TULSA, Okla. -- For the first time since 2001, the Summit League Men's Soccer Championship will be held in Tulsa as four hopefuls are set to converge on Oral Roberts' Case Soccer Complex looking to hoist the 2023 tournament trophy and earn the NCAA automatic bid.

Top-seed Denver is the defending tournament champion and won the program's ninth regular season title in the last 11 years thanks to a 7-0-1 mark and 22 points in Summit action. The Pioneers have dominated this event for the last decade, losing only once in nine previous tries.

Tournament host Oral Roberts along with third-seeded Omaha and fourth-seeded Kansas City are looking to change that trend. The second-seeded Golden Eagles last lifted the tournament trophy in 1999, while the Mavericks lone title came in 2017 when they dealt the Pioneers their lone loss during this recent run of dominance.

The Roos, meanwhile, have won three tournament titles and will look to end a drought that dates back to 2008. Kansas City upset the top-seeded Golden Eagles a season ago in the semifinals to earn a title shot against DU.

The semifinal matches are repeats of contests that look place this past Saturday on the final day of the regular season as Denver dealt Kansas City a 2-0 loss in the Mile High City, while ORU won 3-0 on the road at Omaha. 

Denver and Kansas City get the action started Thursday at 3 p.m. CT and will be followed Oral Roberts and Omaha at 7 p.m. CT. Saturday's title game is set for 2 p.m. CT with all three games streaming on the Summit League Network.

NO. 1 SEED
(RV/21) DENVER (11-2-4; 37 pts | 7-0-1; 22 pts SL) | @DU_MSoccer
Next Up: vs. No. 4 seed Kansas City (11/9; 3 p.m. CT)
Previous Matches: at Oral Roberts* (W, 1-0), vs. Kansas City (W, 2-0) 
Tournament History: 17-1 (10th appearance)
Tournament Titles: 8 (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) 
The Pioneers are seeking their ninth tournament title in the last 11 years and have advanced to the title game in each of their 10 appearances in the postseason event, compiling a 17-1 record ... DU has allowed only four goals in those 18 tournament matches ... Denver won the 2022 Summit League Championship on its home field, blanking No. 3 seed Omaha 1-0 in the semifinals and No. 4 seed Kansas City 3-0 in the title match ... Goalkeeper Isaac Nehme was named the Championship MVP after adding two shutouts to his freshman tally that ended at 10 ... Nehme doubled that total in his sophomore season, pushing it to 21 as his 11 shutouts in 2023 rank second among all Division I goalkeepers ... Nehme surrendered only one goal in eight League matches and registered a .967 save percentage ... Thursday’s opening semifinal with the Roos will be a rematch of last Saturday’s regular-season finale in Denver that the Pioneers won 2-0 and last year’s title game ... Freshman Bryce Willoughby scored his second consecutive game-winner for DU to clinch an unbeaten season for the Pioneers in League play in back-to-back years (6-0-2; 2022) ... Nehme blanked Kansas City twice in the regular season, stopping six shots in a 1-0 win on the Roos’ home field, then added two saves during the win in Denver ... Oje Ofunrein leads the team with eight goals, while midfielder Sam Bassett added seven, including three in League play ... Bassett also chipped in five assists and led the team and ranked second in overall games among League players with 19 points.

NO. 2 SEED
(NR/30) ORAL ROBERTS (10-3-3; 33 pts | 5-1-2; 17 pts SL) | @ORUMSoccer
Next Up: vs. No. 3 seed Omaha (11/9; 7 p.m. CT)
Previous Matches: vs. Denver* (L, 1-0), at Omaha* (W, 3-0)
Tournament History: 7-14 (15th appearance)
Tournament Titles: 1 (1999)
The Golden Eagles will take aim for their first Summit League Tournament title since 1999 as the No. 2 seed and do so on their home field at the Case Soccer Complex ... This marks just the second time the event has been played on the ORU campus with the previous time being in 2001 ...  The Golden Eagles had a 13-match home winning streak snapped the last time they played on their home pitch, falling 1-0 to eventual regular season champion Denver on Oct. 28 ... The Golden Eagles once again had the highest-scoring offense in the League, averaging 2.8 goals per game in League play and 2.4 in 16 overall contests, which ranks sixth nationally among Division I teams ... Junior Luis Flores, a transfer from Tyler Junior College, spearheaded those efforts by rattling off 15 total goals with a League-best seven of those coming against conference foes ... His 15 total goals has him tied for the Division I lead Massachusetts’ Alec Hughes ... Flores led all League players with four TicketSmarter Offensive Peak Performer of the Week honors during the season, while freshman goalkeeper Jakub Grzesiak led the way defensively with three weekly accolades ... Grzesiak posted six shutouts during the regular season with four of those coming in Summit action, including a 3-0 victory over Omaha in last Saturday’s regular-season finale ... The Golden Eagles and Mavericks will play again in Thursday’s second semifinal at 7 p.m. CT ... ORU beat Omaha twice during the regular season, outscoring the Mavericks 8-2 ... ORU holds a 2-0 edge in all-time tournament meetings, winning semifinal matches in 2015 and 2021 both by the score of 2-1. 
 
