UW-Superior men's soccer expected to extend their run of UMAC titles in upcoming 2023 season
ST. PAUL, MINN. – Very few UMAC programs across any of the 18 conference sports have dominated their fellow conference opponents like UW-Superior men’s soccer has in the past decade. The Yellowjackets appear poised to extend their success again in the upcoming 2023 season as UW-Superior was picked to be the top team per the preseason poll conducted by the league’s eight head coaches. The Yellowjackets have won outright or claimed at least a share of the regular season conference championship each of the past five seasons and the black and gold have recorded six straight UMAC post-season tournament titles, reaching the NCAA Division III tournament in each of those campaigns. Regionally ranked throughout their impressive stretch of success in the UMAC in recent years, UW-Superior hopes to make a post-season run in the NCAA Division III championship beginning in November.
| Institution |
Total Number of Points |
2022 UMAC Record |
2022 Overall Record |
| University of Wisconsin-Superior (6) |
48 points |
11-1-2 |
16-4-2 |
| Bethany Lutheran College (2) |
44 points |
11-2-1 |
15-4-3 |
| Northland College |
36 points |
7-3-4 |
8-8-5 |
| University of Northwestern |
27 points |
3-8-3 |
4-12-3 |
| University of Minnesota Morris |
24 points |
3-6-5 |
3-11-5 |
| Crown College |
22 points |
5-6-3 |
8-14-3 |
| North Central University |
14 points |
4-9-1 |
7-13-1 |
| Martin Luther College |
9 points |
2-11-1 |
3-14-2 |
| (#) Number of First-Place Votes |
|
|
|
UW-Superior, who collected six of the eight first-place votes in the preseason poll, will have a big hole to fill in offensive production as 2022 UMAC Offensive Player of the Year honoree Blake Perry concluded his standout career with the Yellowjackets last season. Perry earned All-American recognition, marking the first time in program history for such an honor, and finishing as one of the most decorated men’s soccer players in UMAC history. The 2023 Yellowjackets squad certainly is not short on talent though as the trio of junior defender Josh Bellamy, senior defender Alex Hanson, and senior forward Phillip Eriksen aim to continue the program’s run of success. Bellamy is a two-time first team all-conference selection and Hanson was a first team all-conference performer in 2022 as well as collected United Soccer Coaches All-Regional accolades last fall. He boasted a team-best 1,706 minutes played a year ago, helping anchor a very deep Yellowjacket team. Eriksen’s 13 goals and 6 assists last fall placed him fourth in the conference in goals and sixth in assists, contributing to his first team all-conference recognition. UW-Superior head coach Joe Mooney, the 2022 UMAC Coach of the Year, is just six wins away from recording 200 career victories at the institution.
Bethany Lutheran College has battled UW-Superior in numerous “instant classic” contests in recent years. The Vikings have become the top challenger for the Yellowjackets and the 2023 season appears to be no different as Bethany Lutheran boasted the other two first-place votes and holds the second spot in the poll. After finishing just one point behind UW-Superior in the regular season standings a year ago, the Vikings are dialed in on making this the year they win the conference post-season tournament title and reach the NCAA Division III Championship. Bethany Lutheran won a share of the regular season title in 2021 and the Vikings have squared off with UW-Superior in each of the past three UMAC post-season tournament championship contests. Two of the top players from the Bethany Lutheran squad that set a program record with 15 wins in 2022, will return as senior defender Liam Peterson and senior midfielder Agostino Quadrio Curzio should factor to be key contributors once again for the Vikings. Peterson is a two-time UMAC Defensive Player of the Year Award winner and was a first-team all-regional selection in 2022. Agostino was a first-team all-conference honoree after recording four goals and nine assists on the season.
