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UCCS Athletics

MSOC RMAC Championship preview

PREVIEW | No. 1 Seed Mountain Lions Clash With No. 2 Seed MSU Denver in RMAC Tournament Championship Match

11/14/2025 1:00:00 PM

By: Tyler Tvelia, Sports Information Director
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
  • Coming off a 2-1 victory over Westminster University in the semifinal round of the RMAC Tournament on Wednesday, the No. 1 seeded and No. 19 nationally ranked University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team is set to host the No. 2 seeded and No. 22 nationally ranked Metropolitan State University Denver Roadrunners in the RMAC Championship match at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 15 inside the friendly confines of Mountain Lion Stadium.
GAME COVERAGE TICKETS
  • All fans will be charged admission and are encouraged to pre-purchase tickets online.
  • Ticket Prices:
    • General Admission - $16.00
    • Kids (6-17), Over 65 & Military - $11.00
    • Children 5 and Under – Free
    • Students – Free
RMAC NETWORK
  • Fans who are unable to attend in-person will be able to view each game of the RMAC Men's Soccer Tournament on the RMAC Network. Championship Day Passes will be available to purchase and will permit fans access to all championship broadcasts for 24 hours. All championship broadcasts are included with the purchase of a monthly or annual subscription.
LAST TIME OUT
  • The Mountain Lions put together a strong performance on Wednesday, Nov. 12 in the RMAC Semifinal round against Westminster as they pulled out a 2-1 victory to advance to the conference championship match.
  • After a shaky first few minutes of the semifinal match, UCCS regained their footing in the sixth minute when Miles Seminario tossed a long throw in into the box that was received off the head of Luke Noameshie, who sent the ball looping into the top right corner of the frame for a 1-0 lead.
  • The Griffins were able to find a response in the 24th minute off a corner kick from Owen Gallo. After Gallo sent the ball into the box from the corner, Kolson Helquist headed the ball off the crossbar and Alejandro Puente was able to collect the deflected ball and punch it into the net to even the match at sone goal apiece.
  • The score remained tied until the 77th minute when Eduardo Macias scored his second goal of the season to help UCCS pull ahead 2-1. The Mountain Lions scoring opportunity began with Gustavo Diaz Avila sending a long crosser into the box that was punched out by Westminster goalkeeper Tommy Manwaring. After the punch out, the ball went directly to the foot of Macias, who fired a shot into the bottom right corner of the nylon for the lead.
  • UCCS managed to hold the Griffins off the scoreboard for the final 13 minutes of the match to secure the semifinal win and clinch their position in the championship game. A full recap of the Mountain Lions' semifinal victory over the Griffins can be found HERE.
 
UNITED SOCCER COACHES NATIONAL RANKINGS
  • The Mountain Lions opened the 2025 campaign ranked No. 17 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll and found themselves in and out of the rankings throughout the season. UCCS landed at No. 19 in the two most recent publications of the national poll that were released on Nov. 4 and 11.
2025 United Soccer Coaches Rankings
Preseason           July 31              #17
Week 1                Sept. 9              NR
Week 2                Sept. 16            NR
Week 3                Sept. 23            NR
Week 4                Sept. 30            NR
Week 5                Oct.   7              NR
Week 6                Oct. 14              #22
Week 7                Oct. 21              RV
Week 8                Oct. 28              NR
Week 9                Nov. 4                #19
Week 10              Nov. 11              #19
 
