OKLAHOMA CITY – Coming off its first undefeated season in program history, the No. 13 MACU men's soccer team will officially open the 2024 season with a pair of high-profile road matches. The Evangels will battle the 2022 NAIA National Champion, No. 6 Bethel, on Thursday night before heading to No. 7 Grace for a Saturday afternoon showdown.

The Evangels will kick things off against the Pilots at Morey Field in Mishawaka, Indiana, at 7 p.m. (6 p.m. CST). The matchup against the Lancers will take place at 1 p.m. (noon CST) at 1st Source Bank Field in Winona Lake, Indiana.

SEASON REPORT

• 2023 Record: 17-0-4 (8-0-1 SAC)
• Last Match: Tied vs. Bellevue (Neb.) 3-3 (BU advanced 7-6 in PKs) – Nov. 18, 2023 – Dill Soccer Field (NAIA Tournament – 2nd Round)
• Top Returners:
  • Sebastian Rebolledo – SR – D
    • Played in 18 games with 17 starts, logging 1,487 minutes at the center-back position in 2023
    • Scored the game-winning goal in a 1-0 victory against Southwestern Christian in the SAC Quarterfinal
  • Jair Estrada – SO – D
    • Appeared in 21 games and made 19 starts, playing 1,408 minutes in 2023
    • Named NAIA Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 5 after helping lead MACU to a pair of NAIA Top 25 wins against No. 16 Grace and No. 7 Missouri Valley
  • Francois Geris-Rey – SR – M
    • Played in 39 games over the last two seasons, making 14 starts during the 2023 campaign
• Top Newcomers:
  • Lucas Catosso – JR – D – Previous School: Iowa Lakes CC
    • Team Captain
    • Appeared in 21 games and made 20 starts for the Lakers in 2023, scoring four goals and dishing out three assists
  • Toby Lansdowne – JR – M – Previous School: Blinn College (Texas)
    • Started 21 games during the 2023 campaign, scoring four goals and providing 13 assists
  • Tony Ngombi – JR – F – Previous School: Tyler JC (Texas)
    • Played in 17 games, making seven starts in 2023, scored six goals and tallied two assists for the NJCAA National Finalist Tyler Apaches

Team Notes:

• Mid-America Christian is coming off its fourth consecutive Sooner Athletic Conference Championship after going 8-0-1 in league play, as well as winning its fifth-straight SAC Tournament title after defeating Science & Arts 3-1 in the championship game on Nov. 9.
• The Evangels finished the 2023 season at the top of the NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll for the final seven weeks. MACU enters the 2024 campaign as the No. 13 team in the preseason NAIA Top 25 poll.
• Mid-America Christian is led into the new season by first-year head coach Aaron Hoxie, who joined MACU in the spring after a long and storied coaching career with MACU's conference rival, Central Christian.
• The Evangels were once again selected as the SAC preseason favorite, receiving 80 points and eight of the 10 first-place votes, finishing ahead of SAC Tournament Runner-up Science & Arts, which tallied 66 points and a first-place vote.
• While MACU lost much of its front-end scoring talent, including SAC Offensive Player of the Year Jack Price, Kolby Godbolt, Charlie Betts, Yasha Schaerer, and Diego Real, the Evangels should be very strong defensively and in the midfield, returning key players like starting center-back Sebastian Rebolledo, SAC Goalkeeper of the Year Claudio Fuentealba, defensive wingers Jair Estrada and Jimmy Cabrera, as well as attacking midfielders team captain Enzo Nogue and Francois Geris-Rey.
• Pietro Musso and Federico Palacios are two of MACU's top returning offensive players. Musso wrapped up the 2023 season with three goals and two assists, including scoring the game-winner in a 1-0 win at John Brown on Oct. 21. Palacios netted the equalizer with 24 seconds left in a 2-2 draw at eventual NAIA National Champion MidAmerica Nazarene on Sept. 4.
• Despite losing most of its offensive talent from a season ago, Mid-America Christian brings in a wealth of talent, including team captain defender Lucas Catosso, midfielder Toby Lansdowne, and forward Tony Ngombi.

SCOUTING REPORT
Bethel (Ind.)

