2019 Western Athletic Conference men's soccer season

2019 Western Athletic Conference men's soccer season
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportSoccer
DurationAugust 30, 2019 – November 2, 2019
Number of teams10
2020 MLS SuperDraft
Regular Season
Season MVPOffensive:
Defensive:
Goalkeeper:
Tournament
WAC men's soccer seasons
2019 Western Athletic Conference men's soccer standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 19 Seattle ‡ 10 – 0 – 1 15 – 3 – 5
Utah Valley 8 – 3 – 0 13 – 6 – 2
Air Force 6 – 5 – 0 8 – 11 – 0
CSU Bakersfield 6 – 5 – 0 8 – 11 – 0
San Jose State 5 – 4 – 2 5 – 12 – 2
Cal Baptist # 5 – 5 – 1 6 – 11 – 2
Houston Baptist 5 – 6 – 0 7 – 11 – 0
Kansas City 5 – 6 – 0 6 – 11 – 0
UTRGV 4 – 5 – 2 8 – 6 – 2
UNLV 4 – 6 – 1 6 – 12 – 1
Incarnate Word 2 – 9 – 0 5 – 12 – 0
Grand Canyon 1 – 7 – 3 4 – 9 – 4
As of 17 December, 2019
Rankings from United Soccer Coaches

The 2019 Western Athletic Conference men's soccer season will be the 37th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The regular season will begin on August 30, 2019 and conclude on November 2, 2019.

The regular season will culminate with the 2019 WAC Men's Soccer Tournament, which will begin on November 8 and conclude on November 16, 2019.

Background

The 2018 season began in August 2018 and concluded in November 2018. The regular season champions, Air Force, enjoyed their best regular season ever, and their best NCAA Tournament berth since 1993. Air Force finished the season ranked 12th in the nation, and achieved a 17–5–0 record. In the 2018 WAC Men's Soccer Tournament, Air Force were eliminated by eventual tournament champions, Grand Canyon. Both teams earned berths into the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament, being the two WAC representatives in the tournament.[1]

In the NCAA Tournament, Grand Canyon was eliminated on penalty kicks by UC Irvine in the first round. Air Force defeated Central Arkansas, 4–0 in the first round. In the second round, they played against in-state rivals, Denver, where they won 2–1.[2] In the Sweet Sixteen, Air Force traveled out east to take on Indiana, where they lost 2–0.[3][4] Indiana would end being the national runners-up.

At the end of the season, Air Force's Tucker Bone was named an Consensus All-American by earned first-team All-American honors by College Soccer News, Top Drawer Soccer, Soccer America, and United Soccer Coaches. Bone was the highest drafted WAC player selected in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, being drafted in the first round, twentieth overall by Seattle Sounders FC. Three other WAC players were drafted in the 2019 SuperDraft: Camden Riley (Sporting Kansas City), Nathan Aune (San Jose Earthquakes), and Mitch Osmond (Minnesota United FC).[5]

Teams

A total of 12 teams are due to take part in the conference this season.

On July 1, 2019, the University of Missouri–Kansas City announced that its athletic program, previously known as the UMKC Kangaroos, would be rebranded as the Kansas City Roos, with "Roos" having long been used as a short form of the historic "Kangaroos" nickname.[6]

The 2019 season will be the last for both CSU Bakersfield and Kansas City as WAC members. On July 1, 2020, CSU Bakersfield will join the Big West Conference[7] and Kansas City will return to the Summit League after a seven-year absence.[8]

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Locations of the 2019 WAC men's soccer season teams

