# Missouri State Bears soccer

The Missouri State Bears men's soccer team represent Missouri State University in NCAA Division I men's soccer. As of the next NCAA soccer season in 2025, the Bears will compete in the American Athletic Conference (The American), after more than 30 years as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. The team plays its home matches at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium. They are currently coached by Michael Seabolt, who is entering his fourth season as head coach. Missouri State has made 9 NCAA tournament appearances, most recently in 2024. The Bears' overall record in the NCAA tournament is 3–9. They have won 12 conference regular-season titles and three conference tournaments. Missouri State has had 8 players selected in the MLS Draft.

## History
### Conference memberships

For the first seven years of the program's existence, it was an independent. They switched their conference affiliation for a year in 1989 to the Association of Mid-Continent Universities (now known as the Summit League). They switched back to being an independent for the 1990 season. From 1991 to 2024, the team was a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. In May 2024, Missouri State announced it would move its athletic program to Conference USA, which sponsors soccer only for women, effective in July 2025. In October 2024, the Bears were announced as a new men's soccer associate of The American, also effective in 2025.
Prior to 2005, Missouri State was known as Southwest Missouri State.
* 1981-1988: Independent
* 1989: Association of Mid-Continent Universities†
* 1990: Independent
* 1991–2024: Missouri Valley Conference†
* 2025–future: American Athletic Conference
†Founding member of the conference

## Players
### Current roster

    As of January 7, 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | ENG | Harry Townsend |
| 3 | DF | ITA | Giacomo Sala |
| 4 | DF | ENG | Lewis Green |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Michael Peck |
| 6 | MF | ITA | Lorenzo Dentale |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Kian Yari |
| 9 | FW | ESP | Jesus Barea |
| 10 | FW | ITA | Nicolo Mulatero |
| 11 | FW | ESP | Jon Koka |
| 12 | DF | NZL | Matt Jones |
| 13 | DF | USA | Elijah Zelkind |
| 15 | MF | ENG | Alex Matthews |
| 16 | DF | ENG | Sam Ottley |
| 17 | MF | NOR | Daniel Normann |
| 18 | FW | ENG | Ollie Bate |
| 20 | FW | NOR | Simon Bakken |
| 21 | FW | IRL | James Jennings |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 22 | FW | ESP | Pablo Guillen |
| 25 | DF | ITA | Gianluca Fiorini |
| 26 | MF | ITA | Pascal Corvino |
| 28 | MF | ENG | Charlie Bell |
| — | GK | USA | Jonathan Kliewer |
| — | GK | ITA | Lorenzo Rovei |
| — | DF | USA | Blake Bastian |
| — | DF | GER | Mattis Koch |
| — | DF | ITA | Mattia Petricca |
| — | DF | SWE | Daniel Shabani |
| — | MF | ENG | Declan O'Hare |
| — | MF | SCO | Tyler Caton |
| — | MF | ENG | Joseph Ling |
| — | MF | NZL | Max Falconer |
| — | MF | USA | Alan Rivera |
| — | FW | ITA | Marco Gueli |

## Facilities

Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium
Missouri State plays their home matches at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium. The on-campus, 1,500-seat stadium was built in the summer of 2014. The stadium has a combination of bleacher and chair-back seating. The stadium features a Sport Turf artificial turf playing surface. The stadium has locker rooms for both men's and women's soccer programs. It also has a press box and Daktronics LED premier video board.

## Championships
### Conference championships
#### Regular season

Missouri State has won 12 regular-season conference championships in the team's history. They won back-to-back championships twice, in 2013–2014 and 2019–2022. In 2019 the Bears finished the regular season undefeated in both conference and non-conference play. Jon Leamy coached the team for its first 10 championships, with current coach Michael Seabolt on board for the two most recent championships.
| Season | Conference | Coach | Overall Record | Conference Record |
| 1997 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 13-5-3 | 6–0–1 |
| 1999 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 17-1-3 | 6–0-1 |
| 2009 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 12-5–2 | 7-1–1 |
| 2011† | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 9-8-2 | 5-1-0 |
| 2013 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 11-5–2 | 5-1–0 |
| 2014 | Missouri valley | Jon Leamy | 9-5–4 | 4–0-2 |
| 2017 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 9-5-3 | 5-2-1 |
| 2019 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 18–1-1 | 10–0-0 |
| 2020–21 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 12-2-0 | 7-1-0 |
| 2021 | Missouri Valley | Jon Leamy | 17-2-0 | 10-0-0 |
| 2022 | Missouri Valley | Michael Seabolt | 12-2-4 | 6-0-2 |
| 2024 | Missouri Valley | Michael Seabolt | 12-4-2 | 7-0-1 |
| Total Conference Championships: | Total Conference Championships: | Total Conference Championships: | 12 | 12 |
| † Denotes co-champions |||||||

