Mines (1-2-4, 0-0-0 RMAC) vs. South Dakota Mines (5-0-2, 0-0-0 RMAC) – Thursday, 7 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV] [Tickets]

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AND SO IT BEGINS
With non-conference play wrapping up last weekend, the Colorado School of Mines men's soccer team now turns their attention toward Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action starting this weekend at Stermole Stadium with a single matchup awaiting them against an upstart and yet unbeaten South Dakota Mines squad.
 
FAN INFORMATION
Tickets can be purchased online in advance at minesathletics.com/tickets or at the gate on the day of the match. Mines students, faculty and staff will be admitted for free with their BlasterCard. Fans are encouraged to park in Lot K immediately to the north of Stermole Stadium. Fans as are not allowed to park in the neighborhood surrounding the Clear Creek Athletic Complex, as the City of Golden's street parking requires a permit seven days a week.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
This weekend's matches will be available for purchase on the RMAC Network. Play-by-play commentary returns this fall as Joey Feerer will have the call Thursday night. Free live stats will be available as well. Links for video and stats can be found on minesathletics.com.
 
RMAC NETWORK CHANGES
As was announced on June 30, this fall the RMAC Network is moving to a pay-per-view model for all events beginning with the 2025-26 season.
 
RMAC fans can purchase monthly and annual subscriptions that will provide them access to all regular-season, championship, and archived broadcasts on the RMAC Network. A monthly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription costs $130. Single-game passes are available for $10, which grants access to a single game for 24 hours. For technical support questions, fans may submit a support ticket with Hudl Support or email the RMAC directly (rmac@rmacsports.org). For further support, fans can visit the RMAC Network Help page.
 
WEEK FOUR RECAP
Mines went 0-1-1 for the second time in a weekend this season with the order of results reversed as they played a 2-2 draw Thursday at home against MSU Denver before dropping a 1-0 decision to Westminster on the road Sunday.
 
Thursday night, Leo Santana scored first when he headed home a Charlie Newberry throw in in the 18th minute. MSU Denver countered just 3:03 later, and just 4:50 after that in the 26th minute, Abou Bakar Berthe connected with Tommy Jernigan and Kian Mueller to take the lead back. Unfortunately, a bit of bad luck for the Orediggers resulted in good fortune for the Roadrunners as they netted the second game-tying goal on a second-chance ball initially saved by Kiernan DiBella that rebounded back into play.
 
Sunday in Salt Lake City, the Orediggers held their own despite a more than two to one advantage in shots for Westminster. The only blemish in an otherwise solid outing was a late first half defensive breakdown which allowed the Griffins to score in the 41st minute for what ended up being the game-winner.
 
THE SKIPPER
With a record of 97-37-24 (.690) overall and 67-9-10 in RMAC action at the helm in Golden, skipper Greg Mulholland has established himself as one of the top head coaches not just in Division II, but the NCAA as a whole. His career winning percentage is good for eighth among active Division II coaches with a minimum of five years of experience, and places him in the top 40 nationally across all divisions of the NCAA. An assistant with the Orediggers from 2007-2016 who served as interim head coach in 2017 before having the interim tag dropped in 2018, Mulholland ranks among the top 10 active Division II coaches with a minimum of five years on the job in winning percentage and is 15th across the entirety of NCAA Soccer. Under his direction, Mines has claimed a combined 11 regular season and postseason championships, running off six consecutive regular season crowns from 2017-22 and four tournament titles from 2017-20. Mulholland is also a four-time RMAC Coach of the Year and has twice headed up the United Soccer Coaches Regional Staff of the Year.
 
THE CAPTAINS
Prior to opening night against Azusa Pacific, the Orediggers announced their 2025 captains with two newcomers to the role and one returner. Caden Allaire returns for his second run wearing the armband as he's joined by Luka Hanna and Carter Jansen.
 
Allaire, a transfer from Casper College, heads into his senior season as the most experienced goalkeeper on the Mines roster. Over his first two seasons, he started 24 of 26 games he appeared in and registered 89 saves against 41 goals allowed in 2,135:58 between the pipes. For his career, he's netted six wins, four shutouts and has a .685 save rate to go with a 1.73 GAA.
 
Hanna, now in his third season with Mines after playing 2022 at Tulsa, appeared in 30 matches with 11 starts in his first two seasons, scoring a goal and taking seven shots in 1,272 minutes of action and enters this fall as a key figure in the Mines midfield.
 
Jansen, a third-year player who has been a fixture on the Mines backline since his arrival in Golden in 2023, appeared in 28 matches with 22 starts heading into his junior season and logged 1,828 minutes as an outside and center back.
 
IN THE POLLS
For the second season running, Mines was tabbed to finish fifth in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference men's soccer preseason coaches poll.
 
