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OCTOBER 2018 29 cavalier profile JOE BELL Second-Year • Soccer Maybe second-year midfielder Joe Bell eventually will earn All- America honors while playing soccer for Virginia. The New Zealander, who earned ACC All-Freshman honors last season, already has accumulated plenty of accolades in the sport in his native country. This past summer, as a 19-year-old, he received the Golden Ball for the Player of the Tournament to help New Zealand go unde- feated and captured its seventh Oceania Football Confederation Championship. "Definitely as a kid, you dream about stuff like that," Bell said. "It was another very proud moment for me. Being awarded the Golden Ball was great, but a lot of players on our team were deserving of the award." Bell's performance was underscored by the fact that New Zea- land was favored to repeat as champion. "I think we definitely knew going into the tournament that we would be the favorite, and the coaching staff had us prepared," he said. "We had a few players that were experienced World Cup qualifiers before." While playing for New Zealand's Under-20 team he earned four caps. And most recently he was a finalist for the College Sport Wellington Sportsman of the Year in New Zealand. "It was a very proud moment for my family and me," Bell said. "It was great to be recognized as a finalist. There are several other outstanding athletes in New Zealand. I was proud of this honor." Bell was a member of the New Zealand National Team that competed in the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2015, and his wealth of international experience has been a big plus. "Starting with the 17s, it was a great experience with the international game," he said. "The World Cup was a valuable experience in terms of getting game time. "I definitely think it elevated my game, and I saw the level I needed to be playing at." UVA head coach George Gelnovatch has already made an im- pact on his international standout. "Coach gave me knowledge and experience technically and mentally," he said. "I learned more from him than I have from other coaches." — Mike Scandura Photo by Matt Riley/Courtesy UVA