Rochester, MN-
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference (MCAC) soccer teams begin their 2025 season this week on a quest to reach the elusive NJCAA DIII National Soccer Championship Tournament. The coaches took time to share their comments about the 2025 men's and women's soccer seasons and predict the regular-season order of finish for participating teams.
MCAC Soccer has four member colleges participating in both women's soccer (Alexandria Technical and Community College, Anoka-Ramsey Community College, North Dakota State College of Science, and Rochester Community and Technical College) and men's soccer (Alexandria Technical and Community College, Anoka-Ramsey Community College, Minnesota West Community and Technical College, and Riverland Community College).
Coaches' Poll (Women):
1. Rochester Community & Technical College
2. Anoka-Ramsey Community College
3. Alexandria Technical and Community College
4. North Dakota State College of Science
Coaches' Poll (Men):
1. Riverland Community College
2. Alexandria Technical and Community College
3. Minnesota West Community and Technical College
4. Anoka-Ramsey Community College
Read on for season previews of the MCAC soccer teams, and be sure to follow @MCACSports and @NJCAASoccer on Twitter for the latest in MCAC and NJCAA two-year college soccer news, rankings, and season information.
For the MCAC Sports home page, go to https://mcacsports.org/sports/msoc/index for the men's soccer home page and https://mcacsports.org/sports/wsoc/index for the women's soccer home page.
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Minnesota College Athletic Conference2025 Women's Soccer Preview(Teams are listed in predicted order of regular-season finish.) |
Rochester Community & Technical College
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Head Coach: Elliot Chapman, 1st year at RCTC, 0-0-0 record Coaching Staff: Khloee Zelinske, Assistant Coach; Emily Morales, Assistant Coach 2024 Overall Record: 8-3-1 overall, 4-0 in the MCAC; MCAC Champions; Region 13 Champions; Midwest District Qualifier Top returning players: Lilly Farrand Mila Van Der Velde Emma Scheppmann Top incoming players: Rebecca Cook Medi Meyer Emma Nelson Coach Chapman on the 2025 Yellowjackets' season: "I would love to see us win the conference and be the one seed heading into Districts this season. If we can make some noise at Districts and be competitive, that would be great."
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Anoka-Ramsey Community College
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Head Coach: Shelby Zimmel, 1st year at Anoka-Ramsey, 0-0-0 record Coaching Staff: Rylee Nolan, assistant coach 2024 Overall Record: 3-4 overall, 2-2 in the MCAC; 2nd place in the MCAC; Region 13 Tournament Finalist Top returning players: Grace Stevenson, Forward, Coon Rapids, MN Top incoming players: No one mentioned. Coach Zimmel on the 2025 Golden Rams' season: "We are going to continue this program one step at a time!"
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Alexandria Technical & Community College
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Head Coach: Chato Alvarado and Tom Roos (co-head coaches), 4th year at Alexandria College Coaching Staff: Carly Erickson and Chato Alvarado, co-athletic directors 2024 Overall Record: 1-4 overall, 0-4 in the MCAC, 3rd place in the MCAC Top returning players: No one mentioned. Top incoming players: No one mentioned. Coach Roos on the 2025 Legends' season: No comment provided.
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North Dakota State College of Science
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Head Coach: Steven Ness, 1st year at NDSCS, 0-0-0 record Coaching Staff: Ethan Ness, assistant coach 2024 Overall Record: This is the first year of women's soccer for NDSCS. Top returning players: First year of competition. There are no returning players. Top incoming players: Maleah Ramsey, Midfielder, Williston, ND Coach Ness on the 2025 Wildcats season: "We are excited at NDSCS for the challenge and to introduce Wildcat Soccer to the MCAC." Notable information: NDSCS added a new turf field for soccer and football.
