New Jersey City University Athletics

CENTERVILLE, MA (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University sophomore forward RAPHAEL ARAUJO (North Plainfield, NJ/North Plainfield) has earned his second major weekly award, taking home the first Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Metro Offensive Player of the Week honor of the 2012 season.
 
Araujo, who was honored on Monday as the New Jersey Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career after being the clear-cut choice for Most Valuable Player of the 2012 NJCU Liberty Cup, currently leads the nation in goals (11), goals per game (2.2) and points (23).
 
Last week he enjoyed one of the finest offensive weeks in the history of the sport at the institution, scoring eight goals and 16 points in three games. The highlight of the week was his scoring seven of the Gothic Knight's eight total goals in the Liberty Cup tournament.
 
The Knights went 3-0 last week and won the championship of the Liberty Cup for the fifth time in six tournaments. He had 20 total shots including 13 on goal. NJCU is 4-1 and off to its best start since 2006.
 
Araujo has scored in five consecutive games to start the season—a school record—and his 11 total goals over the first five games of the season are also the most by a player in the 54-year history of the program.
 
He scored the only offensive goal in a 2-0 win at City College of New York on September 5 and an incredible four goals in a 5-2 victory against Keystone College on September 8 in the opening round of the Liberty Cup—notching the first, second, fourth and fifth markers for NJCU.
 
In a 3-2 double-overtime triumph over FDU-Florham in the Liberty Cup finals on September 8, he netted his second hat trick of the weekend. He twice scored game-tying goals after NJCU had fallen behind 1-0 and 2-1 in the first half before pouncing 49 seconds into double overtime for the tournament winner.
 
Araujo is a Presidential Scholar who attends the University on a full academic scholarship, studying Accounting. A 2012 Academic All-District® candidate, he has the team's highest grade point average and was a Fall 2011 Dean's List recipient.