#8 Mines (0-0-0) vs. Saint Martin's (0-0-0) – Friday, 5 p.m. – Stermole Stadium [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
#8 Mines (0-0-0) vs. #24 St. Mary's (0-0-0) – Sunday, 12 p.m. – Stermole Stadium [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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HERE WE GO AGAIN
Just four months after sweeping the RMAC's regular season and tournament titles, the #8-ranked Colorado School of Mines Men's Soccer team is back in action. The Orediggers open their Fall 2021 slate this weekend in an unofficial battle of the saints as they welcome Saint Martin's to town on Friday at 5 p.m. and #24-ranked St. Mary's on Sunday at 12 p.m. It marks the Orediggers' quickest turnaround in recorded history after playing a truncated season in the spring of 2021.
 
FAN INFORMATION
Mines Athletics is excited to welcome fans back to home matches this fall. Masks are not required for outdoor on-campus events, but unvaccinated guests are strongly encouraged to wear a mask. Tickets for all matches are available at the gate (cash or credit) or online at www.minesathletics.com/tickets.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
The RMAC Network has relaunched for 2021-22, and fans used to watching on their smart TV or other device must download the new app by searching "RMAC" in your device's app store. The new watch portal is available at www.minesathletics.com/tv or www.rmacnetwork.com. All Mines home matches will stream live and for free on the RMAC Network this fall.
 
LOOKING BACK
Last spring, Mines played a total of eight matches and did not lose a single contest. The Orediggers finished their adjusted spring schedule 7-0-1 overall with a 5-0-1 mark in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action. The result was a sweep of the RMAC Regular Season and Tournament titles for a fourth consecutive campaign. Mines' run included three victories against Fort Lewis and 4-3, overtime win against then #10-ranked Colorado Mesa on the Mavericks' home turf in the RMAC Tournament Championship match. Individually, Greyson Adams earned First-Team All-RMAC distinction. Azad Iliozer, Tristan Semelsberger and Talon Stanley were Second-Team All-RMAC. Michael Sprauer was named Honorable Mention All-RMAC. Additionally, the Oredigger coaching staff led by Greg Mulholland earned South Central Region Coaching Staff of the Year for a second straight season courtesy of the United Soccer Coaches.
 
FURTHER BACK
The last time Oredigger men's soccer played a full slate with a NCAA Tournament and NCAA Championship on the line was the fall of 2019. During that season, Mines went 15-4-4 overall and 10-1-3 in RMAC play while sweeping the conference crowns for a third straight year. Greg Mulholland's squad earned their third straight NCAA Tournament berth and advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 thanks to a 2-1 win over then #1-ranked Azusa Pacific on their home field. Mines eventually fell, 2-1, to Cal State San Bernardino. The 2019 squad was highlighted by Jason Zobott who won RMAC Player of the Year, RMAC Defensive Player of the Year and CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year.
 
SCOUTING SAINT MARTIN'S
The Saints of Saint Martin's University make the trip to Golden, Colo., from Lacey, Wash., where they play as part of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC). Last spring, SMU played 10 matches and went 2-7-1 overall, but the GNAC did not hold a conference tournament. The Saints' two victories came at Seattle Pacific (2-1) and at Northwest Nazarene (4-3).  Saint Martin's also drew with Northwest Nazarene in their opener. The Saints were voted to finish in tie for fifth in the GNAC's preseason poll. Both Jose Marquez and Jason Fairhurst return as Honorable Mention All-GNAC selections from 2019. The duo combined for three goals and one assist during the spring campaign. Also notable is SMU's 9-8-2 mark from 2019 which was their first winning season since 2009.
 
SCOUTING ST. MARY'S
Just like the rest of NCAA Division II men's soccer, St. Mary's out of San Antionio, Texas, played a truncated season in the spring of 2021. The Rattlers finished that campaign with a record of 6-3-1 while going 5-2-1 in the Lone Star Conference. St. Mary's season came to a close in the first round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament due to a 2-0 decision against Midwestern State. However, similar to Mines, the Rattlers boasted a historic 2019 campaign in which they went 15-3-3 overall, 8-1-1 in the LSC – winning their first-ever LSC title – and advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament where they bowed out on penalty kicks in a 1-1 decision against Cal State L.A. Notable returners for StMU in the fall of 2021 include LSC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year Liam Morrison along with Alonso Rodriguez who scored goals for St. Mary's last spring, and Deni Cresto who racked up two goals and five assists last season.
 
SERIES HISTORY
In Mines' NCAA Division II era (since 1992), the Orediggers have never faced off against Saint Martin's. Friday's 5 p.m. match will change that. On Sunday, Mines and St. Mary's face off for the fifth time since 1992. The Rattlers hold a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Orediggers won the first meeting between the two programs by a score of 3-0 on Sept. 10, 2000. Since that time, St. Mary's has run off three straight wins including a 3-1 decision on Sept. 8, 2019, in San Antonio.
 
WELCOME BACK
The Orediggers' roster for the Fall 2021 season features 22 returners from the 2020-21 squad. Among those coming back are four of five All-RMAC players including Greyson Adams, Azad Iliozer, Tristan Semelsberger and Michael Sprauer. Other notable returners are Patrick Allan and Vaughn Simpson on defense with Lucas King and George Marchant coming back in the midfield. Baptiste Debuire and Connor van Loveren also bolster a squad laden with graduate students taking advantage of their extension of eligibility.
 
