Springfield Standard

Missouri State University's men's soccer team, ranked No. 24 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, will begin its 2025 season at home on Thursday. The Bears are set to face the Seattle Redhawks at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium in Springfield, Missouri, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

The upcoming match marks the first meeting between Missouri State and Seattle in men's soccer. Both teams participated in the NCAA Tournament last year and were among the top 15 nationally in scoring. Missouri State has a strong record against current West Coast Conference teams, standing at 11-0-1 overall. Their most recent win against a WCC opponent was a 3-0 victory over Pacific on August 26, 2024.

Missouri State enters the new season following three consecutive years with at least 12 wins under head coach Michael Seabolt. Since the start of the 2019 season, the Bears have posted an overall record of 83-15-10 (.815), holding the best Division I mark during that span. Their conference record stands at 46-2-4 (.923), and they have achieved a home record of 46-8-5 (.822). In the previous season, Missouri State finished with a win percentage of .722, ranking them fifteenth nationally.

The Bears are one of only seven Division I programs—alongside Clemson, Georgetown, Indiana, Marshall, Wake Forest and Pittsburgh—to qualify for every NCAA tournament since 2019. They have also maintained a presence in national rankings for eight straight seasons.

Offensively, Missouri State has been among the top eight teams nationally for shot accuracy over each of the past two seasons. Last year, they put nearly half their shots (118 out of 239) on target. Defensively, senior goalkeeper Will Lowry ranked fifth nationally in goals against average (0.674), conceding just nine goals over more than 1,200 minutes played. The team's defense allowed only fifteen goals throughout last season—tied for ninth fewest nationwide.

This year marks Missouri State's first as part of the American Conference after spending thirty-four seasons in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). During their time in MVC play since 1997, they claimed twelve regular-season titles and four conference tournament championships while making nine NCAA Tournament appearances.

In preseason polls for their new conference affiliation, Missouri State is projected to finish fifth but received one first-place vote; they trail second place by only two points. Alex Matthews was named to the preseason all-league team.

Four players who earned all-MVC honors return this season: Alex Matthews (first team), James Jennings (second team), Fumiya Shiraishi (second team) and Will Lowry (second team).

Free snow cones will be available at Thursday's match for fans attending under stadium promotions.