SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- A season after finishing among the top-rated RPI conferences in Division I and seeing two programs win multiple NCAA Tournament games, the Summit League will only be stronger in 2025.
Denver, who claimed the regular season title, made it all the way to the College Cup for the second time in school history, falling to Vermont in a penalty shootout. Kansas City, who won the 2024 tournament title in dramatic fashion, made its deepest NCAA Tournament run in program history, posting a pair of wins over Saint Louis and No. 15 Missouri State before falling in overtime to No. 2 Pitt in the third round.
Those two were ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the coaches' preseason poll, while the team DU defeated in the quarterfinals to reach the College Cup rounded out the top three in the poll. That squad is UMass and one of two new affiliate members set to embark on Summit League play in 2025. The Minutemen are joined by fellow east coaster Delaware as those two bring the membership total to seven.
Those four programs along with Oral Roberts, Omaha and St. Thomas all get their 2025 campaigns underway on the opening day of the men's college soccer season. Five of those clashes can be seen live on the Summit League Network ($). Fans can register for the network
here.
UPCOMING
Thursday, Aug. 21 | TV/Stream | Time (Local)
Presbyterian at St. Thomas | SLN | 12 p.m. CT
Siena at (8/NR) UMass | SLN | 4 p.m. ET
Omaha at FIU | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. ET
LeMoyne at Delaware | SLN | 7 p.m. ET
(18/13) Kansas City at (5/7) SMU | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. CT
(RV/NR) Washington at (4/3) Denver | SLN | 7 p.m. MT
Cal State Fullerton at Oral Roberts | SLN | 7:30 p.m. CT
Sunday, Aug. 24 | TV/Stream
St. Thomas at Chicago State | NEC | 12 p.m. CT
Delaware at Temple | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. ET
(8/NR) UMass at UConn | UConn+ | 7 p.m. ET
Omaha at Florida Atlantic | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. ET
CSUN at Oral Roberts | SLN | 7 p.m. CT
(4/3) Denver at (13/10) Stanford | ACCN | 7 p.m. PT
Monday, Aug. 25 | TV/Stream
(24/22) Missouri State at (18/13) Kansas City | SLN | 7:30 p.m. CT
Top 25 Rankings (United Soccer Coaches/Top Drawer)
Key: ACCN (ACC Network Xtra), ESPN+ (ESPN Plus), NEC (NEC Front Row). SLN (Summit League Network), UCONN+ (UConn Plus)
AROUND THE LEAGUE
• For the first time in Summit League history, three teams were among the top 25 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll. Denver was ranked No. 4, while newcomer UMass was No. 8 and Kansas City was picked No. 18.
• All three of those squads won multiple games in the 2024 NCAA Tournament with Denver advancing to the College Cup after knocking off UMass in the quarterfinals, while KC fell 3-2 in overtime at No. 2 national seed Pitt in the third round.
• The Pioneers and Roos were also ranked in the Top Drawer preseason poll with DU claiming the No. 3 spot, while KC was ranked No. 13.
• Both of those teams face fellow ranked opponents during the opening week of play as the Pioneers travel to face (13/10) Stanford and the Roos embark on the 2025 campaign against two ranked foes. KC will open on the road at (5/7) SMU before hosting (24/22) Missouri State in a rematch of a second round NCAA Tournament clash from a season ago that the Roos won 2-1.
•DU will open its campaign at home against Big Ten foe Washington, who is receiving votes in the USC poll.
• UMass embarks on its first season as a Summit League affiliate member along with Delaware. The Minutemen are coming over from the Atlantic 10 where they tied for a third a season ago and made the A-10 quarterfinals, while the Blue Hens finished 10th in the Coastal Athletic Conference regular season standings.
• With the addition of those two teams, the 2025 Summit League Championship will return to a four-team field where the No. 1 seed (vs. No. 4 seed) and No. 2 seed (vs. No. 3 seed) will host a semifinal match on their respective campuses on Sunday, Nov. 9.
• The Summit League had four players ranked among Top Drawer’s Top 100 heading into the 2025 campaign. Kansas City’s Elie Kisoka, the reigning Summit League Offensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, was the highest-rated at No. 7.
• Kisoka led all SL players in goals (12), game-winners (6) and total points (33) during his first season as a Roo. His six game-winning goals were tied for the NCAA lead.
• Kisoka and company posted 56 total goals during a record-breaking season for the Roos that saw the program rack up a single-season record 15 wins. Those 56 goals were tied for second in the NCAA, trailing only Duke, who put away 57 tallies as a team.
• Denver had a pair of players on the list with goalkeeper Isaac Nehme coming in at No. 19 and defender Trevor Wright securing the No. 49 spot. Nehme, who is the two-time reigning SL Goalkeeper of the Year, was the second-highest ranked keeper on the list.
• Nehme moved into second place in the Summit League record book for a career shutouts after pushing his overall total to 29 with eight clean sheets a season ago. Oakland’s Mike Skolnik (1998-2001) holds the record with 34.
• UMass had the remaining player as defender Aidan Kelly was ranked No. 68. Kelly was a 2024 USC All-Southeast Region Second Team honoree after starting all 22 games and leading the Minutemen to their second deepest NCAA Tournament run in program history - the 2007 squad made the College Cup.
• Kelly and his teammates crack their Summit League era at home against Siena Thursday before a road clash at UConn Sunday.
• Juan Moreno and the Golden Eagles open their campaign by hosting a pair of California State programs with Fullerton and Northridge visiting Tulsa. Moreno will look to return to his 2023 form when he was All-Summit League First Team honoree after scoring four goals and adding three assists.
• Omaha embarks on a two-game swing through the Sunshine State. The 2023 Summit League Tournament champions play FIU and Florida Atlantic to open things up.
• Delaware sophomore Marius Stenner was the CAA Rookie of the Year in 2024 and led all NCAA rookies with five game-winning goals for the Blue Hens. His nine total goals were tied for third among CAA scorers.
• Delaware opens its 2025 slate at home vs. LeMoyne Thursday before hitting the road for a short trip over to Philadelphia to square off against Temple Sunday.
• St. Thomas transfer Mathis Guffroy brings some offensive weaponry with him to the Twin Cities after netting 47 career goals and 27 assists during a four-year career at Texas Wesleyan (NAIA). He and the Tommies will be the first Summit squad on the pitch as they get the campaign underway with a home match against Presbyterian on the Summit League Network at Noon CT.
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