Regis men's soccer selected No. 4 in RMAC Coaches' Preseason Poll

Aug 17 | By: David Wilson, Assistant AD-Communications

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) announced the Men's Soccer Coaches' Preseason Poll on Wednesday ahead of the 2022 season.

Regis men's soccer was selected No. 4 by the conference coaches with 65 vote points. The Rangers are coming off of a 2021 season that saw the team finish sixth in the RMAC standings with a 10-8-1 overall record (5-5 RMAC) and climb as high as No. 22 in the United Soccer Coaches' Poll.

Colorado Mesa, the defending RMAC Tournament champions, own the No. 1 spot in the coaches' poll with eight first-place votes and 97 total points. The 2021 regular season champion, Colorado School of Mines, came in at No. 2 with 92 points and three first-place votes, while Colorado State University Pueblo (84 points) and Westminster College (59 points) rounded out the top-5.

Armed with a deep and experienced roster, the Rangers are poised to challenge for the RMAC title this fall after welcoming back 14 returners from last year's squad, including First Team All-Conference players in senior Vilhjalmur Kaldal and graduate student Kevin Cela. Fellow graduate student Kristian Hooker, a Second Team All-RMAC selection in 2021, joins Kaldal and Cela on the 2022 RMAC Players to Watch list.

Kaldal shined during his first season in a Rangers' uniform as he led the team in scoring with 10 goals, tied for the second most in the RMAC, and 23 total points en route to his First Team All-RMAC and Second Team All-South Central Region honors.

A teammate of Kaldal's at Wisconsin-Green Bay, Cela also flourished last fall with the Rangers as the midfielder posted two goals, two assists and logged the second most minutes on the team with 1,537. Cela was also rewarded for his breakout 2021 campaign by being named First Team All-RMAC and Second Team All-South Central Region.

As for Hooker, the local Monument, Colorado product has excelled on and off the field during his previous four years at Regis, racking up two CoSIDA Academic All-American honors and the RMAC Academic Player of the Year award in 2021. As impressive as his work off the field has been, Hooker took a significant step last spring on the field as he posted career highs in goals scored (7), points (16), minutes (916) and games started (12).

The Rangers get their 2022 season underway next week when they travel out to Texas for road games against Texas A&M International (Aug. 25) and Midwestern State University (Aug. 27).

2022 RMAC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll

Institution (First-Place Votes)	Points
1. Colorado Mesa (8)	97
2. Colorado School of Mines (3)	92
3. CSU Pueblo	84
4. Regis	65
5. Westminster	59
6. Fort Lewis	52
T7. MSU Denver	48
T7. UCCS	48
9. Colorado Christian	31
10. South Dakota Mines	15
11. Adams State	14

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