RMAC AWARDS
  • The UCCS men's soccer program had five student-athletes combine for a total of nine weekly conference awards throughout the 2025 campaign.
    • Week 1 (Sept. 9): Nick Walker – RMAC Offensive Player of the Week
      Week 4 (Sept. 30): Maddox Brown – RMAC Defensive Player of the Week
      Week 5 (Oct. 7): Miles Seminario – RMAC Offensive Player of the Week
      Week 5 (Oct. 7): Hugo Sjöberg – RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week
      Week 6 (Oct. 14): Nick Walker – RMAC Offensive Player of the Week
      Week 6 (Oct. 14): Luke Noameshie – RMAC Defensive Player of the Week
      Week 6 (Oct. 14): Hugo Sjöberg – RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week
      Week 8 (Oct. 28): Luke Noameshie – RMAC Defensive Player of the Week
      Week 8 (Oct. 28): Hugo Sjöberg – RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week
  • The conference office announced their all-conference teams and individual major awards for the 2025 men's soccer season on Thursday, Nov. 13. Sophomore Luke Noameshie headlined a group of six Mountain Lion honorees as he earned All-RMAC First Team honors and was voted as the RMAC Defensive Player of the Year. In addition to Noameshie's accolades, Miles Seminario and Nick Walker were also named to the All-RMAC First Team while Dimitrios Leonoglou, Soulo Letsoalo, and Hugo Sjöberg were each tabbed to the All-RMAC Second Team.
  • The RMAC All-Academic Teams were revealed at noon on Friday, Nov. 14 as senior Nick Walker headlined a group of nine student-athletes from the UCCS men's soccer team that earned academic recognition from the conference. Walker became the first UCCS men's soccer student-athlete in program history to earn RMAC Men's Soccer Academic Player of the Year honors. Along with teammate Miles Seminario, Walker was also honored as a member of the RMAC All-Academic First Team, while Sean Belzer, Dimitrios Leonoglou, Jordan Lohr, Diego Macias, Eduardo Macias, Rory Scott, and Dalton Uehling were listed on the Honor Roll.
STATISTICAL LEADERS
  • The Mountain Lions currently hold the third-ranked defense in the RMAC as they have surrendered 1.21 goals per game and have limited opponents to just 3.8 shots on goal per game.
  • UCCS has had five players log at least 1,000 minutes of action on the defensive side of the ball this season, including freshman Maddox Brown (1,200), sophomores Luke Noameshie (1,259) and Gustavo Diaz Avila (1,059), and seniors Soulo Letsoalo (1,263) and Dimitrios Leonoglou (1,012).
  • Hugo Sjöberg has been a mainstay between the sticks for UCCS throughout the season as he has played all 1,710 minutes at goalkeeper, posting a 1.21 GAA with 48 saves and a .676 save percentage. The Kiel, Germany native currently sits third in the conference for GAA and clean sheets (5).  
  • Offensively, the Mountain Lions are tied for sixth in the conference in scoring with 1.79 goals per game and sit sixth in the league with 5.16 shots on goal per game during the regular season. In addition, UCCS finished the campaign ranked second in the RMAC with 13.79 total shots per game and tied for second in the conference with 5.68 corner kicks per game.
  • The senior duo of Miles Seminario and Nick Walker spearheaded the Mountain Lions' offensive efforts throughout the season as they combined to score 17 of the team's 32 goals. Seminario currently sits tied for the fourth in the RMAC with nine goals, while Walker is tied for sixth in the conference with eight goals. Drew Sanchez (3), Cole Wearner (2), and Eduardo Macias (2) are the only other Mountain Lion players to record multiple goals, while 10 additional student athletes have notched one goal.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MSU DENVER
  • The Mountain Lions hold a record of 15-45-6 all-time against the Roadrunners and are 1-3-1 in the series under current head coach Lewis Wilcox.
  • In their regular season matchup against the Roadrunners on Oct. 26, UCCS cruised to a dominant 3-0 victory with the senior trio of Nick Walker (21'), Miles Seminario (65'), and Gael Hernandez (83') each scoring to lift the Mountain Lions to victory.
SCOUTING MSU DENVER
  • The Roadrunners 2025 campaign began with an up and down eight-game non-conference slate that saw them post a 2-2-4 record, including a pair of solid draws against then-No. 23 Fort Hays State University and then-No. 5 California State University Los Angeles.
  • Despite their uneven non-conference performance, the Roadrunners hit the ground running at the start of the conference season as they posted a 5-0-1 record over their first six RMAC matches with the lone blemish being a 1-1 draw against then-No. 15 nationally ranked Fort Lewis College. Following their hot streak to begin their conference slate, MSU Denver fell into a quick slide as they suffered back-to-back setbacks against UCCS and Westminster before closing their season with a pair of shutout wins over Colorado Mesa University and Colorado Christian University.
  • The Roadrunners closed the regular season with a 9-4-5 overall record and a 7-2-1 conference record that was good for a share of the regular season conference title with the Mountain Lions. As the No. 2 seed in the RMAC Tournament, MSU Denver earned a first-round bye and wound up hosting and defeating Regis University in the semifinal round on Wednesday, Nov. 15.
