Go WEST young man (and NORTH)

[kansas hokie]

Trinity will still be in line to host 1st two rounds as it goes in as a tie. Anywhere from 8-10 seems likely, I have them at 58.84 after the loss which would have been 9 today.

[Kuiper]

Southwestern 3 - Centre 0 (79th minute)

This one could be described as closer than the score, since Centre has definitely had its chances and forced the Southwestern keeper to make strong saves and interventions on several occasions, but ultimately Southwestern is just too strong for Centre.

[Kuiper]

FINAL:  Texas Lutheran 2 - LeTourneau 0

TLU breaks open a tight 0-0 game at the half with a goal in the 52nd minute and then adds an insurance goal in the 89th minute to seal the game.

The top two teams in the SCAC this season - Colorado College and Texas Lutheran - advance to the championship game

[Kuiper]

SCIAC Championship game preview

Redlands @ Occidental at 7:30 PM Pacific

Two traditional SCIAC powers that started out the season poorly turn things around and end up back in the championship game for a re-match of the 2023 Championship game where Oxy beat Redlands 3-0.  According to the box score, that match had 4,200 in attendance.  Redlands fans typically travel well and Occidental has an all out push to get people to come to the game.  They even filmed a promo for the game on Instagram with Oxy President Tim Stritikus out at the stadium encouring fans/students to attend.  I doubt they will get anywhere close to the attendance of the 2023 game, but it still should be a good atmosphere.

The last time these two faced each other this season was over a month ago on 10/4 at Oxy when Occidental beat Redlands 3-0.  That was a different Redlands team though.  Redlands was coming off a loss to CMS and a tie to Cal Lutheran - the two teams that finished at the bottom of the SCIAC table - and Zach Darmanyan, who had scored in the Bulldogs last victory before going down with injury, was not available for the Oxy game.  Redlands only had 1 shot on goal the whole game against Oxy and that was credited to the Redlands goalkeeper. I've found that Darmnayan has been the difference maker for the team this year.  They simply didn't have a balanced offensive attack or room for the offense to maneuver, while he was out of the lineup in the middle of the season.  Since he's been back, the team has gone on a 7 game unbeaten streak and 6 game winning streak (6-0-1) to close out the season and start the SCIAC tournament, partly because of Darmanyan's return and partly because younger players got experience while he was out and now provide more quality depth.

It's also not the same Oxy team, though.  The last time the two teams played Oxy was pretty inconsistent. You didn't know what team you were going to get from game to game.  They blew out some teams and were powerless against others.  Oxy is on a 4 game winning streak where they have averaged 3 goals per game and they are coming off a 4-1 thrashing of La Verne.  SCIAC Offensive Player of the Year Devin Bening has had 3 goals and 3 assists during that stretch. 

The one worrying sign is the Oxy goalkeepers.  The starter for the first seven games of the season isn't even on the roster anymore. His replacement, Carlos Abram, who was a SCIAC Defensive Player of the Week in early October, is either injured or was benched.  Abram's replacement, Sammy Gramlich (Jr), who played his first collegiate games this season and did pretty well in two starts, was then replaced by another Junior, Casey Scott, who had only played 15 minutes before this season and was given a start against CMS where he gave up 3 goals, before heading to the bench again in favor of Gramlich.  Then, Scott started again in the SCIAC semifinals against La Verne, gave up a goal, and was pulled at halftime for Gramlich.  I'm a fan of giving more than 1 goalkeeper legit game action during the season so you aren't caught playing someone for the first time in a high importance situation, but Oxy seems just plain unsure about who is their starting goalkeeper.  I don't know if its because of injury/personal situations or form, but it's not ideal to be that unsettled at such an important spot this late in the year.  On the other hand, if Oxy keeps scoring 3-4 goals a game, it might not matter much.

