2023 RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament Bracket Announced
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference announced the bracket for the 2023 RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament on Monday. After closing the regular season with a 3-0 win, Fort Lewis captured the RMAC Men’s Soccer regular-season title and the tournament’s No. 1 seed after finishing conference play with 21 points a 6-1-3 record. Colorado Mesa closed the regular-season campaign with 19 points to earn the tournament’s No. 2 seed. As the top-two seeds, the Skyhawks and Mavericks each earned first-round byes and will begin their postseason as hosts in the semifinal round of the RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament.
The No. 23 Skyhawks closed out the RMAC season in style, cruising to a dominant 3-0 win over Colorado Mesa in the regular-season finale. Fort Lewis finished conference play with 28 goals and a 2.8 scoring average against RMAC opponents. Entering the postseason, the Skyhawks are riding a five-game unbeaten streak and outscored opponents 14-7 in that same stretch. The regular-season title marks the first for Fort Lewis since the 2011 season when the Skyhawks also secured a national championship.
The Mavericks concluded regular-season play ranked No. 17 in the nation with a 5-1-4 record against RMAC foes. With a stingy defense that held conference opponents scoreless in four matches throughout the regular season, the Mavs enter postseason play with a chip on their shoulders. To match the sturdy defense, Colorado Mesa also boasts a potent offense that registered nine matches with three or more goals. Manuel Ponce Cases (8) and Fernando Morales (8) lead a list of 11 Colorado Mesa goal scorers on the year. Colorado Mesa gained the tiebreaker over Colorado State University Pueblo on the RMAC’s fourth tiebreaker, goals scored within conference play. The Mavs found the net 21 times, compared to the ThunderWolves’ 16.
CSU Pueblo (6-3-1) wrapped up the tournament’s No. 3 seed after closing the regular season with a 1-0 win over South Dakota Mines for 19 points in conference standings. The ThunderWolves begin their postseason slate with a point to prove and rank No. 6 nationally throughout the final week of conference action. The RMAC preseason favorites will look to build upon last season’s historic postseason run in which they finished as the DII national runner-up.
University of Colorado Colorado Springs put together three consecutive victories to finish the RMAC season, climbing up the standings to 18 points with a 5-2-3 record for the tournament’s No. 4 seed. The Mountain Lions gained the tiebreaker over Westminster after downing the Griffins 3-2 in their lone regular-season matchup (Oct. 22). Despite a slow start to its RMAC slate, the Mountain Lions will begin their postseason with plenty of momentum after finishing the regular season with a six-match unbeaten streak. UCCS shutout its final two opponents 1-0 to earn the tournament’s No. 4 seed and outscored teams 18-7 over that six-match stretch.
Westminster locked up the No. 5 seed with 18 points and a 5-2-3 conference record after recording a 2-1 victory over Adams State in the regular-season finale. The Griffins outscored opponents 23-20 in the regular season and were led by Jack Cardwell, who found the net five times. Though it enters the RMAC Tournament as the fifth seed, Westminster has proven capable of big outings and did so in its penultimate conference match with a 2-2 draw against eventual conference champion Fort Lewis (Oct. 27).
Metropolitan State University of Denver rounds out the tournament field as the No. 6 seed after concluding its conference schedule with 17 points and a 5-3-2 record. The Roadrunners used a huge push with six unbeaten performances in the final portion of RMAC play, resulting in 14 points for a late climb in the standings. MSU Denver enters postseason with six shutout victories on the year, outscoring opponents by an eight-goal margin.
After earning the top-two seeds in the RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament, No. 1 Fort Lewis and No. 2 Colorado Mesa each earn a berth in the semifinal round, which is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 5. The Mavericks will take on the winner between No. 3 CSU Pueblo and No. 6 MSU Denver Sunday at 1 p.m., while the Skyhawks await the winner between No. 4 UCCS and No. 5 Westminster Sunday at 5 p.m.
The Mountain Lions will take on the Griffins in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Nov. 2, at Mountain Lion Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colo., beginning at 6 p.m. MT. The ThunderWolves will host the Roadrunners in Thursday’s second quarterfinal matchup, starting at 7 p.m. at Art and Lorraine Gonzales Stadium in Pueblo, Colo.
For complete coverage and tournament information, fans can navigate to the 2023 RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament page, which houses live stats, final scores and further press coverage. Each match of the RMAC Men’s Soccer Tournament will be broadcast live on the RMAC Network. Fans can purchase day passes for each round of the tournament for $9.95 per day.