Lander, a mechanical engineering major, has a cumulative GPA of 3.96.
                
Lander is a two-time Empire 8 Conference all-star, having earned Second Team honors as a freshman and sophomore. This year he leads his team in goals (10), assists (nine) and points (29); his nine assists also lead the Empire 8 Conference while his goals and points totals rank second.
                
The Saxons are 10-4-2 overall and 3-2-1 in Empire 8 play. They wrap up their regular season Saturday, Oct. 31, at 1 p.m. at home against conference rival Ithaca College. A win against the Bombers would clinch a berth for the Saxons in the four-team E8 championship tournament, the winner of which earns the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III championship tournament.