WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State is ranked No. 10 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll after finishing last season with a 15-3-3 record and reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

"For the 2025 team it's a starting place based on where the 2024 group ended last year, and we just have to build off that," head coach Michael Meachum said.

The Mustangs are the only Lone Star Conference team in the preseason poll and one of eight teams in Super Region IV among the top-25 to start the new campaign.

This year's team will look much different than the squad Meachum had last season. 

"We lost all the Covid guys that we had last year, so this is going to be a brand-new group," Meachum said. "We are bringing a big core group that got to play some big roles and big minutes."

Among the players returning this season are Gabriel Gacovicaj, who scored four goals and had two assists, and Liam Pritchard, who was second on the team with seven assists in 2024.

Cooper Tea, Ethan Krchnak and Skyler Krchnak are back for the Mustangs following their redshirt freshman season. All three players played more than 800 minutes last season, and each had three assists. Tea scored a goal in a 2-0 win over St. Mary's last year.

Senior midfielder Jarrod McKechnie, who saw his role expand as the season progressed last season, is also returning for the Mustangs this year. 

Midwestern State has one preseason top-25 school on its schedule for the upcoming campaign. Western Oregon is ranked No. 22 and will face MSU at Toyota Soccer Center in Frisco, Texas, on Sept. 27.

The Mustangs visit Southern Nazarene on Sept. 20, and the Crimson Storm are among the schools receiving votes.

Midwestern State opens its season on Sept. 5 at Colorado Mesa with kickoff scheduled for 8:30 p.m. Newman visits Stang Park at 6 p.m. on Sept. 11 for the MSU home opener.
 

United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Poll - Pre-season - July 31, 2025

 

Rank	School	Previous	2024 Record
1	Lynn University	1	20-0-2
2	University of Charleston	2	22-2-1
3	Colorado State University-Pueblo	3	17-4-3
4	McKendree University	4	16-1-7
5	Clayton State University	5	13-4-4
6	Fort Lewis College	6	14-4-6
7	Saginaw Valley State University	7	13-6-2
8	Felician University	8	17-4-2
9	Coker University	9	15-3-1
10	Midwestern State University	10	15-3-3
11	California State University-Los Angeles	11	12-3-6
12	Franklin Pierce University	13	12-3-5
13	University of West Florida	14	12-3-4
14	Tiffin University	15	14-6-1
15	Post University	16	13-5-4
16	University of Findlay	17	12-4-5
17	University of Colorado-Colorado Springs	18	14-3-4
18	Cal Poly Pomona	19	14-2-7
19	Southern New Hampshire University	20	14-2-3
20	Rogers State University	21	9-5-7
21	Auburn University Montgomery	22	11-3-6
22	Western Oregon University	23	14-5-1
23	Fort Hays State University	24	13-4-4
24	California State University-Dominguez Hills	25	10-5-6
25	Converse University	RV	9-1-9

Others Receiving Votes: Bloomsburg (Pa.); Gannon (Pa.); Concord (N.H.); Lewis (Ill.); Mars Hill (N.C.); Converse (S.C.); Maryville (Mo.); New Haven (Conn.); District of Columbia; Southern Nazarene (Okla.); Davenport (Mich.); Point Loma (Calif.); Westmont (Calif.); Flagler (Fla.); Francis Marion (S.C.).
 

--MSUMustangs.com--