[Kuiper]

Drama in the NWC

Whitman 0 - Puget Sound 0
Pacific Lutheran 2 - Whitworth 1

Whitman and Pacific Lutheran are now tied atop the NWC at 12-0-3 in conference with one game left in the season - which just happens to be against each other.  The two teams tied 1-1 back on October 11 at Pacific Lutheran.  They will play tomorrow at 1:45 pm Pacific in the de facto NWC Championship game.  The script couldn't have played out any better for maximum drama (except that Whitman's streaming set-up is probably the worst in the conference - actually the worst in Region X - with what amounts to a field level camera that reduces the players to ants when they are on the other side of the field).  The problem with it being only a de facto championship game, rather than a de jure one, is that there is no provision for OT or PKs if they end tied.  Not sure of the tie-breaker rules in the NWC, but if it's based on overall record, Whitman would advance.

Linfield 1 - Lewis & Clark 0

The battle of the bottom.  The teams were tied 0-0 until Linfield found the back of the net with 5 minutes left in the game.  Lewis & Clark drops to 0-16-3 and Linfield doubles its win total, climbing to 2-14-3.

Willamette 3 - Pacific 0

Willamette continues its late season resurgence, scoring three goals in the second half to blow open a tight 0-0 game at half.  The win leaves it with a chance to jump Whitworth to finish 3rd in the NWC, which is a pretty nice consolation for a program that has been adrift the last few years.

[Kuiper]

SCIAC Championship Game

HALF: Occidental 0 - Redlands 0

I would characterize this first half as "West Coast physical."  By that I mean the teams were running up and down the field and a lot of bodies were flying around trying to make tackles and slow players down.  No low blocks in this game.  Ref was letting them play too, so not an outrageous amount of fouls.  Oxy led in shots 8 to 2, but Redlands led in corners, which just reflects the fact that both teams were getting opportunities.  Redlands' GK and defense probably were called upon to make more stops/blocks.  Oxy had a great feed into Tyler Na-Nakornpanom in the box on goal toward the end of the half that Redlands' keeper Brady Bachman slid into stop just as the ball arrived.  Risky play, but probably necessary.

Note:  For the second game in a row for Oxy, Casey Scott started at goal and Scott Gramlich came on to start the second half. In the semis, when this happened for the first time, I speculated that either Scott was hurt or they were disappointed he conceded a goal, but it looks like they just decided splitting halves was the best approach.

UPDATE:  Occidental 1 - Redlands 0

This was coming.  Oxy was leading in shots 15-3 and finally gets one to go on a reflex save by Redlands on a ball from the right side that was shot in on the rebound. 

FINAL:  Occidental 1 - Redlands 0

Oxy survives a final flurry from Redlands to win the SCIAC.  Oxy's second half GK Gramlich had a great fingertip save on the ground right in front of the box and a commanding punch by Gramlich on a dangerous ball off a corner to preserve the shutout.  Oxy finishes 7-3-3 in the SCIAC and 10-5-4 overall.

FYI - the box score listed attendance at 2,200.  Not the 4000 they got in 2023, but still a pretty impressive turnout.

[Kuiper]

Big upset in the ASC

Hardin Simmons 1 (5) - Mary Hardin-Baylor 1 (3)

After a flurry of goals in the first half, with UMHB scoring in the 25th minute and H-S answering in the 26th, the game settled down and neither team could find the game winner in regulation or OT despite UMHB outshooting H-S 23 to 13 and leading in corners 13 to 6.  Came down to PKs and H-S took advantage.

Despite finishing undefeated in the ASC at 5-0-1 and 13-2-5 overall, UMHB's season ends and Hardin-Simmons advances with a 2-2-2 record in the ASC and a 6-8-3 record overall.  Hardin-Simmons probably won't be the lowest seed in the tournament under the NPI rankings, but they might be one of the only teams with a losing record.  They are on a 5 game unbeaten streak, though, so maybe they are finding the right formula at the right time.

[kansas hokie]

Hardin-Simmons is the lowest NPI rating of the AQ right now. It's them, Lyon, and Penn State Harrisburg that are over 200 in NPI and in the tourney. Good luck to our Cinderella teams!

