January 4, 2022 | by Taylor Pill

WATERTOWN, Wis. -- The 2021 season was a season of the new faces for Maranatha Men's Soccer, as 14 collegiate rookies joined the program to produce some memorable moments for the Blue and Gold. 

The team finished 5-10-0 with a heartbreaking loss in the first round of the NCCAA North Region Tournament, but five NCCAA wins and competitive play in the difficult schedule shows promise of good things to come from the young squad - especially a promising group of freshmen.

::

GROWTH

Usually, a squad of new faces leads to a "rebuilding year," but the quality of the new names on the roster put the Sabercats on the front foot. It began with a rigorous NCAA DIII schedule early on in the season and moved to a mixture of NCCAA opponents and NAIA schools to finish. 

The newcomers made their mark, as seven of them played 30 minutes or more in the final game of the season: a heartbreaking 3-4 overtime loss to Crown College at NCCAA Regionals.

Freshman Grant Kirchner provided a big moment for Maranatha with an overtime game-winner against NCCAA North Region rivals Faith Baptist on September 30:

Freshman: class. Win: Granted ⛄️

OT winner. pic.twitter.com/xFoI2DcFai

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) October 1, 2021

And Isaac Schmidt made it a deja vu a few weeks later, winning the Sabercats' final home game with an overtime winner against Lincoln Christian:

Buddy - Grant - Isaac - GAME ✌️ @IsaacAugust4 pic.twitter.com/WDJakEYoWY

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) October 24, 2021

Those moments showed the character of the young team, who will look to build on the foundation of the 2021 season as they look forward to what's ahead. Seniors Reagan Abbey, Kyle Cummins, and Kendall Elms all played their final season for the Sabercats, leaving some big shoes to fill for the capable newcomers.

::

OVERVIEW

• Record: 5-10-0
• NCCAA Record: 5-5-0
• NCCAA Finish: 1st Round - NCCAA North Region
• Notable: 4 NCCAA All-Region selections
• Notable: 14 new faces on the roster

::

AWARDS

At the semester-end Athletic Awards Assembly, the Sabercats announced their team awards, which are voted on by the team and are based on the team's CORE BELIEF DOCUMENT. In addition to these honors, the student-athletes earned awards from the National Christian College Athletic Association.

A complete breakdown of the awards is listed below:

::

For more on the program, visit their team page HERE.