NEW ORLEANS – South Carolina junior forward Loïc Sany Kong and James Madison fourth year goalkeeper Erik Jaspers earn Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week honors, respectively, following week five of the 2026 season.
 
Kong, a native of Quebec City, Canada, earns the award for the second time this season with South Carolina earning its fourth Player of the Week selection this season. Jaspers, hailing from Saratoga Springs, Utah, earns his first weekly honor as a Duke and is the first James Madison player selected this season.
 
Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week
Loïc Sany Kong, South Carolina
(Junior | Forward | Quebec City, Canada)
 
Kong scored his team-leading fourth goal of the 2026 campaign to put the fourth-ranked Gamecocks up 2-1 over No. 13 Old Dominion on Sept. 18. The 62nd minute goal proved to be the deciding tally in South Carolina’s fourth ranked win of the year.
 
He posted season highs with five shots, all on goal, against the Monarchs with a season-high 76 minutes on the pitch. Kong now leads South Carolina in goals scored (4), points (9), shots (17) and shots on goal (10) as a proven weapon for unbeaten and untied Gamecock attack.
 
Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week
Erik Jaspers, James Madison
(Fourth Year | Goalkeeper | Saratoga Springs, Utah)
 
Jaspers posted a clean sheet against (RV) UCF on Sept. 18 to record his third overall and second consecutive shutout of the season. As James Madison’s netminder, he tallied six saves to keep the Knights offense off the board.
 
The Dukes’ primary keeper now owns five career shutouts and holds an .800 save percentage on the year. He is second in the Sun Belt Conference in saves (28), shutouts (3) and saves per game (4.00).
 
2026 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Offensive Players of the Week
Week 1 (Aug. 25) – Loïc Sany Kong, F, South Carolina
Week 2 (Sept. 1) – Alejandro Velaszquez-Lopez, M, South Carolina
Week 3 (Sept. 8) – Lewis Rourke, F, Old Dominion
Week 4 (Sept. 15) – Pablo Pozos, F, West Virginia
Week 5 (Sept. 22) – Loïc Sany Kong, F, South Carolina
 
2026 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Defensive Players of the Week
Week 1 (Aug. 25) – Will Devine, GK, Coastal Carolina
Week 2 (Sept. 1) – Takahiro Fujita, D, UCF
Week 3 (Sept. 8) – Sandro Rabarivony, D, Georgia State
Week 4 (Sept. 15) – Mika Habel, D, South Carolina
Week 5 (Sept. 22) – Erik Jaspers, GK, James Madison