• Record: 1-0 (18-3-3 in 2023)
• Last Game: Won vs. Holy Cross (Ind.) 3-1 – Aug. 17, 2024 – Mishawaka, Ind.
• Series vs MACU: First Meeting
• Last Game vs MACU: N/A
• Series Streak: N/A
• Players to Watch:
  • Piero Saboso – SR – F
    • 2 Goals, 4 Points, 2 Shots, 2 SOG, 1 GWG
    • NAIA All-America Second Team in 2023
  • Andres Lucumi – SR – D
    • 2023 NAIA All-America Third Team
  • Tim Noeding – GR – M
    • 4 Goals, 8 Assists, 16 Points, 23 Shots, 14 SOG, 3 GWG in 2023
    • 2023 NAIA All-America Third Team
  • Mathis Neuhaus – R-SO – GK
    • 13-4 W-L, 1.01 GAA, 80 Saves, .769 SV%, 6 SHO
    • 2023 All-Crossroads League First Team
• Team Notes:
  • One of the powerhouse programs in the NAIA, Bethel won the 2022 National Championship and made it to the NAIA Tournament Quarterfinals before falling 2-0 to eventual national champion MidAmerica Nazarene. The Pilots enter the 2024 season with strong expectations, having been picked No. 6 in the NAIA Top 25 Coaches' Poll in the preseason.
  • BU brings back strong talent from last year's squad, including three NAIA All-Americans: senior forward Piero Saboso, senior defender Andres Lucumi, and graduate student midfielder Tim Noeding.
  • Saboso led the Pilots' offensive attack with 13 goals last season and scored a pair of goals in Bethel's 3-1 season-opening win against Holy Cross on Aug. 17.
  • The Pilots are expected to start redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Mathis Neuhaus, who wrapped up the 2023 campaign with a 1.01 goals-against average, 80 saves, and a .769 save percentage in his first year as a starter.
  • Mid-America Christian and Bethel will be playing each other for the first time in the two programs' storied histories.

Grace (Ind.)

• 2023 Record: 15-5-2
• Last Game: Lost vs. No. 18 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 3-2 – Nov. 28, 2023 – Wichita, Kan. (NAIA Tournament – Round of 16)
• Series vs MACU (2015-): MACU leads 3-0
• Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 3-2 – Aug. 30, 2023 – Dill Soccer Field
• Series Streak: MACU won 3
• Players to Watch:
  • Juan Garcia – JR – M
    • 6 Goals, 2 Assists, 14 Points, 36 Shots, 18 SOG, 1 GWG in 2023
    • 2023 All-Crossroads League Honorable Mention
  • Dan Allen – GR – D
    • 2 Goals, 3 Assists, 7 Points, 11 Shots, 4 SOG, 2 GWG in 2023
    • 2023 All-Crossroads League First Team
  • Josh Cruz – SO – F
    • 5 Goals, 3 Assists, 13 Points, 22 Shots, 13 SOG, 2 GWG in 2023
  • Matteo Conci – GR – GK
    • 13-3-1 W-L, 0.85 GAA, 72 Saves, .791 SV%, 10 SHO in 2023
    • 2023 All-Crossroads League First Team
• Team Notes:
  • Grace is coming off one of its best seasons in program history, making its deepest run ever in NAIA Tournament play last season. After winning its regional with a 5-0 victory over Briar Cliff (Iowa) in the Second Round, the Lancers fell to the eventual NAIA National Champion MidAmerica Nazarene 3-2 in the Round of 16 at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita, Kansas, on Nov. 28.
  • Despite losing a pair of NAIA All-Americans in Crossroads League Player of the Year Martim Sequiera and Crossroads League Defensive Player of the Year Diogo Lopes, the Lancers still bring back a talented roster that features All-CL standouts goalkeeper Matteo Conci and defender Dan Allen.
  • On the offensive side, Juan Garcia and Josh Cruz will look to step up more after the two players combined to score 11 goals for GC last season.
  • Grace will officially open its 2024 season on Thursday as the Lancers host William Woods (Mo.) on Thursday night.
  • Mid-America Christian and Grace have built a familiar rapport, with the Evangels facing the Lancers twice since 2019. The Evangels will be playing at Winona Lake for only the second time in their history. The two squads squared off last season at Dill Soccer Field on Aug. 30, when MACU jumped out to a 3-0 lead on goals by Godbolt, Betts, and Price before GC scored a pair of late goals in the 80th and 89th minutes to close the gap to 3-2.
  • Mid-America Christian's other face-offs against Grace include a 5-0 victory in the 2019 NCCAA Division I National Championship match in Kissimmee, Florida, on Dec. 7, while MACU's first-ever meeting came at Grace with a 3-1 win on Aug. 25, 2015, guided by a Gleydson Neri brace and a goal from Raphael Bonelle.