## NCAA tournament history

Missouri State has appeared in 9 NCAA tournaments, including each tournament since 2019, and has an overall record of 3–9. Missouri State won their first tournament game 2019 at home against Denver 1–0. This was the first time the program hosted a tournament game. Prior to 2005 Missouri State was known as Southwest Missouri State, making 2 appearances in 1997 and 1999. Jon Leamy coached the Bears in their first six tournament appearances, and current coach Michael Seabolt has led the Bears to three tournaments.
| Season | Coach | Round | Host | Opponent | Result |
| 1997 | Jon Leamy | First round | Saint Louis | Saint Louis | L 2-1 |
| 1999 | Jon Leamy | First round | UAB | UAB | L 2-1 |
| 2009 | Jon Leamy | First round | Saint Louis | Saint Louis | L 2-1 |
| 2019 | Jon Leamy | First round Round of 32 | Missouri State UCF | Denver UCF | W 1-0 L 2-1 (OT) |
| 2020–21 | Jon Leamy | Round of 32 Round of 16 | UNCW Cary, NC | Maryland Washington | W 2-1 L 2-0 (OT) |
| 2021 | Jon Leamy | First round | Missouri State | Creighton | L 1-0 |
| 2022 | Michael Seabolt | First round | Creighton | Creighton | L 2-1 |
| 2023 | Michael Seabolt | First round Round of 32 | Missouri State Stanford | Omaha Stanford | W 1-0 L 3-1 |
| 2024 | Michael Seabolt | Second round | Missouri State | Kansas City | L 2-1 |
Last updated: January 6, 2025. Source: NCAA Soccer

## Yearly results

Missouri State's first season was in 1981 where they went 4-6-1 under head coach Frank Dinka. From the inaugural season in 1981 to the end of the 2004 season Missouri State was known as Southwest Missouri State. The school changed their name to Missouri State in 2005 and since then has been known as Missouri State. The Bears were an independent until 1988 when they joined what is now the Summit League for a year. After a lone season as an independent again, Missouri State joined the Missouri Valley Conference. They remained members of the MVC through the 2024 season, after which they will join the American Athletic Conference. They made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1997 when they lost to Saint Louis University in the first round 2–1. The Bears have appeared 3 more times since then, most recently in 2019 where they reached the round of 32. 2019 was also Missouri State's most successful season as they went 18-1-1 and went an undefeated 10-0-0 in conference play and 16-0-0 during the regular season.
Statistics overview :
| Season | Coach | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason |
| Southwest Missouri State Bears (Independent) (1981–1988) ||||||
| 1981 | Frank Dinka | 4–6–1 | | | |
| 1982 | Frank Dinka | 5–10–2 | | | |
| 1983 | Frank Dinka | 3–12–1 | | | |
| 1984 | Frank Dinka | 6–11–0 | | | |
| 1985 | Frank Dinka | 7–10–2 | | | |
| 1986 | Frank Dinka | 8–11–0 | | | |
| 1987 | Jan Stahle | 9–10–1 | | | |
| 1988 | Jan Stahle | 9–12–1 | | | |
| Southwest Missouri State Bears (AMCU) (1989–only) ||||||
| 1989 | Jan Stahle | 14–8–3 | 3–3–0 | 4th | |
| Southwest Missouri State Bears (Independent) (1990–only) ||||||
| 1990 | Tom Howe | 8–8–1 | | | |
| Southwest Missouri State Bears (Missouri Valley Conference) (1991–2004) ||||||
| 1991 | Tom Howe | 9–10–0 | 1–2–0 | t-4th | |
| 1992 | Jon Leamy | 4–15–0 | 0–5–0 | 6th | |
| 1993 | Jon Leamy | 9–9–0 | 1–4–0 | 5th | |
| 1994 | Jon Leamy | 12–5–1 | 1–4–1 | 6th | |
| 1995 | Jon Leamy | 14–5–0 | 2–3–0 | 4th | |
| 1996 | Jon Leamy | 12–6–0 | 3–2–0 | 3rd | |
| 1997 | Jon Leamy | 13–5–3 | 6–0–1 | 1st | NCAA 1st round |
| 1998 | Jon Leamy | 13–7–1 | 3–3–1 | t-4th | |
| 1999 | Jon Leamy | 17–1–3 | 5–0–2 | 1st | NCAA 1st round |
| 2000 | Jon Leamy | 10–7–2 | 4–5–2 | 8th | |
| 2001 | Jon Leamy | 10–9–1 | 7–2–0 | 2nd | |
| 2002 | Jon Leamy | 9–11–0 | 6–3–0 | 3rd | |
| 2003 | Jon Leamy | 9–7–3 | 3–5–1 | 8th | |
| 2004 | Jon Leamy | 11–6–2 | 4–4–1 | t-5th | |
| Missouri State Bears (Missouri Valley Conference) (2005–2024) ||||||
| 2005 | Jon Leamy | 12–4–2 | 4–3–0 | 5th | |
| 2006 | Jon Leamy | 8–8–3 | 3–2–1 | 3rd | |
| 2007 | Jon Leamy | 6–10–4 | 1–3–2 | 6th | |
| 2008 | Jon Leamy | 7–10–5 | 3–1–1 | 3rd | |
| 2009 | Jon Leamy | 12–5–2 | 7–1–1 | 1st | NCAA 1st round |
| 2010 | Jon Leamy | 8–7–3 | 4–1–2 | t-2nd | |
| 2011 | Jon Leamy | 9–8–2 | 5–1–0 | t-1st | |
| 2012 | Jon Leamy | 5–8–4 | 0–6–0 | 7th | |
| 2013 | Jon Leamy | 11–5–2 | 5–1–0 | 1st | |
| 2014 | Jon Leamy | 9–5–4 | 4–0–2 | 1st | |
| 2015 | Jon Leamy | 6–6–5 | 3–2–1 | 4th of 7 | |
| 2016 | Jon Leamy | 9–8–2 | 3–4–1 | 5th of 7 | |
| 2017 | Jon Leamy | 9–5–3 | 5–2–1 | 1st | |
| 2018 | Jon Leamy | 9–2–6 | 2–2–2 | 4th of 7 | |
| 2019 | Jon Leamy | 18–1–1 | 10–0–0 | 1st | NCAA Round of 32 |
| 2020–21 | Jon Leamy | 12–2–0 | 7–1–0 | 1st | NCAA Round of 16 |
| 2021 | Jon Leamy | 17–2–0 | 10–0–0 | 1st | NCAA 1st round |
| 2022 | Michael Seabolt | 12–2–4 | 6–0–2 | 1st | NCAA 1st round |
| 2023 | Michael Seabolt | 12–4–3 | 6–1–1 | 2nd | NCAA Round of 32 |
| 2024 | Michael Seabolt | 12–4–2 | 7–0–1 | 1st | NCAA Round of 32 |
| Missouri State Bears (American Athletic Conference) (2025–present) ||||||
| 2025 | Michael Seabolt | | | | |
| MVC: | MVC: | 330–261–64 | 131–65–23 | | |
| Total: | Total: | 403–360–72 | | | |
| National champion   Postseason invitational champion   Conference regular season champion   Conference regular season and conference tournament champion  Division regular season champion  Division regular season and conference tournament champion  Conference tournament champion ||||||