[Kuiper]

HALF:  Southwestern 0 - Berry 0

This half has been played almost entirely in Berry's defensive half and a lot of it has been played in Berry's 18 yard box.  With corners, there has probably been almost as much action in Berry's defensive 6 yard box as there has been in Southwestern's defensive half  Southwestern has outshot Berry 18-2 in the first half.  Berry's GK Cooper Cherry has already made 9 saves in the first half. If Southwestern is going to score in this game, it's likely to come from a corner or set play, but they've had 9 corners in the first half and still haven't broken through despite Southwestern defender Cooper Pero already having 4 shots.  Southwestern's keeper hasn't had to make a single save.  I don't know how long they can keep up desperation defense, but I guess they did it for 110 minutes against Trinity.

UPDATE:  Southwestern 1 - Berry 0

Southwestern finally puts one in the net in the 52nd minute.  That should loosen up Berry's defense and provide Southwestern some more opportunities.  Berry just had its first shot on goal and first corner.

UPDATE:  Southwestern 1 - Berry 1

With 7 minutes left in regulation, a Berry cross leads to a header that hits the cross bar and drops down just inside the net before bouncing out and is called a goal.  Whole new ballgame.

FINAL:  Berry 2 - Southwestern 1

With 10 seconds left in the game, a Southwestern player appears to trip a Berry player in the box (although it looked like a dive to me) and Berry wins the SAA!

[Kuiper]

Texas Lutheran 1 - Colorado College 0

TLU opens the scoring in the 20th minute.  That's always dangerous for CC because TLU tends to be more defensive as it is.

HALF:  Texas Lutheran 1 - Colorado College 0

I'm not sure I have seen Colorado College so thoroughly dominated in a half as I have in this game, at least in recent years.  TLU has outshot CC 16-0 and Colorado College has only 1 corner and basically has been lifeless.  I guess CC's GK Wolter has done fairly well with 6 saves, but they just haven't had any offense to speak of.

FINAL: Texas Lutheran 1 - Colorado College 0

CC picked it up a little in the second half, ending up with 3 shots on goal, but nothing to really trouble TLU.  Texas Lutheran gets the SCAC auto bid with a 12-4-3 record (9-1-2 in the SCAC).

[Kuiper]

Pacific Lutheran 1 - Whitman 1

PLU earns a PK in the 21st minute when a defender tripped up the attacker on a cutback

Seconds later, Whitman kicks off, the player receiving the ball is fouled, and then does a quick restart near midfield with a through ball to the left midfielder who kicked it from a tough angle through the PLU GK's hands and into the goal

Back to tied in a blink

HALF:  Pacific Lutheran 1 - Whitman 1

The game settled back down to a lull after the flurry of goals in the 21st minute.

UPDATE:  Whitman 2 - Pacific Lutheran 1

Less than a minute into the second half, Whitman scores on a play where it looked like the PLU players were looking for a foul after a Whitman attacker rounded a defender near the end line and passed it in for a goal.

UPDATE:  Whitman 3 - Pacific Lutheran 1

Whitman gets a PK in the 49th minute and scores another.  Whitman outshot Pacific Lutheran 21-6 in the first half and that disparity is continuing into the second.

PLU players are still finishing their oranges from halftime

Now PLU is changing formation to go from 3 to 4 in midfield in the hopes of getting hold of the ball

FINAL:  Whitman 3 - Pacific Lutheran 1

Whitman wins the NWC AQ

[Kuiper]

Cross-posted from the 2025 NCAA Tournament Thread

A few initial comments on Region X teams:

1.  Fields/Attendance in the Trinity Pod

Get ready for complaints about Trinity's field with both men and women playing on the same field and rain currently in the forecast for the second day of games on Sunday the 16th.  At least it is supposed to be dry during the week though.

The pod, however, should have strong attendance with both men's and women's teams from Trinity and Hardin-Simmons in this pod.  Plus, Texas Lutheran is only 30-35 minutes away from Trinity.


2.  Trinity/Texas Lutheran/Hardin-Simmons familiarity

The three Texas teams are very familiar with each other.  Trinity has beaten both Texas Lutheran (1-0) and Hardin-Simmons (2-0) this season and Texas Lutheran beat Hardin-Simmons 2-0 in the opening game of the season.  Trinity has a 37-7-1 all time record against Texas Lutheran and a 26-2-2 record against Hardin-Simmons and those two teams have played every year for the last five years, with Texas Lutheran winning 4 of those 5.

