UMHB soccer player named conference Man of the Year

BELTON, Texas (KWTX) - A Mary Hardin-Baylor soccer player has been named the American Southwest Conference’s “Man of the Year”.

Price Peden spent the last four years as a leader and a key player on the UMHB soccer team, but it’s the hours he spent in the classroom and volunteering in the community that earned him the title of ASC’s inaugural “Man of the Year”.

Peden’s mom, Tammy, says, “I really hope people will see it is more about the character and the man behind it then the athletic part of it. It is about more.”

In fact, the highlight of Price’s career was an opportunity he had before his team even took the field each week, starting with his first game as a freshman.

Peden explains, “The coaches asked me to pray over the team before the game. Not just that game, but throughout my four years I prayed before every game with my teammates and my coaches standing next to me.”

He said it was in those moments that he realized what soccer is really all about.

“It gave me a whole new perspective on what the game of soccer should mean. That it is an art of worship. It is something that glorifies the Lord, and it is a way to serve God and not man.”

Price’s resume is incredible. He was a member of the team’s leadership council and won two conference titles, while graduating with a 3.9 GPA. Outside of soccer, he was a leader in numerous clubs and his volunteer work earned him the conference’s Community Service Athlete of the Year award, to go along with his Man of the Year award.

Peden tells me, “At the end of the day, I don’t want this award to be a recognition of me, but really the capacity of what the culture of UMHB can do for anyone.”

Peden is done playing soccer but plans to get his MBA at UMHB, and it’s a given that he will continue to make a difference along the way.

His mom smiles proudly, “He has always been committed to serving others, so I don’t see that changing. I see this being inspiration to go above and beyond and do more.”

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