OPENING KICKOFF: The Snow College men's soccer team will begin its 2025 campaign this weekend by hosting the Snow College Invitational. The Badgers will take on Northwest College Thursday at 3:30 p.m. in their first match of the season.
 
Snow College will wrap up the tournament with a meeting against Western Nebraska Community College Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Both matches will take place at the Snow College Soccer Complex in Ephraim.
 
DEFENDING THE TITLE: The Badgers will embark on their 2025 season as the defending Region 18 Tournament Champions. Following a season that saw them go 13-3-2, the Badgers entered the Region 18 Tournament as a two seed.
 
They earned a 1-0 victory against No. 18 North Idaho College to set up a matchup with No. 1 Salt Lake Community College in the Region 18 Title Game. The Bruins, the top team in the country, entered the matchup with a perfect 16-0-1 overall record.
 
Snow College netted two goals in the first half to take a 2-0 lead into the break. Despite allowing a goal in the second half, the Badgers' defense held firm to secure the victory and the Region 18 Championship to secure a berth in the West District Title Game.
 
This is the fourth championship in the program's history and the second in the past three seasons. Since the start of the program in 2016, the Badgers have played for the Region 18 Championship in all but one season.
 
A CHAMPIONSHIP BY THE NUMBERS: Snow College scored a total of 55 goals throughout the 2024 season, third most in a season in program history. The Badgers also dished a school record 42 assists during the year.
 
Defensively, the Badgers allowed 24 goals – just 1.26 goals per game – last season. They recorded six total shutouts over 19 games, including a 1-0 victory in the first round of the Region 18 Tournament.
 
The Badgers started the season winning three of their first four games. They outscored their opponents 11-4 during that stretch. After a loss against NIC, Snow College rattled off four straight victories and seven out of eight overall, including a 2-1 revenge victory against the Cardinals.
 
NAVIGATING THE SCHEDULE: Following the two matchups at the Snow College Invitational, the Badgers will then head out onto the road for their final non-conference tune-up of the season and take on Otero Junior College for the first time in program history.
 
Snow College will begin Scenic West Athletic Conference play with a three-game home stand beginning Sept. 6 against Utah State University Eastern. The following weekend, the Badgers will host Colorado Northwestern Community College and Salt Lake Community College.
 
The Badgers will begin a month-long road swing beginning with Pacific Northwest Christian College Sept. 18 and culminating against SLCC Oct. 11. Snow College will wrap up the regular season with four games at home. The season finale will take place in Ephraim against Truckee Meadows Community College Oct. 25.
 
The Region 18 tournament, should the Badgers qualify, will take place between Oct. 30 and Nov. 1 and will be hosted by the SWAC women's soccer regular-season winner.
 
LANDING IN THE PRESEASON POLL: The Snow College men's soccer team begins the season ranked 17^th in the NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer Preseason Poll. The Badgers also ranked 17^th in the final poll of the 2024 season.
 
The Badgers will enter the 2025 season looking to defend their Region 18 Tournament Championship. After starting the season winning four out of their first five matches, the Badgers finished the year going 7-1-2 to finish in second place in the Scenic West Athletic Conference Standings
 
Snow College entered the Region 18 Tournament and earned a 1-0 victory against No. 18 North Idaho College in the first round. The Badgers then turned around and secured a 2-1 win against undefeated No. 1 Salt Lake Community College to claim the Region 18 Tournament Championship.
 
Iowa Western Community College claimed the top spot in the preseason poll after defeating Cowley County Community College in penalty kicks to secure the 2024 National Championship. Cowley County is slotted fourth in the poll.
 
Indian Hills Community College and Eastern Florida State College are ranked second and third, respectively, while Tyler Junior College rounds out the top five. Arizona Western College, which defeated the Badgers in the West District Championship game, enters the year ranked sixth.
 
Two other members of the SWAC cracked the top 20 of the rankings, including SLCC, which is slotted at ninth overall. Additionally, North Idaho College ekes inside the rankings and will begin the year ranked 19^th.
 
In addition to the four total matchups against SLCC and NIC, the Badgers will also play two other games against teams listed in the preseason poll. The first meeting will take place against No. 18 Western Nebraska Community College, with the second coming against Otero Junior College, which is receiving votes in the poll.
 
FILLING OUT THE ROSTER: Snow College will bring back a dozen members from last season's championship team, four of whom were All-Region selections. The Badgers' anchor defensively, Mathias Christensen, returns in goal for the 2025 season. Christensen was 34^th in the country in saves last season and was named to the All-Region First Team as a result.
 
Max Mayer leads the offense following a season that landed him on the All-Region 18 Second Team. Mayer led the team in goals scored during the 2024 campaign. He appeared in 17 games and recorded 11 goals to pace the team.
 
Ryan Henry and Aiden Moore return to solidify the midfield after both were named to the All-Region third team. Moore appeared in all 19 games last year for the Badgers and recorded three goals and three assists. Henry recorded one goal and five assists across 18 appearances and 16 starts.
 
Snow College will also bring back Mateus Romualdo, Harrison Figueroa, Bontle Kotelo, and Ethan Ross on the defensive end. Omer Sagiv, Fred Cotta, and Jack Burman return as midfielders alongside forward Kade Davis.
 
The Badgers will bring in a total of 20 new freshmen and one sophomore transfer. The 2025 roster boasts a total of 33 student-athletes across six different countries. 17 student-athletes come from the state of Utah.
 
SIDELINE: Jack Larter will return to the sideline and enter his third year at the helm of the program. In his first two seasons, Larter has accumulated an overall record of 20-10-3 and a conference record of 14-9-3.
 
Larter will be joined on the sideline by assistant coach Lewis Wilson, who is entering his first year with the school. Lewis, a native of Aberdeen, Scotland, will serve as the primary assistant coach for both the men's and women's soccer programs.
 
UP NEXT: Snow College will take a short trip north to Taylorsville to take on Otero in a neutral-site game. The meeting with the Rattlers will be the first ever between the two teams. Otero went 7-3-4 overall during the 2024 season and 5-1-3 within Region 9. They suffered a 2-0 loss to WNCC in the Region 9 Championship. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Bruin Soccer Field. For additional information, visit snowbadgers.com.