KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Utah Valley men's soccer has broken into the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll for the first time this season, checking in at No. 22 following Friday's historic 2-1 win at No. 20 Marshall.
The Wolverines are ranked for the second straight year after ending an eight-year hiatus last fall, reaching as high as 16th during the team's 6-0 start to the season. Utah Valley also moved up to first in the Far West Region poll, surpassing Big West foe UC Santa Barbara, who is also ranked 25th in the latest Top 25 poll.
Defense has been the calling card for the Wolverines under first-year head coach Michael Chesler. Through five games, Utah Valley has allowed just two goals in the run of play and three overall, good for a 0.60 team goals-against average that leads The Big West and ranks 14th nationally.
Senior keeper Kolby Sessions has picked up right where he left off last season, posting a 0.667 goals-against average in three starts that ranks 21st nationally. Sessions' 0.71 career GAA is the best by a Wolverine keeper with a minimum of 1,000 minutes played.
While the offense hasn't been quite as potent as it was to start last season, Utah Valley has gotten contributions from all over the pitch through the first five games. Jose Luis Martin Montealegre leads the way with two goals and two assists, followed by fellow Spaniard Nil Grau with two goals and one assist. Nine different players have a goal contribution through the first five games, in addition to Luca Wingaa Laursen and Landon Christiansen, who set up the game-winning own goal at Marshall.
For the third season in a row, the Wolverines are the final unbeaten team standing in their conference. Back in the WAC, Utah Valley started off 5-0-2 in 2024 and 6-0-1 in 2025. Entering Tuesday's games, the Wolverines are one of just 26 teams remaining nationally with an unbeaten record, and one of 17 with one or fewer draws on the season.
Utah Valley will take its unbeaten record on the road for one final test before Big West play kicks off at the end of the month. The Wolverines will face Utah Tech on Monday in St. George in the annual Old Hammer Rivalry game, which will kick off at 7 p.m. MDT. The derby will be streamed live on Mountain West+, with live stats at utahtechtrailblazers.com.
