California men's soccer seniors Kevin Carmichael and Nonso Adimabua – who have been instrumental to the success of the Golden Bears this season – were named to the All-ACC Second Team and Third Team, respectively, the conference announced Wednesday.
 
A Cal co-captain and central defender adept at heading away crosses, making crunching tackles and directing the backline, Carmichael is the only Golden Bear who has started all 17 games this season. Not surprisingly, Carmichael leads the Bears in minutes played (1,468). Cal's ironman – who's started 64 of 65 games for the Bears – likewise led the team in minutes played in 2022 and ranked second in 2023. Also a threat to score, particularly in the air, Carmichael scored his first goal of the season in a 1-0 upset at then-No. 22 Stanford in the Nov. 1 regular-season finale on the Farm. He was named the ACC Co-Defensive Player of the Week for his play against the Cardinal.
 
After a stellar junior season in 2023 – in which he was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team – Carmichael was selected by Nashville SC in the MLS SuperDraft, though he returned to Berkeley to complete his college career before turning professional. Prior to Cal's inaugural season in the ACC, Carmichael was named to the ACC Preseason Watch List in August.
 
Adimabua – Cal's second-leading scorer (10 points) and second-leading goalscorer (4) – is a 6-4 striker who usually draws plenty of defensive attention from opposing teams. The Asaba, Nigeria, native came up big against arguably Cal's most talented opponent of the season in then-No. 1 Pitt. In the Oct. 11 game in Pittsburgh, Adimabua pounced on a defensive mistake to score the game-winning goal in a 1-0 upset of the Panthers that also gave Cal its first victory in the ACC.
 
This marks the third conference that has lauded Adimabua. He was a member of the All-Pac-12 Second Team in 2022 and 2023 and, when he played at San Francisco, he was a member of the All-WCC First Team in the 2020-21 and 2021 seasons. Adimabua was also named the WCC Freshman of the Year in 2020-21.
 
Carmichael, Adimabua and the Bears continue their run in the ACC Championship when they play seventh-ranked Clemson in the semifinals Thursday at 5 p.m. PT at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina.
 
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