3. Whitman

Whitman may not have played any of these teams this year, but they did tie Colorado College from the SCAC and Mary Hardin-Baylor from the ASC back in early September, so they have some familiarity with the play in those conferences this season and with common opponents.

This trip and some of the teams, however, should be very familiar to some of the key Whitman juniors and seniors.  In 2023, Whitman traveled to Texas and tied Hardin-Simmons 1-1 and lost to Trinity 3-1 (as well as losing to Southwestern 2-1).  Lucas McAllister, Takahiro Hikida, Jude Clum-Stockton, and Riki Kobayashi all played minutes in those games for Whitman and so did Adam Knutsen, Luke Mayfield, Zach Anderson, Camerson Smith, Finnegan Saunders, and Ethan Chowdrey for Trinity as well as Carson Null, Jerron Garcia, Omar Estrada, Edwin Macias, and Diego Espinoza for Hardin-Simmons.  So, if Whitman can get past Texas Lutheran, they will be facing teams and players they have played before.

3. Occidental in Minnesota

Occidental has at least two players who are very familiar with the MIAC and playing in the cold weather in Minneapolis, as well as probably access to the scouting reports from two different MIAC opponents on Augsburg.

Junior MF Elijah Edelman, who is leading the team with 11 assists and third on the team with 5 goals, transferred from Macalester to Occidental this season.  While at Macalester, he started and played 80-90 minutes in all four games they played against Augsburg, including a win and a tie in 2023 and two losses in 2024.  Edelman has a goal and an assist in those 4 games.


Junior D Alex Yu, who started 5 games this season for Oxy and played 8 games overall, transferred from St. Olaf's to Occidental this season.  While Yu was on the squad, St. Olaf played Augsburg three times, beating them twice and tying them once.  Yu is also a Minnesota native, hailing from Eden Prairie, which is a suburb of Minneapolis and about 20 minutes away from Augsburg's campus. Perhaps the Oxy players will get some home cooking and local fan support while they are in town.

They also have at least a few other players familiar with the cold weather, including freshman forwards Colton Sheffert and Ted O'Brien, both from Utah, who played 9  and 14 games, respectively, this season.  Fortunately, it looks more like low to mid-50s and chance of light rain, which should be perfect weather for the bevy of players from the Pacific Northwest, Mid-Atlantic/Northeastern states, and the UK, that dot the Oxy roster.  The California natives, however, will be the ones wearing long sleeves and field player gloves.

[Kuiper]

SCAC all conference awards were announced over the weekend

Colorado College student-athletes were recipients of each of the conference's three major individual awards for the 2025 season – a first-ever occurrence in the sport of men's soccer since the SCAC started recognizing an Offensive, a Defensive and a First-Year Player-of-the-Year in 2003. Complete Release

In exclusive voting by the league's head coaches and sports information directors, Teddy Opler was selected SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year, Rex Karjian was tabbed as the SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year and Ewen Robertson was named the league's First-Year Player-of-the-Year.

In that same balloting, the staffs at Colorado College and Texas Lutheran University split the vote to share SCAC Coaching Staff-of-the-Year honors.

A sophomore forward from Wilson, Wyoming, Colorado College's Teddy Opler is currently leading the SCAC in scoring with 31 points and he is second in the conference with 13 goals scored. The second-year sensation poured in 10 goals and finished with 25 points during conference play – both tops in the SCAC. His five assists in league play were good for third in the conference. A two-time SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week during the regular season, Opler recorded his first career hat trick in the Tigers' 10-1 victory over Dallas last Saturday which clinched the program's third-straight regular season SCAC title and the No. 1 seed in this weekend's conference tournament. Opler's selection as SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year represents the fourth time a Colorado College student-athlete has wont the award and the first since all-American Max Grossenbacher was so honored following the 2015 season.

Opler was the runaway choice in the balloting for Offensive Player-of-the-Year honors, receiving 21 first place votes. First-year forward Henry Shore of LeTourneau University received two first place votes and Texas Lutheran first-year forward Jesus Carrillo picked up the remaining first-place vote.