Northland College has continued to prove in recent years that they are one of the top teams in the UMAC as the Lumberjacks finished third in the 2022 UMAC regular season standings and are predicted to finish in the same spot in their 2023 campaign. Reaching the UMAC post-season tournament semi-final round each of the past three seasons, Northland hopes to take the next step for their program and compete for both the regular season and post-season tournament championships. Leading the Lumberjacks this fall will be senior goalkeeper Jamie Colvill, who was a first-team all-conference selection a year ago. The sophomore duo of forward Harrison Tibbetts and midfielder Quinn Bieber also should see great success for Northland in the upcoming season as both individuals were second-team all-conference honorees and ranked in the Top 20 in the UMAC in goals scored on the season.
After the top three spots in the 2022 regular season standings, a pack of teams battled until the final weekend of the regular season schedule as Crown College ultimately secured the fourth and final post-season tournament berth a year ago but the University of Minnesota Morris, North Central University, and the University of Northwestern all finished within six points of Crown College for the final playoff spot. UMAC coaches appear to expect a pack once again as the same four teams occupy the fourth through seventh places in the preseason poll.
Northwestern is forecasted to make the biggest jump as the Eagles finished in seventh place in the regular season standings a year ago but were tabbed for the fourth spot in the 2023 preseason poll. Northwestern will be paced by junior midfielder Alejandro Alfaro, who has received first-team all-conference recognition each of the past two seasons. The University of Minnesota Morris returns all but one player who scored a goal for the Cougars last season, including senior midfielder Carter Watkinson. Carter ranked 10
th in conference goals scored and 6
th in conference assists on his way to garnering second team all-conference honors.
Crown College will aim to appear in back-to-back UMAC post-season tournaments as the Polars return second-team all-conference standout Joaquin Silva. The sophomore forward ranked sixth in the UMAC in goals scored in the 2022 season. With 24 of their 29 players holding freshman or sophomore class status, the Polars will be a young team this fall. North Central University will be led by their pair of captains in senior forward Elliott Lebsack and senior goalkeeper Jerad Buse. Buse had the third most shutouts in conference play with four in 2022 and also led the UMAC in saves per game.
Martin Luther College completes the preseason poll and the list of teams battling for the conference crown. The Knights return several key players from their 2022 squad and with a mix of incoming players ready to contribute, they aim to move their way up the UMAC standings this fall.
The 2023 men’s soccer season gets underway this coming weekend with non-conference action starting on Friday, September 1, and conference contests commencing later in September. The UMAC post-season tournament semi-finals will take place on Wednesday, November 1, and the conference post-season tournament championship is scheduled for Saturday, November 4.
TEAM CAPSULES AND NOTES FOR EACH UMAC TEAM
Bethany Lutheran College
Derick Lyngholm, Head Coach | 5
th Season as Men’s Coach, 17
th Season Overall at Bethany Lutheran
2022 Season
11-2-1 UMAC, 15-4-3 Overall Record | 2
nd Place in UMAC
Postseason: Defeated Northland (2-1) in semifinal round; Lost to UW-Superior (3-0) in championship.
Top Returning Players
Liam Peterson, Senior, Defender | 2x UMAC Defensive POY | 1
st Team All-Region | 3g 5a 11pts
Agostino Quadrio Curzio, Senior, Midfielder | 1
st Team All-UMAC | 4g 9a 17pts
Danny Pilot, Sophomore, Defender | 2
nd Team All-UMAC | 3g 2a 8pts
Crown College
Jon Forsythe, Head Coach | 2
nd Season
2022 Season
5-6-3 UMAC, 8-14-3 Overall Record | 4
th Place in UMAC
Postseason: Lost to UW-Superior 6-1 in UMAC post-season tournament semifinal; NCCAA Division II Regional Champions
Top Returning Players
Joaquin Silva, Sophomore, Forward | All-UMAC 2
nd Team | NCAA All-Region | 8 Goals, 6 assists
Luca Kaltenbach, Sophomore, Midfielder | All-UMAC Honorable Mention
Juan Fernando Arriaga, Sophomore, Midfielder | 3 goals, 4 assists
Martin Luther College
Tim Grundmeier and Nick Schmoller - Associate Head Coaches| Both in 2
nd Season
2022 Season
2-11-1 UMAC, 3-14-2 Overall Record | 8
th Place in UMAC
Top Returning Players
Nathan Pausma, Senior, D | 5 goals scored in 2022.