## MLS Draft History

Missouri State has had several alumni drafted by Major League Soccer clubs in the various MLS drafts.

### MLS College Draft

Missouri State has had 1 player drafted in the MLS College Draft. Matt Caution was drafted in the third round of the 1998 Draft by the Dallas Burn, now known as FC Dallas.
| Player | Position | Year | Draft Round | Team |
| Matt Caution | FW | 1998 | 3 | Dallas Burn |
$_{Note:TheMLSCollegeDraftwasheldfrom1996to1999.}$
Last updated: August 21, 2020. Source: Soccer America

### MLS Supplemental Draft

Missouri State has had 2 players drafted in the MLS Supplemental Draft. Doug Lascody was drafted in the third round of the 2005 Draft by the Kansas City Wizards, now known as Sporting Kansas City. Justin Douglass was drafted in the fourth round of the 2007 Draft by the Houston Dynamo.
| Player | Position | Year | Draft Round | Team |
| Doug Lascody | MF | 2005 | 3 | Kansas City Wizards |
| Justin Douglass | DF | 2007 | 4 | Houston Dynamo |
$_{Note:TheMLSSupplementalDrafthasbeenheldoffandonsince1996.Thelastdrafttohavetakenplacewasin2013.}$
Last updated: August 21, 2020. Source: Major League Soccer
Source: Major League Soccer

### MLS SuperDraft

Missouri State has had 4 players drafted in the MLS SuperDraft. Chris Brunt was drafted in the third round of the 2002 draft by the then-Kansas City Wizards. Missouri State had two players selected in the 2004 Draft;Matt Pickens in the second round with the Chicago Fire and Jamal Sutton in the fourth round with the Columbus Crew. Matthew Bentley was selected in the fourth round of the 2020 draft by Minnesota United FC
| Player | Position | Year | Draft Round | Team |
| Chris Brunt | DF | 2002 | 3 | Kansas City Wizards |
| Matt Pickens | GK | 2004 | 2 | Chicago Fire |
| Jamal Sutton | FW | 2004 | 4 | Columbus Crew |
| Matthew Bentley | FW | 2020 | 4 | Minnesota United FC |
Last updated: August 21, 2020. Source: Major League Soccer