Stadiums and locations

College Location Venue Capacity
Air Force Falcons Colorado Springs, Colorado Cadet Soccer Stadium 1,000
Cal Baptist Lancers Riverside, California California Bapitst Soccer Field 250
CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners Bakersfield, California CSUB Main Soccer Field 2,500
Grand Canyon Antelopes Phoenix, Arizona GCU Stadium 6,000
Houston Baptist Huskies Houston, Texas Sorrels Field 500
Incarnate Word Cardinals San Antonio, Texas Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium
Kansas City Roos Kansas City, Missouri Durwood Soccer Stadium 3,200
San Jose State Spartans San Jose, California Spartan Soccer Field 1,000
Seattle Redhawks Seattle, Washington Championship Field 1,000
UNLV Rebels Las Vegas, Nevada Peter Johann Soccer Field 500
Utah Valley Wolverines Orem, Utah Clyde Field 1,000
UTRGV Vaqueros Edinburg, Texas Soccer and Track & Field Complex 2,000

Head coaches

As of the 2018 season
Team Head coach Previous job Years at
school 		Overall record Record at
school 		WAC
record[9] 		NCAA
Tournaments[10] 		NCAA
College Cups[10] 		NCAA
Titles[10] 		Ref.
Air Force Doug Hill Air Force (asst.) 13 109–103–23 (.513) 109–103–23 (.513) 46–24–13 (.633) 3 0 0 [11]
Cal Baptist Coe Michaelson Northwest Nazarene 4 108–74–19 (.585) 38–16–3 (.693) 0–0–0 (–) 1 0 0 [12]
CSU Bakersfield Richie Grant Memphis 5 217–182–38 (.540) 29–37–12 (.449) 18–25–7 (.430) 0 0 0 [13]
Grand Canyon Schellas Hyndman FC Dallas 5 562–214–115 (.695) 33–38–3 (.466) 17–20–4 (.463) 30 4 0 [14]
Houston Baptist Ryan Pratt Houston Baptist (asst.) 1 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
Incarnate Word Vince Martinez 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–)
Kansas City 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
San Jose State 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
Seattle U 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
UNLV 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
Utah Valley 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0
UTRGV 0 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0–0–0 (–) 0 0 0

Preseason

Preseason poll

The preseason poll was released on August 21, 2019.

Team Ranking Points First Place Votes
1. Seattle U 112 5
2. UTRGV 104 2
T-3. Air Force 88 3
T-3. Grand Canyon 88 1
5. UNLV 87 0
6. San José State 77 1
7. Utah Valley 75 0
8. Cal Baptist 49 0
9. CSU Bakersfield 387 0
T-10. Houston Baptist 27 0
T-10. Kansas City 27 0
12. Incarnate Word 20 0

Preseason national polls

The preseason national polls were released in July and August 2019.

United
Soccer[15] 		CSN[16] Soccer
America[17] 		Top Drawer
Soccer[18]
Air Force 19 RV RV 23
Cal Baptist — — — —
CSU Bakersfield — — — —
Grand Canyon — — — —
Houston Baptist — — — —
Incarnate Word — — — —
Kansas City — — — —
San Jose State — — — —
Seattle U RV RV — —
UNLV — — — —
Utah Valley RV RV — —
UTRGV — RV — —

Preseason awards

Listed in the order that they were released

Award Team Player Position Year

Regular season

Early season tournaments

Team Tournament Finish
Cal State Bakersfield John Rennie Nike Invitational 4th
Copa de Causeway 3rd