NO. 3 SEED
OMAHA (6-7-4; 22 pts | 3-3-2; 11 pts SL) | @OmahaMSOC
Next Up: vs. No. 2 Oral Roberts (11/9; 7 p.m. CT)
Previous Matches: at Western Illinois* (W, 2-1), vs. Oral Roberts* (L, 3-0)
Tournament History: 5-6 (8th appearance)
Tournament Titles: 1 (2017)
The Mavericks are back in the tournament field as the No. 3 seed for the third consecutive season ... Omaha lost both of their semifinal matches in 2021 and 2022 after advancing to four consecutive title matches from 2016-19 ... There was no tournament held in 2020 - a year the Mavericks represented the Summit League in the NCAA Tournament after regular season champion Denver could not participate due to Covid-19 restrictions ... The Mavericks won their lone tournament title in 2017, defeating top-seeded Denver 9-8 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in regulation ... Second-year head coach Donovan Dowling has amassed an 8-5-4 record in League play in his first two campaigns, finishing third in the standings both of those years ... Forward Theo Klein led his squad with seven goals during the season with five of those coming from the penalty spot ... Klein scored four times against League foes to rank second among Summit players in that category ... Omaha and ORU both shared the League-lead after amassing 86 corner kicks in League play ... Junior Nathanael Sallah, a two-time TicketSmarter Defensive Peak Performer of the Week honoree in 2023, led all League goalkeepers with 31 saves against conference foes ... He averaged a 4.4 saves per game in those contests to top the charts ... The Mavericks are 5-6 all-time in postseason play ... This will be the second consecutive season the Mavericks open up with the host after falling to No. 2 seed Denver 1-0 in a 2022 semifinal. 

NO. 4 SEED
KANSAS CITY (4-7-5; 17 pts | 2-3-3; 9 pts SL) | @KCRoosMSoccer
Next Up: vs. No. 1 seed Denver (11/9; 3 p.m. CT)
Previous Matches: vs. St. Thomas* (W, 1-0); at Denver* (L, 2-0)
Tournament History: 10-16 (19th appearance)
Tournament Titles: 3 (2001, 2003, 2008)
The Roos are back in postseason play for the third consecutive season as the No. 4 seed ... A year ago in Denver, Kansas City knocked off top-seeded Oral Roberts 3-2 in double-overtime to advance to its first title match since returning to the Summit League prior to the 2020 season and first overall since 2009 ...  Kansas City has won three tournament titles, including the last time it was hosted by Oral Roberts in 2001 when the third-seeded Roos beat fourth-seeded IUPUI 2-1 in the title match ... This is Kansas City’s 20th overall appearance, which tops all teams ... The Roos fell to No. 2 seed Denver 3-0 in last year’s title clash ... Those two teams played this past Saturday in Denver with the Pioneers prevailing 2-0 and will meet again in Thursday’s first semifinal at 3 p.m. CT ... This marks the third straight year a DU-KC matchup will take place in the postseason ... The Pioneers won 4-3 on penalty kicks in 2021 in Macomb following a 0-0 draw in the semifinals ... The Roos finished League play at 2-3-3 and scored only six goals, but allowed just seven ... Midfielder Edson Murguia was the only Roo with multiple goals against conference foes and his 89th minute free kick lifted Kansas City to a 1-0 win over St. Thomas on Oct. 28 that sealed a postseason spot for the club ... Sophomore Robin Balters started the final six League tilts between the pipes for head coach Ryan Pore and recorded three consecutive shutouts during one stetch ... Howard was the last No. 4 seed to win the Summit League Tournament when the Bison prevailed in 1998.

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