UCCS was voted the preseason favorite this fall with five of 11 first place votes followed by Fort Lewis in second with three and defending champion CSU Pueblo in third with two. Regis was just ahead of Mines in fourth while MSU Denver was picked to finish sixth to round out the projected playoff field.
 
Nationally, the top four remained the same as Lynn, Stanislaus State, Southern New Hampshire and Anderson all held pat while Charleston took over fifth. Last week's #5 Fort Lewis plummeted to 15th this week following a loss to CSU Pueblo, who moved up one spot from eighth to seventh this week.
 
HELLO, MY NAME IS…
Another 13 newcomers join the Orediggers for the 2025 season and make up more than one-third of this season's 36-man roster. 12 first-year players and a transfer make up the group which features a wide range of talent across the field. Learn more about the newcomers for this season here.
 
JOINING THE STAFF
A new face will be roaming the Mines bench in 2025 as Ben Fredrickson joined the program in May as the program's top assistant coach. Prior to joining the Orediggers, Fredrickson served as Real Colorado's Assistant Academy Director and head coach of the organization's U16 MLS Next program. A well-traveled coach with experience at a variety of levels, the New Zealander is no stranger to the RMAC as he played collegiately at Regis from 2010-13. He also played in the United Soccer League's second division as well as New Zealand First Division club Team Wellington. Learn more about Coach Fredrickson here.
 
Additionally, a former Oredigger All-American returns to the bench this season as Lucas King makes his coaching debut at the collegiate level. A six-year member of the Mines program thanks to the 2020 pandemic, King was a three-time All-RMAC and All-Region selection from the United Soccer Coaches and D2 CCA as well. He started 84 times in 91 matches in his five seasons of action and logged 62 points on 13 goals and 36 assists, the second-most in program history. 12 of King's assists came in the fall 2021 season, as that mark is the third-best in a season all-time.
 
PRESEASON HONORS
Heading into his third season in Golden, Ayman Bushara was named Preseason All-RMAC heading into the 2025 season. A First Team All-RMAC honoree and All-Region selection by both D2 CCA and the United Soccer Coaches as well last fall, the Air Force transfer dazzled in his first season of action after sitting out the 2023 campaign on account of transfer regulations. Bushara's season included a seven-match scoring streak that included three game-winning scores as he ended the year with nine goals and three assists for 21 points. Heading into his final collegiate season, Bushara's veteran leadership will be relied upon heavily in 2025.
 
ALWAYS REMEMBER YOUR FIRST
Leo Santana became the latest Oredigger to score their first career goal this season when he did so Thursday night against MSU Denver in the 18th minute of play on a throw-in from Charlie Newberry. He joins Brady Scheinfeld and Lucas Taitt in the scoring column as first-time goal producers in 2025.
 
YOUTH MOVEMENT
Over the last two seasons, 22 first-year players have joined the Oredigger program and heading into 2025, make up nearly two-thirds of the 36-man roster. The expectation for new arrivals is high as the Silver and Navy look to reclaim their spot as one of the premier programs in the RMAC. Noah Roles, Kian Mueller, Smith Russell, Jaden Igarta and Josh Ary made good first impressions as they each contributed and tallied at least one point each in their debut seasons, while the rest of their class in Ethan Huet, Jake Macha, Brady Scheinfeld, Lucas Taitt and Dennis Polzin all eagerly await making their debuts after taking developmental years as freshmen. Meanwhile, this year's crop of newcomers looks to make a similar first year impact as two of the top prep goalkeepers in Colorado last year Kiernan DiBella and Zach MacDonald will seek to compete for playing time while the rest of the nine first-year field players will look to contribute as well.
 
WELL-TRAVELED VETERAN
It isn't any secret that the academic reputation of Mines brings folks from all points on the globe. Athletics just extends that reach farther as evidenced by Alaskan Simon Carricaburu. Carricaburu, a second-year Mines student, enters his first year with the varsity program after playing with the Orediggers' club program last year, is no stranger to playing at the collegiate level. After beginning his career in 2022 at Western Oregon and appearing in just three matches, he transferred to Santa Barbara City college and showed his potential, earning Second Team All-Region honors as part of a 10-7-5 season in which he tallied three points on a goal and an assist. Now back at the NCAA level, Carricaburu's experience will be something the Orediggers rely on to help bolster their defense.
 
THE BROTHERS LEVIN
Family ties are no stranger to the Mines community with multiple generations of families passing through the institution over the years. When looking at Mines athletics programs, family ties are regular occurrences. This season, a new family connection comes to Golden as Marc Levin and Avi Levin reunite in 2025. Natives of St. Louis and both graduates of Ladue Horton Watkins High School, the brothers never had an opportunity to play together at the varsity level as they'll have plenty of chances to do so over the next couple seasons.
 