Rex Karjian, a senior defender from Seattle, Washington, exhibited outstanding work on both sides of the ball while playing close to 90 minutes a game for the Tigers over the regular season. The senior captain anchored a CC defense that led the league in goals against average as the Tigers allowed just 0.53 goals per 90 minutes during the regular season – a figure that ranks in the top 15 nationally. Arguably one of the best attacking left backs in the conference, Karjian has 20 assists in his last 36 games from his defensive position, including a league-high 11 this season. His 17 points over the regular season is currently ranked fourth in the conference. Karjian is the fifth different Colorado College student-athlete to earn SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors and his selection marks the fourth straight year a CC player has taken home the award as former all-American Curtis Hale earned top defensive honors three consecutive years from 2022 to 2024.

Karjian received 16 first-place votes in the Defensive Player-of-the-Year selection process, out-balloting senior midfielder Evan Bremauntz of Texas Lutheran, who received five votes. Junior goalkeeper Leonel Cuellar of Concordia University (Texas) picked up two votes and senior defender Jeth Flores of University of St. Thomas earned the remaining first-place vote.

Ewen Robertson, a first-year forward from Concord, Massachusetts, has made an immediate impact for Colorado College and leads the league in goals scored with 14 heading into the conference tournament. If he were to hold onto the scoring lead, Robertson would become just the eighth freshman in the league's 34-year history to lead the conference in goals scored and the first since Trinity's Michael Meese in 2021. He is currently second in the SCAC in points scored with 30. Possessing tremendous goal-scoring instincts with creative ideas in the final third, Robertson makes mature decisions with the ball around the goal for a first-year player. Robertson is the seventh CC student-athlete to earn SCAC First-Year Player-of-the-Year accolades, and the first since his current teammate Jack Hilliard took home the honor following the 2023 season.

Robertson was the clear favorite in the balloting for First-Year POTY, receiving 17 first-place votes from the coaches and sports information directors. First-year forward Henry Shore of LeTourneau University received four votes while first-year goalkeeper Patrick Bassett of Austin College earned two votes. First-year goalkeeper Ernesto Avila of Texas Lutheran picked up the remaining first-place vote.

In his 11th season at the helm at Colorado College, Scott Palguta, along with his assistants Kevin Doyle, Tomas Martinez and Dan Highstead, led this year's squad to an 8-0-3 conference mark and the program's third-straight SCAC regular season title. The Tigers will be the top seed at this weekend's conference tournament with an overall mark of 11-0-6 and are one of just 12 programs in Division III who have yet to suffer a loss this season. CC posted its fourth-straight unbeaten conference season as the Tigers ran the gauntlet in SCAC play and haven't dropped a league contest since October 29, 2021. Palguta currently sports a 134-41-30 career coaching mark, placing him second all-time among SCAC men's soccer coaches (with five or more years) in winning percentage (.727). He is currently fourth all-time in conference wins with 91 and his .818 conference winning percentage (91-14-16) ranks second all-time. The SCAC Coaching Staff-of-the-Year honor is the third consecutive and fourth all-time for Palguta.

Texas Lutheran head coach Eddie Salazar, along with assistants Jimmy Flores and Noel Pena, led the Bulldogs to an 8-1-2 league mark and an overall record of 10-4-3 as the team secured one of two first-round byes for this weekend's conference tournament. In his 20th year at the lead of the TLU program, Salazar is the program's all-time wins leader and has collected an overall record of 161-154-35 and an SCAC mark of 77-59-12. His 77 conference wins are the fifth-most in league history and his .561 winning percentage in conference play is 11th-best in SCAC history. Salazar led the program to a SCAC Championship in 2019 - the second conference championship in program history and first since 2002's American Southwest Conference Championship. The SCAC Coaching Staff-of-the-Year honor marks the second career accolade for Salazar, having taken home the same honor following the 2018 season.

This year's shared award marks just the third time in league history that two or more men's soccer staffs have been recognized in the Coach-of-the-Year balloting, and the first since the award was split in 2007 among the staffs of Southwestern University and Trinity University.