Conference results

Color Key: Home  • Away  • Win  • Loss  • Draw  • Postponed
Club Match
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Air Force Falcons
(AFA)		 KC UIW RGV CBU CSUB HBU SU SJSU GCU UNLV UVU
4–1 3–1 0–2 Oct 10 Oct 12 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Oct 31 Nov 2 Nov 9
Cal Baptist Lancers
(CBU)		 SU GCU UNLV AFA UVU SJSU RGV UIW HBU KC CSUB
0–2 0–0 4–0 Oct 10 Oct 12 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Nov 1 Nov 3 Nov 9
CSU Bakersfield
(CSUB)		 SJSU UNLV GCU UVU AFA SU UIW RGV KC HBU CBU
2–3 1–0 2–1 Oct 10 Oct 12 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Nov 1 Nov 3 Nov 9
Grand Canyon Antelopes
(GCU)		 UIW CBU CSUB SJSU SU RGV HBU KC AFA UVU UNLV
Sep 28 Oct 4 Oct 6 Oct 11 Oct 13 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Oct 31 Nov 2 Nov 9
Houston Baptist Huskies
(HBU)		 UVU SU SJSU RGV UIW AFA GCU UNLV CBU CSUB KC
Sep 28 Oct 4 Oct 6 Oct 11 Oct 13 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Nov 1 Nov 3 Nov 9
Incarnate Word Cardinals
(UIW)		 @ GCU TBD TBD TBD SU TBD HBU TBD @ AFA TBD TBD
Sep 28 Oct 4 Oct 6 Oct 11 Oct 13 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Oct 31 Nov 3 Nov 9
Kansas City Roos
(KC)		 TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
San Jose State Spartans
(SJSU)		 TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
Seattle Redhawks
(SU)		 CBU HBU KC @ UNLV @ GCU TBD AFA UVU @ UIW @ RGV SJSU
Sep 28 Oct 4 Oct 6 Oct 11 Oct 13 Oct 19 Oct 15 Oct 27 Nov 1 Nov 3 Nov 9
UNLV Rebeles
(UNLV)		 TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
Utah Valley
(UVU)		 TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
UTRGV Vaqueros
(RGV)		 @UNLV UVU AFA @HBU @KC GCU @CBU @CSUB SJSU SU @UIW
2–0 1–2 2–0 Oct 11 Oct 13 Oct 19 Oct 25 Oct 27 Nov 1 Nov 3 Nov 9

Postseason

WAC Tournament

Main article: 2019 WAC Men's Soccer Tournament
First round
Nov. 13 		Semifinals
Nov. 15 		Championship
Nov. 17
         
1 Seattle U 1
4 Cal State Bakersfield 0
4 Cal State Bakersfield 1
5 San Jose State 0
1 Seattle U (pen.) 0 (2)
2 Utah Valley 0 (1)
2 Utah Valley 3
7 Kansas City 0
2 Utah Valley (pen.) 0 (6)
3 Air Force 0 (5)
3 Air Force 3
6 Houston Baptist 2

NCAA Tournament

Main article: 2019 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament

The NCAA Tournament will begin in November 2019 and conclude on December 17, 2019.

Seed Region School 1st Round 2nd Round 3rd Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship

Rankings

National rankings

    Improvement in ranking
  Drop in ranking
RV Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25
NV No votes received
  Pre Wk
1		 Wk
2		 Wk
3		 Wk
4		 Wk
5		 Wk
6		 Wk
7		 Wk
8		 Wk
9		 Wk
10		 Wk
11		 Wk
12		 Wk
13		 Wk
14		 Wk
15		 Wk
16		 Final
Air Force USC 19 25 NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS 23 23 23 NV NV NV NV NV NV
Cal Baptist USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
CSU Bakersfield USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Grand Canyon USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Houston Baptist USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Incarnate Word USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Kansas City USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
San Jose State USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Seattle U USC RV RV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV RV NV NV NV NV NV NV
UNLV USC NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Utah Valley USC RV NV NV NV NV NV NV RV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
UTRGV USC NV NV NV NV NV RV NV NV None released
TDS NV NV NV NV NV RV 24 24 NV

Regional rankings

    Improvement in ranking
  Drop in ranking
RV Received votes but were not ranked in Top 10
NV No votes received

The Far West region of the United Soccer poll ranks teams across the Pac-12, WAC, and Big West.