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Minnesota College Athletic Conference2025 Men's Soccer Preview(Teams are listed in predicted order of regular-season finish.) |
Riverland Community College
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Head Coach: Frank Spaeth, 6th year at Riverland, 47-27-9 record Coaching Staff: Fabian Becerril, Assistant Coach; and Mario Garcia, Assistant Coach 2024 Overall Record: 9-4-3 overall, 6-1-1 in the MCAC; MCAC Champions; Region 13 Champions; Midwest District Runner-Up Top returning players: Nicholas Asmus, Midfielder, Austin, MN (All-MCAC Team, All-Region 13 Team) Chris Kirchgatter, Defender, Austin, MN Top incoming players: Ricardo Guedez, Forward, Venezuela Nelson Powell, Defender, Australia Josh Jones, Defender, England Flynn Perry, Midfielder, England Owen Spaeth, Midfielder, Rochester, MN Coach Spaeth on the 2025 Blue Devils' season: "It's another new season with a lot of new faces. We're hopeful that the team can gel quickly and be competitive right out of the gate. We lost several key players from last season. We're looking forward to another competitive season of MCAC soccer and to what the season brings." Notable Information: Head coach Frank Spaeth will be looking for his 50th career win at Riverland this season.
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Alexandria Technical & Community College
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Head Coach: Tom Roos and Chato Alvarado, 4th year at Alexandria College Coaching Staff: Carly Erickson and Chato Alvarado, co-athletic directors 2024 Overall Record: 5-3-2 overall; 4-2-2 in the MCAC; 2nd place in the MCAC Top returning players: No one mentioned. Top incoming players: No one mentioned. Coach Roos on the 2025 Legends' season: No comment provided.
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Minnesota West Community & Technical College
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Head Coach: Jordan Balster, 5th year at Minnesota West, 16-29-3 record Coaching Staff: Dalen Gonzalez and Manuel Mendez 2024 Overall Record: 5-8-1 overall, 4-3-1 in the MCAC; 3rd place in the MCAC; Region 13 semifinalist Top returning players: Dario Neves, Forward, Scotland Robin Braun, Defender, Germany Mason Bruce, Defender, England Top incoming players: Leo Rumsby-Ferris, Goalkeeper, England Arjun Johal, Midfielder, England Rosco Cox, Midfielder, England Paulo Fonte, Midfielder, Ecuador Carlos Castillo, Forward, Worthington, MN Dominik Piotrowski, Forward, Northern Ireland Coach Balster on the 2025 Bluejay's season: "Bluejays will have some key returners along with a great group of freshmen. We will be a very balanced team this year, so we are expecting to have a great season and get good results against other MCAC teams who have also been raising their level. Should be a really competitive year in the MCAC." Notable Information: MWCTC has added two new assistant coaches who are also MN West alumni. Manuel Mendez played in the first year of the Bluejays' soccer program, and Dalen Gonzalez was a part of the 2023 conference championship team.
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Anoka-Ramsey Community College
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Head Coach: Marcus Anthony, 2nd year at Anoka-Ramsey, 6-7-2 record Coaching Staff: Ralph Turner, Assistant Coach 2024 Overall Record: 6-7-2 overall; 3-4-1 in the MCAC; 4th place in the MCAC; Top returning players: Cody Paulsen, Defender, Elk River, MN Angel Ruiz-Barrera, Defender, Spring Lake Park, MN Franklyn Centeno, Defender, Woodbury, MN Top incoming players: Justin Suarez, Goalkeeper, St. Paul, MN Micah Wiyninger, Right Back, Ramsey, MN Mohammed Aljumaili, Midfielder, Blaine, MN Coach Anthony on the 2025 Golden Rams' season: "This season, we are rebuilding with the hope of a competitive season as we welcome the challenge of this upcoming season. Our goal this season is to compete to the best of our abilities and take the season on one game at a time."
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About the Minnesota College Athletic Conference
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is the organizational body for NJCAA-affiliated two-year technical and community college athletic programs in the Minnesota State system. The mission of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference is to advance intercollegiate athletics by providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions. The MCAC is committed to the guiding principles of encouraging the development and success of student athletes, promoting the integrity, honesty and loyalty to member schools as well as upholding the sustainability of conference athletic programs.