FRESH FACES
Mines' head man Greg Mulholland pulled no punches in the offseason. He went on the recruiting trail and wrangled 10 new Orediggers including three defenders, two midfielders, two forwards and two goalkeepers. It marks Mulhollands second straight year of nine or more signees with nine true freshmen and one transfer arriving in Golden last month. The true freshmen include Grant Bell, John Burnett, Quin Collins, Caelin David, Raul Gerhardus, Wes Gowdy, Derek Liguori, Gabe Rodriguez and Maxwell Stultz. Rounding out the class was transfer Garrett Miyaoka on assignment as a graduate student from Air Force.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
In early August, the United Soccer Coaches tabbed Mines #8 in their NCAA Division II Preseason Top-25. The announcement comes after the Orediggers finished the spring ranked ninth in the nation. Colorado Mesa was the only other RMAC team on the list at #21. Other familiar faces in the poll included Cal State L.A. at #2, Cal State San Bernardino at #7, West Texas A&M at #11, Azsua Pacific #14, Midwestern State slotted #22 and of course St. Mary's at #24.
 
RMAC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
Nearly two weeks after the national preseason rankings, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference unveiled its preseason coaches' poll. Mines was picked to finish in a tie for first with Colorado Mesa which matches the standings from last spring. The Orediggers earned the tie thanks to 95 points and five out of 11 first-place votes. The Mavericks also netted 95 points and five first-place votes. Both programs sit 23 points ahead of CSU Pueblo which was tabbed third in the preseason ranking. Fort Lewis earned the fourth spot with 70 points and the last first-place vote available. Regis and Westminster rounded out the projected tournament field in fifth and sixth, respectively.
 
Fall 2021 RMAC Preseason Men's Soccer Coaches' Poll
1. Colorado School of Mines (5) – 95
1. Colorado Mesa (5) – 95
3. CSU Pueblo – 72
4. Fort Lewis (1) – 70
5. Regis – 66
6. Westminster – 62
7. MSU Denver – 44
8. UCCS – 41
9. Colorado Christian – 30
10. South Dakota Mines – 17
11. Adams State – 13
 
MINES UNDER MULHOLLAND
Greg Mulholland enters his fifth season as the head coach for Mines' men. During his time at the helm, including an interim stint in 2017, Mulholland is 57-10-7 with four straight RMAC Regular-Season titles, four consecutive RMAC Tournament crowns and three NCAA Tournament appearances including two trips to the Sweet 16. He became the first coach in program history to win three straight RMAC Regular Season and Tournament Championships in 2019, and extended that streak to four straight in 2020-21. Additionally, Mulholland is a two-time RMAC Coach of the Year and head of the 2019 and the 2020-21 United Soccer Coaches South Central Regional Staff of the Year. The Littleton, Colo., native initially joined the Orediggers in 2007 as the program's assistant coach.
 
BEST IN NCAA DIVISION II
During the 2020-21 season, Colorado School of Mines had 16 individuals crowned CoSIDA Academic All-America. It marked the fourth straight year that the Orediggers have led all of NCAA Division II in CoSIDA Academic All-America selections. It's also the fifth time in six years that Mines has led the nation. Men's soccer did its part as Patrick Allan and Ryan Wilson were both named CoSIDA Academic All-America. No other soccer program in all of NCAA Division II had more selections than the Orediggers. It was also the third straight year that Mines' men boasted multiple academic all-Americans. Since 2015, the entire Mines Athletic Department has had 79 honorees. In 2020-21 alone, only four other programs across all divisions had more including Stanford (22), MIT (19), Alabama (18) and Johns Hopkins (18). The CoSIDA Academic All-America program recognizes student-athletes who display an outstanding combination of athletic and academic achievement; honorees are sophomores or above academically with cumulative GPAs of 3.3 or above. The average GPA of Mines' 16 honorees in 2020-21 was 3.84.
 
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK
This season, instead of dissecting mascots and program nicknames, the author will provide a weekly fun fact in each preview. The readers should note that "fun" is relative to the author's tastes are no apologies are made if one reads the entire preview and finds the fact less than fun or even a mediocre level of fun factness. This week's fun fact is a simple one. Mines' opening weekend for the 2021-22 year begins on Thursday and features 22 home events over the course of four days. You read that correctly, there will be 22 NCAA Division II contests taking place in Golden on the campus of Colorado School of Mines over the course of Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. That breakdown includes 16 volleyball matches, three women's soccer matches, two men's soccer matches and one football game. This does not include the Oredigger men's and women's cross country teams competing at the Wyoming Invite in Cheyenne. All 22 events in Golden will feature live stats and be streamed live and for free on the RMAC Network. So pick something and watch it. The full schedule for the weekend can be found at www.minesathletics.com/calendar.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
The Orediggers' next action will be a non-conference tilt at Regis on Wednesday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. Mines returns home Friday, Sept. 10, for another non-RMAC affair against Fort Lewis at 5 p.m. Live stats and video of both matches will be offered at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's soccer on Twitter at @MinesMSOC. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.