  Wk
1		 Wk
2		 Wk
3		 Wk
4		 Wk
5		 Wk
6		 Wk
7		 Wk
8		 Wk
9		 Wk
10		 Wk
11		 Wk
12
Air Force 5 NV NV NV NV NV NV
Cal Baptist NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
CSU Bakersfield NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Grand Canyon NV NV 10 10 9 NV NV
Houston Baptist NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Incarnate Word NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Kansas City NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
San Jose State NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Seattle U 4 8 8 NV NV 5 6
UNLV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Utah Valley 6 10 NV NV NV 8 5
UTRGV NV NV NV 6 5 6 9

Awards and honors

Preseason honors

Postseason honors

2019 WAC Men's Soccer Individual Awards
Award Recipient(s)
Player of the Year
Coach of the Year
Defensive Player of the Year
Rookie of the Year
2019 WAC Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams
First Team Second Team Rookie Team

2020 MLS Draft

Main article: 2020 MLS SuperDraft

The 2020 MLS SuperDraft will be held in January 2020.

Total picks by school

Team Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Total
Air Force – – – – –
Cal Baptist – – – – –
CSU Bakersfield – – – – –
Grand Canyon – – – – –
Houston Baptist – – – – –
Incarnate Word – – – – –
Kansas City – – – – –
San Jose State – – – – –
Seattle U – – – – –
UNLV – – – – –
Utah Valley – – – – –
UTRGV – – – – –

List of selections

Rnd. Pick Player Pos. Team School

Homegrown players

Further information: Homegrown Player Rule (Major League Soccer)

The Homegrown Player Rule is a Major League Soccer program that allows MLS teams to sign local players from their own development academies directly to MLS first team rosters. Before the creation of the rule in 2008,[19] every player entering Major League Soccer had to be assigned through one of the existing MLS player allocation processes, such as the MLS SuperDraft.

To place a player on its homegrown player list, making him eligible to sign as a homegrown player, players must have resided in that club's home territory and participated in the club's youth development system for at least one year.[20] Players can play college soccer and still be eligible to sign a homegrown contract.

Original MLS team Player Pos. School Ref.

References

  1. ^ "Grand Canyon Wins 2018 WAC Men's Soccer Tournament". Western Athletic Conference. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  2. ^ "Air Force Upends No. 9 Denver in NCAA Tournament Thriller". Air Force Academy Athletics. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  3. ^ Benedetto, Vinny. "Air Force soccer's NCAA Tournament run ends in Indiana". Colorado Springs Gazette. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  4. ^ "IU men's soccer advances to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals with 2-0 win". Indiana Daily Student. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  5. ^ "2019 MLS SuperDraft Tracker". MLSSoccer.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  6. ^ "UMKC Athletics Completes New Brand Identity" (Press release). Kansas City Athletics. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  7. ^ "CSU Bakersfield, UC San Diego to Join Big West Conference" (Press release). Big West Conference. November 27, 2017. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
  8. ^ "Kansas City Roo Athletics Rejoins Summit League" (Press release). Kansas City Athletics. June 20, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
  9. ^ "Western Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Record Book" (PDF). Western Athletic Conference. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  10. ^ a b c "NCAA Men's Soccer Championship Brackets" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. ncaa.org. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  11. ^ "2018 Air Force MSOC Quick Facts" (PDF). goairforcefalcons.com. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  12. ^ "Coe Michaelson - Head Men's Soccer Coach". cbulancers.com. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  13. ^ "Richie Grant - Men's Soccer Coach". gorunners.com. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  14. ^ "Schellas Hyndman - Men's Soccer Coach". gculopes.com. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  15. ^ "United Soccer Coaches Top 25 NCAA DI Men — National Pre-Season Poll — August 6, 2019". United Soccer Coaches. August 6, 2019. Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  16. ^ "College Soccer News 2019 Preseason National Poll". collegesoccernews.com. CollegeSoccerNews.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  17. ^ "Soccer America Men's College Preseason Top 25". socceramerica.com. Soccer America. August 28, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  18. ^ "College Soccer National Ranking - Preseason". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
  19. ^ "MLS Draft 2013: Homegrown player initiative rises as draft declines". Sporting News. Archived from the original on March 12, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  20. ^ "MLS 2012 Roster Rules". Archived from the original on February 20, 2012.