Men’s Soccer Looks to Stay Hot, Hosts UIC at Rose Park Friday Evening

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In a rematch of last year's Missouri Valley Conference Championship first round match, which was also held in Music City, the Belmont University men's soccer team hosts the University of Illinois Chicago Saturday evening at E.S. Rose Park. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.
 
The MVC home tilt will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Jack Susanin on the call. Live stats of the contest can also be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
Belmont "It's Bruin Time" soccer scarves will be given away to fans attending Saturday's match beginning one hour prior to kickoff, while supplies last. All Bruin soccer matches at Rose Park are free to attend.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins (6-4-2, 2-0-0 MVC) are surging, having won three of their last four matches and unbeaten through four straight for the first time this season.
• Belmont has earned a result in seven of its last nine matches, going 5-2-2.
• Last Sunday evening, the Bruins defeated Bradley 2-1 at Rose Park following sophomore forward Jaxon Stokes' remarkable game-winning goal from outside the 18-yard box in the 88th minute.
• Belmont is off to a 2-0 start in MVC play for the first time since 2022, the Bruins' first season back in the Valley.
• In its first two MVC matches, Belmont won by an identical 2-1 score courtesy of a John McDowell penalty kick goal and an 88th-minute game winner.
• In their MVC opener at Drake on Saturday, Oct. 3, the Bruins secured their first win over the Bulldogs in Des Moines, Iowa. Graduate midfielder McDowell gave Belmont the lead in the 76th minute on a PK following a foul on Stokes in the penalty area before sophomore midfielder Paul Claes Nielsene provided the game winner with just under three minutes remaining.
• Due to their late-match heroics, the Bruins have captured a MVC Player of the Week award for consecutive weeks. On Tuesday, fifth-year defender Nate Mefford was named MVC Defensive Player of the Week after assisting on Stokes' game-winning goal against Bradley last Sunday. Earning his first MVC Player of the Week honor of his career, Mefford notched his 18th career point with his assist, the second most of any Belmont player.
• Claes Nielsen was selected as MVC Player of the Week last week (Oct. 6) after scoring the game-winning goal at Drake. Picking up his second MVC Player of the Week nod of his young career, Claes Nielsen's game winner was his fourth goal of the season.
• Claes Nielsen, Mefford and McDowell lead the Bruins in goals scored (4) this fall.
• Graduate midfielders Elijah John and McDowell, along with Mefford, lead Belmont in assists with three each.
• With a crucial assist on Claes Nielsen's game winner at Drake, John earned his 20th career point, which is the most of any Bruin.
• Freshman goalkeeper Brody Sucher, who owns two clean sheets on the season, has registered a career-high seven saves three times. He has made at least five saves in six of his last eight outings.
• On Sept. 8, McDowell was named MVC Player of the Week after scoring the equalizer on an 88th-minute PK in the 1-1 home draw with Mercer (Sept. 4).
• Belmont has won four-straight home matches and earned a result in each of its last five at Rose Park.
• The Bruins are 4-1-1 at home this year.
• Eleven different Belmont players have found the back of the net this season, accounting for 23 total goals, which are tied for the 53rd-most in the nation.
• The Bruins' 1.92 goals per match average is tied for 47th-best nationally.
• Belmont has scored at least three goals on four occasions this season, including an impressive 6-1 win at Wright State in the Bruins' opening road match.
• Belmont welcomed 10 newcomers this year, including eight over the summer and two in January – senior forward Nathan Ferguson and freshman defender Judah McCloud.
• The Bruins' 2026 class is comprised of six freshmen and four transfers.
• Belmont returned 16 from 2025, including 12 letter winners.
• Only four returning Bruins started matches last season – Claes Nielsen (16), sophomore midfielder Nzuhri Biggar (10), graduate midfielder Ethan Schlegel (9), and senior forward Lucas Wolthers (6).
• After finishing just one point shy of claiming its first MVC regular season championship last year, Belmont was picked fifth in the league's preseason poll as voted by the Valley's head coaches.
• The Bruins went 3-2-2 in MVC play in 2025 and finished 8-3-6 overall.
• Belmont has reached eight victories in three of the last five seasons.
• The Bruins went undefeated through their first 11 matches last season (6-0-5) for the first time in school history.
• Belmont put together a program-record 13-match unbeaten streak from Oct. 29, 2024, through Oct. 7, 2025.
• Claes Nielsen, an MVC All-Freshman Team selection last fall, was named to the Preseason All-MVC Team. The Copenhagen, Denmark, native started all but one match his freshman season and led the Bruins in assists (5).

Bruins at Home

• Belmont has earned a result in 43 of its last 53 matches at Rose Park, outscoring its opponents 79-40 during that stretch.
• Since the start of the 2018 season, the Bruins are 36-16-14 at home.
• Belmont has finished .500 or better at home for eight-straight seasons.

Versus UIC

• Saturday evening will be the 13th all-time meeting between the Bruins and UIC.
• The two teams have met in the MVC Championship in three of the last four postseasons. In fact, Belmont has faced the Flames for its opening match in all three of its MVC Championships.
• Last November at Rose Park, fifth-seeded UIC scored on an own goal in the 10th minute to advance to the MVC Championship semifinals. The fourth-seeded Bruins were held scoreless in the first-round match despite tallying 11 shots and earning eight corner kicks.
• Last season's postseason affair in the Music City was the first-ever MVC Championship match Belmont hosted. It was just the third postseason match the Bruins hosted in program history.
• Belmont defeated the Flames 1-0 in Chicago to advance to the 2022 MVC Championship semifinals. The Bruins also claimed a single-goal win at UIC on Oct. 18, 2024 — Mefford found the game winner in the 57th minute.
• Belmont and UIC were also conference adversaries in the Horizon League (2014-17).

About the Flames

• The Flames (4-4-3, 1-0-1 MVC) are coming off a 1-0 home win over NAIA Saint Xavier University last Saturday in their final non-conference match of the season.
• UIC began MVC action with a 4-2 home victory over Bradley on Sept. 25 and earned a 1-1 draw at Western Michigan the following Saturday (Oct. 3).
• On Sept. 29, the Flames secured a 1-1 home draw with then 13th-ranked Notre Dame.
• Although they haven't turned into goals, UIC has had a plethora of shot attempts through 11 matches. The Flames' 215 shots are 10th-most nationally and UIC's 19.5 shots per match are second-most in the nation. Similarly, the Flames' 98 shots on goal are eighth-most in the country and UIC's 8.9 shots on target per outing are second-most in NCAA Division I men's soccer.
• Junior midfielder Martin Montoya, a transfer from Northern Illinois, has found the back of the net five times, while fellow junior midfielder Sebastian Khoury has scored three times this fall.
• Junior midfielder Carlos Nevarez has assisted on a team-leading five goals.
• Senior midfielder Darrell Turcios, a Preseason All-MVC Team pick and returning All-MVC Second Team performer, has accounted for a goal and an assist.
• The Flames were picked to finish fourth in the MVC after going 2-1-4 in the Valley last year.
• UIC claimed 10 wins a season ago with a 10-3-5 overall record in 2025.

Up Next
The Bruins are on the road for two of their final three matches of the regular season, traveling to Bowling Green State University next Sunday, Oct. 25. Kickoff from Cochrane Stadium in Bowling Green, Ohio, is scheduled for 2 p.m. The MVC road match will be broadcast on YouTube.
 
How to Follow
Follow Belmont men's soccer on social media – @BelmontMSoccer on X, formerly Twitter, @belmontmsoccer on Instagram and Belmont University Men's Soccer on Facebook – for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.