KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Missouri State's Matthew Bentley, Josh Dolling, and Kyle Hiebert were named NCAA Division I All-Americans, announced by the United Soccer Coaches on Thursday night (Dec. 12).
 
Bentley highlights the list with a First Team selection while Dolling and Hiebert landed on the Second Team.  The trio becomes the first All-Americans for MSU since Ryan Anderson made the second team in the 2005 season.
 
The All-America honor becomes the latest accolade for Bentley, who joined both Dolling and Hiebert on the All-West Region First Team that was announced on Monday (Dec. 9).  He led the team and the Missouri Valley Conference in goals (15), points (34), and game-winning goals (6) which resulted in being tabbed the league's Offensive Player of the Year.  The senior forward closed out MSU's perfect 16-0 regular-season run with an eight-game scoring streak.  He totaled 11 goals during that span which included a trio of multi-goal performances against Evansville (Oct. 5), Bradley (Oct. 9), and Valpo (Oct. 30).  Along with All-MVC First Team laurels, Bentley was named a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist.
 
Dolling followed up his breakout sophomore season by scoring four straight game-winning goals for MSU to open the 2019 campaign.  He totaled 19 points on seven goals and five assists to rank in the top-5 among Valley players in those respective categories.  The two-time All-Region honoree adds an All-American nod to his awards résumé which includes back-to-back All-MVC First Team selections.  The junior from Liverpool, England made the MVC All-Tournament Team after scoring the game-winner in the Bears' 1-0 win over Drake in the semifinals.
 
Hiebert started all 20 matches for MSU this season to extend his streak of 54 consecutive starts.  He anchored the Bears' backline that was one of the top defenses in the nation with a 0.632 goals against average.  He also chipped in four points for the MSU attack with a goal and two assists.  Hiebert was named the Valley's Defensive Player of the Year while earning All-MVC First Team distinctions for an MSU team that allowed just nine goals in its perfect 10-0 conference record.  It's the first athletic All-American award for Hiebert, who has received CoSIDA Academic All-American honors the past three seasons.  Additionally, he was selected as the 2019 MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men's soccer.
 
Missouri State finished the season with a program-best 18-1-1 record and won its first-ever NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament match, defeating Denver on Nov. 21, before falling to UCF in the second round in the Bears' only loss of the year.  The Bears, who posted their first 16-0 regular-season mark, claimed the club's eighth MVC regular-season championship.