MANKATO, Minn. - The Bethany men's soccer team kicks off its 2025 campaign tonight at home against Carleton. The Vikings boast a healthy balance of returners and newcomers, which has fostered positive results in preseason training.
 
"It's basically a 50-50 split of returners and newcomers so that's a lot," said Head Coach Derick Lyngholm, who is in his seventh year leading the Bethany men. "The good news with our returners is that they are the vast majority of guys who played last year. We lost two strong starters and a bunch of guys who were even with what we have now, so we return a really good nucleus, so very excited about that. The new guys so far have done really well, too. Everyone has good attitudes and everybody is on the same page."
 
Last season the Vikings finished 12-7-3 overall and were second in the UMAC with a mark of 11-2-1. Their only conference losses were to UW-Superior, who bested the Vikings in the league playoff title match for the fifth consecutive season. The Yellowjackets went on to win two games at the NCAA Championships.
 
"Our team perspective hasn't changed in that we believe we can compete for a conference championship," said Lyngholm. "We've made some steps in the right direction. We feel this year with our returning strength that we will be on a level playing field with the best team in the league and let the cards fall where they may."
 
Jamie van Wijland, Diogo Cavalcanti, and Brady Price are captains this season. Cavalcanti and van Wijland started in all 22 games last season with Cavalcanti recording 20 points on five goals and 10 assists, while van Wijland tallied seven points on two goals and three assists, earning Second Team All-Conference as a defender. Price steps into a leadership position after playing three games as a goalkeeper last year without allowing a goal.
 
"Jamie was a captain last year as a sophomore so that says a lot about him," said Lyngholm. "Diogo leads by example and it's nice to have a Portuguese guy in a leadership position with so many Portuguese guys on the team. He relates to a big portion of our team in a way that maybe I can't. The three guys we have in leadership roles are great. All three are passionate and they lead in different ways."
 
Other top returners include Guilherme Gancho and Gijs Van Eldik who both earned Second Team All-Conference last season. Gancho was second on the squad with 30 points on 12 goals and six assists, while Van Eldik tallied 14 points on six goals and two helpers. 
 
"With so many returners, we need to find the best role for everybody," said Lyngholm. "Some guys have been asked to switch positions because we've switched our formation. You're not going to make everybody happy but we are making these moves for a reason and hopefully everybody can buy in to have success."
 
This year's team is composed of 40 players - seven seniors, seven juniors, seven sophomores, and 19 freshmen. Twenty-six of the student-athletes are international. 
 
"I think we've built a nice pipeline from different places internationally but the main thing I want is for them to have a good experience while they are at Bethany," said Lyngholm.
 
The Vikings play six non-conference matches to start the season before the UMAC schedule begins Sept. 17 at UM-Morris.