Adam Rosenbaum, Junior, GK |139 saves in 2022.
Isaias Santos, Senior, MF | UMAC Honorable Mention in 2021 |
North Central University
Colette Montgomery, Head Coach | 2
nd Season
2022 Season
4-9-1 UMAC, 7-13-1 Overall Record | 6
th Place in UMAC
Top Returning Players
Elliott Lebsack, Senior, Forward | Captain | 1 goal, 3 assists
Jerad Buse, Senior, Goalkeeper | Captain | UMAC Honors:
2022 All-Conference Honorable Mention
Alex Chacich, Sophomore, Forward | 4 goals
Northland College
Greg Gilmore, Head Coach | 5th Season
2022 Season
7-3-4 UMAC, 8-7-5 Overall Record | 3
rd Place in UMAC
Postseason: Lost to Bethany Lutheran (2-1) in UMAC post-season tournament semifinals.
Top Returning Players
Jamie Colvill, GK, Senior | 1st Team All-Conference in 2022
Harrison Tibbetts, F, Sophomore | 2
nd Team All-Conference in 2022
Quinn Bieber, MF, Sophomore | 2
nd Team All-Conference in 2022
University of Minnesota Morris
Scott Turnbull, Head Coach | 14
th Season
2022 Season
3-6-5 UMAC, 3-11-5 Overall Record | 5
th Place in UMAC
Top Returning Players
Carter Watkinson, Senior, Midfielder | Second Team All-UMAC | 5 goals, 5 assists, 21 SOG
Cooper Jones, Junior, Midfielder | Honorable Mention All-UMAC | 3 goals, 4 assists, 7 SOG
Carver Hammond, Senior, Midfielder/Forward | 2 goals, 16 SOG
University of Northwestern
Greg Wheaton, Head Coach | 24
th Season
2022 Season
3-8-3 UMAC, 4-12-3 Overall Record | 7
th in UMAC
Top Returners
Alejandro Alfaro, Junior, Midfielder | 2022 UMAC 1
st Team All-Conference, 2021 UMAC 1
st Team All-Conference| 2 goals, 2 assists, 11 shots on goal
Tim DeLoye, Junior, Defender | 2022 UMAC 2
nd Team All-Conference, 2022 UMAC Sportsmanship Award, 2021 UMAC Honorable Mention All-Conference | 2 goals, 1 assist, 1 game winning goal
Jonathan-Thomas Olsen, Senior, Forward | 2022 UMAC Honorable Mention All-Conference, 2021 UMAC Honorable Mention All-Conference | 4 goals, 2 assists, 1 game winning goal
University of Wisconsin-Superior
Joe Mooney, Head Coach | 16th Season
2022 Season
11-1-2 UMAC, 16-4-2 Overall Record | 1
st Place in UMAC
Postseason: Defeated Crown (6-1) in the UMAC semifinals and defeated Bethany Lutheran (3-0) in the UMAC tournament championship; Fell to No. 10-ranked North Central (Ill.) by a 3-2 decision in NCAA Tournament First Round.
Top Returning Players
Josh Bellamy, Junior, D | 2021 & 2022 All-UMAC First Team | 2021 & 2022 United Soccer Coaches All-Wisconsin Team | Six goals, six assists, 18 points
Alex Hanson, Senior, D | All-UMAC First Team | United Soccer Coaches Region IX Team | Started all 22 matches, team-best 1,706 minutes
Phillip Eriksen, Senior, F | All-UMAC First Team | United Soccer Coaches All-Wisconsin Team | 13 goals, six assists, .241 shooting pct.