2025 SCAC Men's Soccer Offensive Player-of-the-Year
Teddy Opler Colorado College So. F Wilson, Wyoming

2025 SCAC Men's Soccer Defensive Player-of-the-Year
Rex Karjian Colorado College Sr. D Seattle, Washington

2025 SCAC Men's Soccer Newcomer-of-the-Year
Ewen Robertson Colorado College Fy. F Concord, Massachusetts

2025 SCAC Men's Soccer Co-Coaching Staffs-of-the-Year

Colorado College Scott Palguta, Head Coach 8-0-3 SCAC / 11-0-6 Overall
SCAC Regular Season Champion

Texas Lutheran Univ. Eddie Salazar, Head Coach 8-1-2 SCAC / 10-4-3 Overall
SCAC Regular Season Runner-Up

2025 All-SCAC Men's Soccer First Team

Rex Karjian Colorado College Sr. D Seattle, Washington
Alex Hart Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. D Missouri City, Texas
Dylan Stapley Colorado College Jr. D San Diego, California
Teddy Opler Colorado College So. F Wilson, Wyoming
Ewen Robertson Colorado College Fy. F Concord, Massachusetts
Josh Montgomery Hendrix College So. F Little Rock, Arkansas
Henry Shore LeTourneau Univ. Fy. F Longview, Texas
Jack Hilliard Colorado College Jr. M San Antonio, Texas
Jesse Garfias Concordia (Texas) Jr. M Waxahachie, Texas
Evan Bremauntz Texas Lutheran Univ. Sr. M Grapevine, Texas
Tripp Ortega III Hendrix College So. M Little Rock, Arkansas
Will Jones Colorado College So. M Colorado Springs, Colorado
Alex Wolter Colorado College Jr. GK New Canaan, Connecticut

2025 All-SCAC Men's Soccer Second Team

Luis Pineda Concordia (Texas) Jr. D Watuga, Texas
Jeth Flores Univ. of St. Thomas Sr. D Missouri City, Texas
Carson Alldredge Texas Lutheran Univ. Jr. D Spring, Texas
Jesse Contreras Austin College Fy. D Melissa, Texas
Jesus Carrillo Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. F San Antonio, Texas
Bryan Rios Concordia (Texas) Sr. F Rio Grand City, Texas
Max Mundorff Austin College Sr. F Huntsville, Texas
Giovanni Casias Univ. of the Ozarks So. M Keller, Texas
Jovany Garcia Univ. of St Thomas Sr. M Porter, Texas
Pierce Wear Austin College Sr. M North Richland, Texas
Marco Guzman Austin College So. M Keller, Texas
Ernesto Avila Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. GK Humble, Texas

2025 All-SCAC Men's Soccer Honorable Mention

Wilder Judelson Colorado College Fy. D Winter Park, Florida
Charlie Mata Hendrix College Sr. D Houston, Texas
Steven Dolan Concordia (Texas) Jr. D Bellevue, Washington
Sammy Shmorgun LeTourneau Univ. Fy. D Fresno, California
Sam Spencer Austin College Sr. D Heath, Texas
Hayden McConnell Centenary College Jr. D Flower Mound, Texas
Nate Bransford LeTourneau Univ. Sr. D Kijabe, Kenya
Ahmad Alhendi Concordia (Texas) Sr. D Dallas, Texas
Harper Branch Univ. of the Ozarks Jr. D Royce City, Texas
Jaime McFarland Colorado College So. D St. Petersburg, Florida
Lyatonga Filos Univ. of the Ozarks So. D Waco, Texas
Elijah Lopez Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. D North Richland Hills, Texas
Lewis Patterson Schreiner University Jr. D Banff, Scotland
Clayton Porto University of Dallas Sr. D Colleyville, Texas
Alejandro Rojas Concordia (Texas) Gr. F Dallas, Texas
Cameron Armer Schreiner University Sr. F London, Texas
Evan Pacheco Texas Lutheran Univ. So. F San Antonio, Texas
Pedro Yanez McMurry University So. F McAllen, Texas
Brian Garcia Univ. of St. Thomas Jr. F Cypress, Texas
Raymond Palmer Texas Lutheran Univ. So. F San Antonio, Texas
Caleb Nelson LeTourneau Univ. Jr. F Brownwood, Texas
Carter Webb Centenary College Jr. F Flower Mound, Texas
Owen Comstock Schreiner University Sr. M Corpus Christi, Texas
Jacob Ramsey Centenary College Jr. M Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Max Guzman Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. M San Marcos, Texas
Carlos Longoria Texas Lutheran Univ. Sr. M Brownsville, Texas
Luke Stefanski Colorado College Sr. M Santa Barbara, California
Diego Enriquez LeTourneau Univ. Sr. M Longview, Texas
Brayan Plascencia Schreiner University Fy. M San Antonio, Texas
Ryan Dahl University of Dallas So. M Cypress, Texas
Edmond Elone Concordia (Texas) Fy. M Hutto, Texas
Ben Gutierrez Texas Lutheran Univ. So. M Houston, Texas
Hayden Pickering Univ. of the Ozarks Fy. M Muskogee, Oklahoma
Patrick Bassett Austin College Fy. GK San Antonio, Texas
Leonel Cuellar Concordia (Texas) Jr. GK Midlothian, Texas
Gregorio Medina Armas Hendrix College Fy. GK Teguise, Spain

