Valdes, Moreno Earn Heart Weekly Distinctions, Valdes claims NAIA honors as well

DUBUQUE, Iowa – Clarke linebacker Bryan Valdes and kicker Victor Moreno have earned weekly honors from the Heart of America Athletic Conference, the league office announced Monday. 

Valdes, a 5-10, 205-pound sophomore, earned Defensive Player of the Week honors after leading the Pride to a 20-19 upset win over No. 23 Baker University on Saturday with one of the better overall defensive performances in program history. Valdes recorded a career-high 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, while also tying a career-high with 12 total tackles (five solo), logging his first career interception, and having a forced fumble. Valdes' interception was arguably the play of the game, as it stopped the Baker offense early in the fourth quarter and gave Clarke possession on the Wildcat nine-yard line down 19-10. The Pride capitalized on the field position with a touchdown to trim the deficit to two. 

Later in the day, Valdes was selected as the NAIA Defensive Player of the Week as the first ever member of Pride football to receive national weekly honors.

Moreno, a senior kicker from Barcelona, Spain, was named Special Teams Player of the Week after he drilled the game-winning 36-yard field and gave the Pride a win that will go down in CU football lore. Moreno connected on both his field goal attempts and was a perfect two-for-two on his extra point tries. 

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