University of Delaware men's soccer graduate student Ben Sampson has been named the 2016-17 Colonial Athletic Association Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Sampson is the first UD male athlete to earn the award, joining UD standouts Elena Delle Donne (2012-13, women's basketball) and Lindsay Prettyman (2013-14, cross country and track and field).

Sampson, a two-time CAA men's soccer scholar-athlete of the year, was named the CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year this past season. Sampson was a 2014 CoSIDA Academic All-American third team selection, and was named to the CoSIDA second team in 2015. The midfielder was also a three-time Academic All-American selection.

Sampson was a four-year starter and set the program record for games played (85) and starts (84). During his illustrious Blue Hens career, Sampson was twice named a team-captain and helped lead the Hens' to a spot in the national rankings (22), and to an NCAA tournament berth a season ago.

Throughout his UD career, Sampson scored 10 goals and tallied four assists. This past season, the electrical engineering major scored a career high four goals and tallied the second most minutes played (1797), appearing in all but one game.

The defensive stalwart shared the CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award with Northeastern's Mackenzie Dowd (women's soccer).