Men's Soccer

MIAC announces 2025 Men’s Soccer Awards

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its annual men's soccer awards on Monday.
 
Conference coaches selected St. Olaf junior midfielder Ryan Bechtel as the MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, while Augsburg first-year goalkeeper Christian Hodges earned MIAC Defensive Player of the Year honors, and Gustavus first-year forward Kieran Mahan was named MIAC Rookie of the Year. St. Olaf head coach Justin Oliver was celebrated by his peers as the MIAC Coach of the Year.
 
Bechtel (Jr. / Plainfield, Ill. / North) was named MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, scoring six goals and assisting on five for 17 points in conference play. Bechtel factored into the scoring in seven league games from his wingback position, and finished the season among the top six in the conference in every major offensive category. Bechtel is the fourth consecutive Ole to be voted MIAC Offensive Player of the Year in men's soccer, joining his brother, Shea - a two-time winner, in 2022 and 2024 - and Victor Gaulmin (2023).
 
Hodges (Fy. / New Albany, Ohio / Tree of Life Christian School) was named MIAC Defensive Player of the Year after leading the conference with five MIAC shutouts and a goals-against average of 1.10 versus league opponents in his debut season. Hodges posted a save percentage of .780 in conference contests - second-highest among all league goalkeepers - and ranked fifth in the MIAC with 39 saves in MIAC play. Hodges is the first Auggie to be named Defensive Player of the Year in men's soccer since the honor was created in 2021. He is also the first Augsburg men's soccer player to receive an individual MIAC honor since Lionel Vang was voted MIAC Player of the Year in 2019.
 
Mahan (Fy. / Wayzata, Minn. / Wayzata) was selected MIAC Rookie of the Year after leading all first-year players with five goals and 12 points in his debut season. Mahan registered a pair of five-point games during the conference season, tallying one game-winning goal and assisting on two more Gustie scores. He is the first Gustavus men's soccer player in program history to receive MIAC Rookie of the Year honors as a Gustie; current Gustavus midfielder Ryder Tomlinson received the award after his debut season at Hamline in 2023.
 
Oliver (3rd season) was selected MIAC Coach of the Year for the first time in his career after leading the Oles to an undefeated 9-0-1 record and the outright conference championship in 2025. The regular season title was the tenth in program history and the fourth in the last five seasons. The Oles have not lost a regular-season MIAC contest under Oliver's tutelage (25-0-5). Oliver now has the unique distinction of having received his first MIAC Coach of the Year honor after having won the national award; Oliver's St. Olaf staff received the United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division III National Coaching Staff of the Year honor in 2023 upon leading the Oles to the first men's soccer NCAA Championship in program, conference, and state history. He joins former St. Olaf coaches Whitey Aus (1984), Kurt Anderson (1996, 1998, 2011, 2014), and Travis Wall (2021) in receiving the MIAC Coach of the Year honor in men's soccer.
 
In addition to the individual awards, 22 players were named All-Conference, and eleven received honorable mention distinctions. All-Conference and individual awards were nominated by and voted on by the eleven MIAC head men's soccer coaches; any nominated player not selected as All-Conference but still receiving votes from at least three coaches was named honorable mention.
 
Twelve of the 22 All-Conference selections had been selected All-MIAC previously in their careers. Macalester senior defender Nick Kent became just the 19th men's soccer player in recorded conference history to be selected to four consecutive All-MIAC squads. Augsburg senior forward Mizael Harris and St. Olaf senior midfielder Robi Buzakovic earned the third All-Conference nods of their careers, a feat achieved by only 96 MIAC men's soccer players all-time.
 
The MIAC also announced the All-Playoff Team for men's soccer, which recognized the top eleven performers from the conference tournament, as selected by playoff-participant head coaches. Of the eleven selections, only Macalester's Kent (2024) and junior midfielder Kasdan Blattman (2023) had previously received the honor.
 
A complete list of MIAC men's soccer honorees can be found below.
 
| 2025 MIAC Men's Soccer Awards |