2025 All-SCAC Men's Soccer Freshman Team.

Wilder Judelson Colorado College Fy. D Winter Park, Florida
Alex Hart Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. D Missouri City, Texas
Sammy Shmorgun LeTourneau Univ. Fy. D Fresno, California
Ewen Robertson Colorado College Fy. F Concord, Massachusetts
Jesus Carrillo Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. F San Antonio, Texas
Henry Shore LeTourneau Univ. Fy. F Longview, Texas
Max Guzman Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. M San Marcos, Texas
Whit Hynes Colorado College Fy. M Roswell, Georgia
Leandro Ferreira LeTourneau Univ. Fy. M San Antonio, Texas
Brayan Plascencia Schreiner University Fy. M San Antonio, Texas
Ernesto Avila Texas Lutheran Univ. Fy. GK Humble, Texas

[Kuiper]

The American Southwest Conference has announced its All Conference awards

2025 All-ASC Men's Soccer Teams
Individual Awards
Offensive Player of the Year: Karsen Macias, Mary Hardin-Baylor
Defensive Player of the Year: Peyton Hoyt, Mary Hardin-Baylor
Co-Midfielder of the Year: Evan Ruiz, Mary Hardin-Baylor and Daniel Villagomez, Hardin-Simmons
Goalkeeper of the Year: Hughston Taggart, Mary Hardin-Baylor
Offensive Freshman of the Year: Lars Clark, East Texas Baptist
Defensive Freshman of the Year: Adrian Villa, Howard Payne
Co-Sportsmanship Athlete of the Year: Jacob Balkcom, Mary Hardin-Baylor and Joseph Friederich, Hardin-Simmons
Coaching Staff of the Year: Ben Allen and Dylan Fogerty, Mary Hardin-Baylor
 
First Team

Pos.    Name       Cl.    University    Hometown
D    Peyton Hoyt4        Sr.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Fort Collins, Colo.
D    Yannis Benae       So.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Frisco, Texas
D    Jacob Wenzel2       Jr.    East Texas Baptist    Frisco, Texas
D    Gabriel Sias       Fr.    Hardin-Simmons    Desoto, Texas
D    Trace Binyon       So.    Hardin-Simmons    Frisco, Texas
F    Karsen Macias3          Sr.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Arlington, Texas
F    James Webb2       So.    Hardin-Simmons    Waco, Texas
F    Dylan Garcia2       Jr.    East Texas Baptist    Clovis, Calif.
F    Benny Lube       Gr.    Hardin-Simmons    Allen, Texas
F    Xzavier Saldana2       So.    Howard Payne    San Fernando, Calif.
MF    Evan Ruiz2       So.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Allen, Texas
MF    Daniel Villagomez2        So.    Hardin-Simmons    Waco, Texas
MF    Aidan Aguilera-Reeves       So.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Mansfield, Texas
MF    Lars Clark       Fr.    East Texas Baptist    Plano, Texas
MF    Rhett Rapuzzi       Jr.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Dallas, Texas
MF    Ethan Mauldin3       Sr.    Howard Payne    Burleson, Texas
GK    Hughston Taggart       Fr.    Mary Hardin-Baylor    Salado, Texas
GK    Carson Null3       Sr.    Hardin-Simmons    Fort Worth, Texas
GK    Adrian Villa       Fr.    Howard Payne    Roswell, N.M.
 
