WATERTOWN, Wis. – After a disappointing end to the 2015 season which ended in a 2-1 loss to Grace Bible College in the NCCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal, the Sabercats approach the 2016 with a new NCCAA Regional alignment and a new look to the team as they look to build on recent success of the program, which holds a record of 31-23-2 in the last three years.

NCCAA North Regional Play

The Sabercats are slated to participate in the NCCAA North Region for this coming year, which consists of the following teams (listed alphabetically) that the Sabercats will face during the season:

• Faith Baptist (Iowa) – 10/15 at 3:30 PM
• Moody Bible – 9/29 at 4:00 PM
• North Central (Minn.) – 9/1 at 3:00 PM
• Providence-Manitoba (CA) – 10/17 at 3:00 PM

After the regular season concludes, the Sabercats will travel to Faith Baptist (Ankeny, Iowa) on November 4-5 to participate in the NCCAA Regional Tournament.

Other key matches for the Sabercats will be in October, when the team faces Wisconsin Lutheran at home on October 1st (3:30 PM), and Beloit at home on October 7th at 3:30 PM.

Players to Watch

Wira Wama – The three-time NCCAA All-American returns from his home country of Papua New Guinea, where he represented his country in the OFC Nations Cup – Oceania’s 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. Wama played one of the central midfield roles for the “Kapuls” before they fell in a penalty-kick shootout to New Zealand in the OFC Nations Cup final.

In his career at MBU, Wama has scored 33 goals and has tallied 12 assists. The PNG native has been named to an NCCAA All-American team every year so far, and has been named to the AD3I All-Independent team for three consecutive years as well.

Brett Cournoyer – The third-year player from Madison, Wis. has notched 5 goals and 4 assists, and is a reliable piece of the Sabercats’ front line. Cournoyer bagged the only goal of the NCCAA Regional Semifinal in 2015 and added three assists on the year.

Caleb Walters – The Sophomore midfielder from Hayesville, Ohio scored two emphatic game-winning goals during his rookie season, as he netted the game-winners against North Central and IIT. Walters will be a key player for the Sabercats’ possession, and will look to provide an offensive spark from his midfield spot.

From Coach Pill

“I’m excited to work with her group of guys that seem to be really committed to each other, they have great work ethics. So far this season, they have been really focused, and they have shown great improvement.  I look forward to seeing if we can maintain this the whole season.”

“In addition, they are starting to come together as a group as they are gaining some shared experiences.  There are a lot of new players on the team this year, and they have been coming together nicely.  The new players are eager to learn and commit to the process of getting better.”

“The goals I have for the season is for the guys to embrace our core beliefs, and be immersed in the process of striving for excellence. We are excited about the new conference we are playing in, it should be an even greater challenge to be able to get out of our region and make it to nationals."

For more on the Men’s Soccer team, visit the team's page