Marc, a fourth-year junior, missed all of 2024 with injury but is a pivotal piece of Mines soccer history as he netted the game-winning penalty kick in the 2022 RMAC Men's Soccer Championship over CSU Pueblo. In 28 career matches, he's started 10 times and scored four times with two assists for 10 points in 722 minutes and will look to once again be a contributor as he eases his way back into the action.
 
Avi joins the program as a freshman this season after he earned a slew of high school accolades including a state championship.
 
They are the second pair of brothers to play concurrently for Mines along with Henry Saunders and Peter Saunders who joined the program 2023, and just the third pair of players with a shared last name since Baski Baker and Colin Baker (no relation) in 2013.
 
CHECKING THE STATS
Abou Bakar Berthe joined Kian Mueller and Charlie Newberry atop the clubhouse leaderboard in scoring with his second goal of the season as that trio accounts for 60% of Mines' offensive output. Leo Santana, Lucas Taitt and Brady Scheinfeld meanwhile all have one goal each.
 
A whopping five Orediggers have two assists to the resumes this season as Santana, Mueller, Newberry and Taitt are joined by Tommy Jernigan. Luke Hanna and Marc Levin round things out with one assist each.
 
Kiernan DiBella posted a season-high eight saves Thursday against the Roadrunners and tallied 15 for the weekend to bring his season total to 32 against 12 goals allowed facing 109 shots through seven matches in his debut season. The freshman enters the week with a 1.77 GAA and a .727 save rate to go with a 1-2-3 record and a shutout in 509:20 of action. Caden Allaire meanwhile has logged 20:40 in reserve work and allowed a goal on the only shot he faced, a penalty kick against Cal Poly Pomona.
 
For the season, Mines is -3 in goal differential at 13-10 and averages 1.43 goals on 7.1 shots per match while opponents have netted 1.86 goals on 16.4 shots. Mines has 12 assists on their 10 goals and have combined for 33 saves defensively. They are 0-1 on penalties and have taken 24 corner kicks. They have been whistled for 66 fouls and assessed 14 yellow cards.
 
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
Perhaps the early candidate for storyline of the season so far is South Dakota Mines' turnaround under first-year head coach Teren Schuster. After winning a combined five matches between 2021 and 2024, the Hardrockers have already matched that total and set a new single-season wins record through seven contests this season and enter Friday night without a blemish in the loss column.
 
South Dakota Mines' offense has been their calling card through the non-conference portion of their schedule, scoring 29 goals highlighted by a 10-0 performance against Trinity Bible. Over their last three matches, SDM has outscored teams 18-2. 14 different players have scored for the Hardrockers, led by Nickolas North with five goals followed by Parker Yocom and Alvin Udoto with four each. Behind them Erik Castanon and Rawley Ford have three goals apiece while Chase Stohlmann has two. A further eight players for South Dakota Mines have one goal each, though three of those players found the net in the rout of TBC in their only action of the season.
 
15 different players have an assist this season as Even Henrickson leads the way there with three assists while North, Castanon, Kaulden Hood and Jacob Miklas have two apiece. 10 players have a single assist to their credit.
 
All four keepers on roster have seen action this season, though it has been newcomers Abdo Salem Abdullah leading the way with six starts in six appearances for 540 minutes. Against 48 shots, he has made 20 saves and allowed six goals to post a 1.00 GAA and a .769 save percentage on his way to a 3-0-2 record with one shutout. Meanwhile, the trio of Daniel Freitas, Jonathan Stockwell and Charles Thompson combined to post a shutout of TBC. Freitas was the only one to face a shot in the match, making a save while it was Thompson who got the start and played all 45 minutes in the opening half.
 
As a team, the Hardrockers are +23 in goal differential at 29-6 and average 4.14 goals on 15.9 shots per match while ceding just 0.86 goals on 8.0 shots to opponents. They have 21 assists on their 29 goals and have combined for 21 saves. They are yet to take a PK this season and have attempted 43 corner kicks. The Hardrockers have been whistled for 76 fouls this season and issued 10 cautions along with one ejection.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Orediggers will stake their 11-0-0 record in the series on the line Friday night, having done nothing but find the win column against the Hardrockers since the teams first met in 2015. When playing in Golden, Mines is 6-0-0 and outscored South Dakota Mines 23-2. The teams last met in at Stermole Stadium in 2023 which resulted in a 4-0 win for the Orediggers.
 
UP NEXT
Mines will be on the road but close to home next weekend for two matches, heading downtown to MSU Denver Thursday afternoon on October 9 before trekking to Lakewood Sunday October 12 against Colorado Christian.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's soccer on X and Instagram at @minesmsoc and @mines_msoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.