Coming off a season where the men finished their season 16-4-1, the Colorado Mesa University men’s soccer team was picked to finish second in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, just behind defending conference champions Colorado School of Mines (CSM) in the preseason poll. In another poll voted on by the United States Soccer Coaches, the Mavericks are ranked 21st nationally to start the season.
The Mavericks narrowly missed out on being RMAC defending champions. CMU lost to Mines in the championship game of the RMAC Tournament.
CMU only lost one contest at home last season (vs. Mines) but were 11-2-1 in conference play. The team made it to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season but fell to Midwestern State University in the second round.
The Mavericks had three players on Preseason All-RMAC first team: seniors Kevil Del Mazo, James McGhee and Briley Guarneri.
Guarneri was selected as RMAC Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year for the second straight year. He is coming off a stellar season in which he recorded 54 saves and allowed just 15 goals. CMU’s defensive unit will hope to repeat their defensive prowess from a season ago, where they led the RMAC in shutouts (12) and goals allowed (15).
McGhee looks to have a breakout season after playing in just 12 games (nine starts) last season as a defender. His senior leadership defensively can help the Mavericks tremendously in their hopes to return to the top of the conference.
Head coach Todd Padgett returns for his fifth season leading the Mavericks. His teams have finished first or second in the RMAC the past four seasons.
15 new members joined the Mavericks squad over the offseason. Four transfers and 11 incoming freshmen are the recruits. Junior Lawan Abary is a transfer from Western Nebraska where he set the all-time single-season and career goals records. He was also a 2017 First-Team All-Region selection.
The team will turn to Kevin Del Mazo and others to handle the scoring as CMU lost junior Moshe Perez and senior Malik Mennana, who were the teams two leading scorers last season.
Del Mazo ranked second for Preseason All-RMAC, just behind CSM’s John Haist, who was named Preseason Player of the Year.
However, even with the losses of their two leading scorers, if the Mavericks can continue their first-period dominance, they should be in good shape. CMU took it to opponents during the first period last season, outscoring teams 21-3. The Mavericks also got off more shots than their opposition by a wide margin (337-181), showing their ability to get the ball down the field and put the pressure on defenders and goalkeepers.
The men will open their season in Taos, New Mexico to face West Texas A&M University on Aug. 30.
After posting a record of 8-9-1, the women were picked to finish seventh this season in the RMAC. The women struggled during conference play last season, going 5-6-1, and will hope to improve their play on the road, where they lost four of seven contests.
The Mavericks made it to the RMAC Tournament as the sixth seed but were eliminated in the quarterfinals after losing to eventual RMAC Champions, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.
Junior midfielder Alexis Allard hopes to spark the club offensively. Allard started all 18 games for the Mavericks and scored a team-high six goals, tied for sixth in the RMAC. Other returning players include redshirt junior Zoe Peterson, redshirt sophomore Madison Jones and junior Ryanne Parker.
CMU scored 27 goals and allowed 23 last year. For the team to improve and win pivotal conference games, more offense is a must. The Mavericks scored 19 of their 27 goals in the second period last season. Quicker starts and goals in the first period could give them more momentum, as opponents got off fewer shots on the Mavericks defense in the second period compared to the first period.
Head coach Jason Clare enters his fifth season as women’s soccer coach. Clare will look to lead the Mavericks back to a winning record. In 2016, the Mavericks finished 9-7-2 and placed fourth in the RMAC.
CMU will open their season on Friday, August 31 in Odessa, Texas against Permian Basin. The Maverick’s first home game is Friday, September 7th against Cal State-East Bay.