  • MSU Denver has fielded one of the top defensive units in the conference throughout the season as they currently rank second in the league with just 1.05 goals allowed per game. On average, the Roadrunners have surrendered only 8.1 total shots per game, but nearly half of those have been put on frame to the tune of 4.0 shots on goal allowed per game.
  • Recently named the RMAC Goalkeeper of the Year, senior Nick McNeil has been exceptional between the sticks for the Roadrunners, posting a 1.09 GAA and 52 saves across 1,645 minutes of action. McNeil currently sits tied for the league-lead with six clean sheets on the season.
  • Offensively, the Roadrunners are tied for sixth in the conference in scoring with an average of 1.79 goals per game and sit fourth in the league in total shots per game (13.21) and shots on goal per game (5.84). Redshirt senior Adan Perez leads the team in scoring with six goals and is the lone Roadrunner to hold a double-digit mark in points as he has recorded 15 for the season. Outside of Perez, the Roadrunners have had seven other student-athletes score multiple goals, including Max Farnum with four and Dallas Baer and Matt Vogel with three apiece.
HISTORY IN THE MAKING
  • The Mountain Lions will be making their first appearance in the RMAC Tournament Championship match since the 2014 season. During that season, the Mountain Lions defeated Colorado Mesa by a score of 3-0 in the semifinal round and played to a 3-3 draw against Colorado School of Mines in the championship match before falling in penalty kicks.
  • A fourth-year member of the UCCS men's soccer program, Miles Seminario has etched his name into the top 10 in program history in multiple statistical categories during his senior season. When he stepped onto the pitch for Wednesday's semifinal match, he became the program's all-time leader in games played with 81 in his career. Seminario also currently ranks fifth all-time in shots on goal (60) and second all-time in career shot on goal percentage (.508).
  • With his NCAA Division II and RMAC leading seven game-winning goals on the season, Walker now has nine game-winning goals in his two-year career at UCCS which ranks as the second-most by any player in program history.
  • After collecting 22 points in the conference standings during the regular season, the Mountain Lions were tabbed as the RMAC Co-Champions, marking their first regular season conference title in program history. A win in the conference championship match on Saturday would mark the Mountain Lions' first RMAC Tournament Championship in program history.  
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LEWIS WILCOX
  • Head coach Lewis Wilcox is currently in his fifth season at the helm of the UCCS men's soccer program and has posted an exceptional 53-27-18 overall record. Under the leadership of Wilcox, the Mountain Lions have made four straight appearances in the RMAC semifinal round dating back to the 2022 season and Saturday's match will mark the program's first appearance in the conference championship match since the 2014 season.
  • Across his first four seasons at the helm of the men's soccer program, Wilcox led the Mountain Lions to a 43-22-14 overall record while coaching the team to a trio of RMAC Semifinal appearances and the program's first two selections to the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament. Under his guidance, UCCS student-athletes have collected 25 All-RMAC honors, including 11 first team accolades, 11 second team selections, and three honorable mentions. In addition, Wilcox has coached four RMAC major award winners, including the 2021 RMAC Player of the Year in Alex Andersson, the 2022 Co-Freshman of the Year in Matteo Moreno Madrid, the 2024 Goalkeeper of the Year in Soren Russell, and the 2025 Defensive Player of the Year in Luke Noameshie.
  • The Mountain Lions have been well-represented at the regional and national levels during his time at the head of the program, securing 10 D2CCA All-Region honors, three United Soccer Coaches All-Region accolades, and two D2CCA All-Americans (Alex Andersson – 2021 First Team, Dani Barajas - 2024 Second Team).
  • In addition, UCCS men's soccer has flourished academically with the leadership of Wilcox, securing eight RMAC All-Academic First Team honors, seven College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District accolades, and two CSC Academic All-America award (Kolby Raineri – 2022 Third Team, Miles Seminario - 2024 Second Team). In addition, Nick Walker was named the 2025 RMAC Men's Soccer Academic Player of the Year under the tutelage of Wilcox.
WEATHER
  • The forecast for Saturday afternoon's matchup is calling for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-60s.
UP NEXT
  • The final field of 40 teams for the 2025 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship will be announced on Monday, Nov. 17 with the official NCAA Selection Show being live streamed on the NCAA website at 5:00 p.m. (MT).
For everything UCCS Athletics, follow the Mountain Lions on social media and stay tuned to gomountainlions.com.
 
SOCIAL
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