Men’s Soccer Begins Postseason Play, Hosts UIC in MVC Championship First Round Saturday Evening

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — For the second consecutive year, the Belmont University men's soccer team hosts the University of Illinois Chicago in the opening round of the Missouri Valley Conference Men's Soccer Championship. The fourth-seeded Bruins (6-6-4, 2-2-2 MVC) welcome the fifth-seeded Flames (4-7-4, 1-3-2 MVC) to E.S. Rose Park Saturday evening for a 6 p.m. kickoff from the Music City.
 
The MVC Championship first round match will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Belmont Associate Athletic Director for Broadcasting and Media Relations Greg Sage calling the on-field action. Live stats of the postseason contest can also be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
Admission is always free to Belmont soccer matches at Rose Park.
 
What's Bruin

• For the fourth time in five years, the Bruins will face UIC in the first round of the MVC Championship.
• Each year Belmont has qualified for the MVC Championship (2026, 2025, 2023, 2022), the Bruins have played the Flames in the opening round of the tournament.
• In 2022, fifth-seeded Belmont defeated fourth-seeded UIC 1-nil in Chicago to advance to the MVC Championship semifinals in Springfield, Missouri.
• The Bruins wrapped up the regular season Wednesday evening at the University of Evansville, suffering a 2-1 loss after a pair of goals in the final 20 minutes by the host Purple Aces.
• Sophomore forward Jaxon Stokes put Belmont up 1-0 10-and-a-half minutes into Wednesday's road match, scoring his third goal of the season and seventh of his career.
• With his goal at Evansville, Stokes is now tied with fifth-year defender Nate Mefford for the most career scores among current Bruins.
• Graduate midfielder Elijah John provided Stokes with a long pass on Wednesday evening's go-ahead goal, earning his fourth assist of the season. He is tied with fellow graduate midfielder John McDowell for the team lead in assists and owns 21 career points, the most among active Belmont players.
• The Bruins finished the regular season fourth in the final MVC standings for the second-straight season.
• In its last match at Rose Park last Friday, Belmont earned a 1-1 draw against Western Michigan. It marked the third consecutive year the two teams played to a 1-1 draw.
• The Bruins enter the weekend on a seven-match home unbeaten streak.
• Belmont is 4-1-3 in Nashville this season.
• The Bruins have earned a result in nine of their last 13 matches, going 5-4-4.
• Belmont went undefeated through its first three MVC matches for the first time since 2022, the Bruins' first season back in the Valley.
• In each of its first three league matches, Belmont scored two goals.
• Sophomore midfielder Paul Claes Nielsen scored the equalizer versus the Broncos last Friday night, moving him into a tie with McDowell for the most goals on the season (5).
• Scoring four penalty kick goals this year, McDowell notched a PK in each of the Bruins' first three MVC matches.
• In its first two MVC matches, Belmont won by an identical 2-1 score courtesy of a McDowell PK and an 88th-minute game winner. Claes Nielsen scored the game winner in the Bruins' MVC-opening win at Drake (Oct. 3) and Stokes smashed in a remarkable, deep game-winning goal in Belmont's home victory over Bradley (Oct. 11).
• The Bruins captured an MVC Player of the Week award in back-to-back weeks to begin the month of October. Claes Nielsen was selected as MVC Player of the Week on Oct. 6 following his game winner over the Bulldogs in Des Moines, Iowa, and Mefford was chosen as MVC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 13 after assisting on Stokes' game-winning goal against the Braves.
• Freshman goalkeeper Brody Sucher, who owns two clean sheets, has registered a career-high seven saves three times. He has made at least five saves in nine of the last 12 matches.
• Eleven different Belmont players have scored this season, accounting for 27 total goals.
• The Bruins have scored at least three goals on four occasions this year, including an impressive 6-1 win at Wright State in Belmont's opening road match.
• The Bruins welcomed 10 newcomers this season, including eight over the summer and two in January — senior forward Nathan Ferguson and freshman defender Judah McCloud.
• Belmont's 2026 class is comprised of six freshmen and four transfers.
• The Bruins returned 16 from 2025, including 12 letter winners.
• Only four returning Belmont players 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 their first MVC regular season championship last year, the Bruins were picked fifth in the league's preseason poll as voted by the Valley's head coaches.
• Belmont went 3-2-2 in MVC play in 2025 and finished 8-3-6 overall.
• The Bruins have reached eight victories in three of the last five seasons.
• Belmont went undefeated through its first 11 matches last season (6-0-5) for the first time in school history.
• The Bruins 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 Belmont in assists (5).

Bruins at Home

• The Bruins have earned a result in 45 of their last 55 matches at Rose Park, outscoring their opponents 82-43 during that stretch.
• Since the start of the 2018 season, Belmont is 36-16-16 at home.
• The Bruins have finished .500 or better at home for eight-straight seasons.

Versus UIC

• Saturday will be the 14th all-time meeting between Belmont and the Flames.
• Three weeks ago on Saturday, Oct. 17, the Bruins tied UIC 2-2 at Rose Park.
• Wolthers gave Belmont a 1-0 lead 14 minutes in, before the Flames equalized in the 41st minute. After UIC went in front 2-1 on a 59th minute goal, the Bruins found the final score in the 64th minute when McCloud was fouled in the 18-yard box off a corner kick. McDowell punched in the tying PK.
• Last November, the Flames advanced in the 2025 MVC Championship with a 1-0 win in the first-round match in Nashville. Fifth-seeded UIC scored on an own goal only nine-and-a-half minutes into the contest. Fourth-seeded Belmont outshot the Flames 11-6 and held an 8-1 advantage in corners.

About the Flames

• UIC ended the regular season on a three-match losing streak.
• The Flames haven't won a match since a 1-0 non-conference victory over NAIA Saint Xavier University on Oct. 10.
• UIC's lone MVC win this season came in its Valley opener on Sept. 25 when the Flames defeated Bradley 4-2 in the Windy City.
• The Flames fell in consecutive single-goal matches to Bowling Green at home and Drake on the road to close out the regular season.
• On Sept. 29, UIC secured a 1-1 home draw with then 13th-ranked Notre Dame.
• Although they haven't resulted in goals, the Flames have had a plethora of shot attempts. UIC's 18.2 shots per outing are the second-most in the nation and the Flames' 273 total shots are the ninth-most in the country. UIC has also been extremely efficient with its 7.8 shots on goal per match average ranking fourth nationally.
• Junior midfielders Sebastian Khoury and Martin Montoya, a Northern Illinois transfer, have accounted for 10 of the Flames' 19 goals with five goals apiece.
• Carlos Nevarez, also a junior midfielder, has recorded a team-leading six assists.
• Senior midfielder Darrell Turcios, a Preseason All-MVC Team pick and returning All-MVC Second Team performer, has found the back of the net once this season and has assisted on another two goals.
• UIC was picked to finish fourth in the MVC after going 2-1-4 in the Valley last year.
• The Flames claimed 10 wins a season ago with a 10-3-5 overall record in 2025.

Up Next
The 2026 MVC Championship semifinals will take place next Wednesday with the title match set for next Saturday, Nov. 14 or next Sunday, Nov. 15. Should the Bruins emerge victorious Saturday evening at Rose Park, Belmont will travel to top-seeded Bowling Green for the MVC Championship semifinals Wednesday. Kickoff of the semifinal match is set for 6 p.m. from Cochrane Stadium in Bowling Green, Ohio. All MVC Championship matches are being broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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.