Second Team
Pos.    Name       Cl.    University    Hometown
D    Bryan Escalera       So.    East Texas Baptist    San Antonio, Texas
D    Brenden Gajewski       Sr.    East Texas Baptist    Dripping Springs, Texas
D    Phrabvir Singh2       Sr.    Howard Payne    Odessa, Texas
D    Ashton Riedel2       Sr.    Howard Payne    Rosenburg, Texas
F    Kolby Lara       So.    Howard Payne    Cleveland, Texas
F    Korbin Raef       So.    Hardin-Simmons    Amarillo, Texas
MF    Junior Lopez2       So.    East Texas Baptist    Lufkin, Texas
MF    Jerron Garcia       Jr.    Hardin-Simmons    Midland, Texas
MF    Deaven Connelly4       Sr.    Howard Payne    Burleson, Texas
MF    Joshua Daley       So.    East Texas Baptist    Allen, Texas
GK    Ryan Lord2       So.    East Texas Baptist    Fate, Texas

2 Two-Time All-Conference
3 Three-Time All-Conference
4 Four-Time All-Conference

[Kuiper]

PREVIEW:  Occidental at Augsburg, Sat 11/15 at 11 AM Central

Occidental was 10-5-4 this season and is ranked #129 in the NPI.  It qualified for the tournament by winning the SCIAC conference tournament final 1-0 over Redlands.  It was also the SCIAC regular season champion with a 6-3-3 conference record.  The team started with a rough trip to the northeast, losing to Babson 2-1, beating MIT 3-0, and then losing to UMass Boston 4-0 in a game where the team looked beat.  The team meandered around most of the rest of the season until ending conference regular season and conference tournament play with 5 wins in a row, beating their opponents (all but one of which were conference tournament qualifiers) by a combined 15-4 score.  They essentially put it together at the right time, raising their performance when other SCIAC foes were faltering or dealing with injuries. 

Augsburg was 16-2-2 this season and is ranked #2 in the NPI.  It lost in the QFs of the MIAC tournament 2-1 to Saint John's, which has been its nemesis this year, also beating Augsburg 5-2 at the end of September.  I'm sure Oxy's coaches have been scouring video of those two games to see if they can pick up any tactical secrets.  That wasn't the only team to trip up Augsburg down the stretch, though.  The 2-2 tie with Bethel on 10/15 and with St. Olaf on 10/25 were other blemishes after starting the season with 10 straight wins.  Maybe the rest from losing early in the conference tournament will allow them to come out energized or maybe they will have some doubts and some rust.

Augsburg should be the overwhelming favorite, even before you factor in that they are playing at home and with the weather and time zone advantage (Oxy will feel like they are playing at 9 am).  Does Oxy have a chance?  Every team has a chance, but this is a heavy lift for Oxy.  It has some talented players.  SCIAC offensive player of the year Devin Bening is fast and crafty in the box, they pass and move well, and they have some NCAA tournament experience left on the roster from 2023 when they made it to the third round and took Amherst to the limit.  However, Oxy doesn't exactly have an airtight defense and isn't built to withstand pressure for long.  Not sure they can handle Augsburg's Carver Tierney (not that many have). Moreover, Oxy has shuttled through goalkeepers and I'm not even positive they've found their starter yet.  Sammy Gramlich was outstanding in the second half of the SCIAC championship game, but he's been splitting halves with Casey Scott the last few games.  If Oxy can hold the fort, however, they play pretty well in transition and may be able to catch Augsburg pressing.  They also have the benefit of Macalester transfer midfielder Elijah Edelman, who led the SCIAC in assists this season and has both scored and provided an assist in his 4 games against Augsburg during his first two years of college soccer.  Edelman, as well as St. Olaf transfer defender Alex Yu, may have been able to provide some advance scouting on Augsburg and at least offer a player or two with familiarity playing in this environment.