TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Elon’s Chris Thomas and Furman’s Walker Zimmerman picked up their third major awards of the week on Saturday when they were named to the College Soccer News All-America teams.

Zimmerman earned a spot on the first team, while Thomas was named to the second team.

A second-team NSCAA All-America choice and member of Top Drawer Soccer’s Team of the Season, Zimmerman scored six goals and added three assists while guiding the Paladins to a 12-4-3 record during the 2012 season.  The 6-foot-3 center back netted the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Florida International and led Furman to a 3-2 come-from-behind victory against Clemson with a game-tying goal in the second half.

Zimmerman, a native of Lawrenceville, Ga., and two-time All-SoCon pick, captured third-team NSCAA All-American in 2011, as Furman reached the NCAA tournament.  He has been a regular starter for the United States U-20 National Team during 2012 and is expected to battle for a spot in the starting 11 as the U-20s begin World Cup qualifying in February.

Zimmerman is expected to enter the MLS SuperDraft in January and was tabbed as the potential No. 1 pick in Top Drawer Soccer’s Mock Draft last month.

Earlier this week, Thomas became the sixth-ever Phoenix player to earn NSCAA All-American accolades but the first since entering Division I play in 1999. The senior striker was also recently named a Hermann Trophy semifinalist and won his second career Southern Conference Player of the Year award.

A Snellville, Ga., native, Thomas paced the nation in goals scored with 23 and in total points with 51, breaking the single-season Elon marks in both categories. He became Elon’s all-time leading goal scorer in a 3-2 win over then 18th-ranked West Virginia on Oct. 2 and helped the Phoenix to a 15-5-2 overall record and its first national ranking since 2006.

Thomas would receive national recognition throughout the season and was named the College Soccer News and Disney Soccer/NSCAA National Player of the Week and earned a spot on the CSN National Team of the Week. On Thursday, he was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Season third team.

The Phoenix returned to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season after capturing both the SoCon regular-season and tournament titles in the same year for the first time in school history. Thomas was named to the SoCon All-Tournament team after kicking the game-winner in matches against Davidson and Georgia Southern, pushing his season total to nine game-winners.