Nelson Warriors Men's Soccer Magical Season Ends

The Nelson Warriors' magical inaugural Men's Soccer season came to a bittersweet end on Thursday as they fell 6-0 to top-seeded Grace College in their final pool-play match of the 2025 NCCAA National Championship. The loss, coupled with a 3-1 Nelson University (TX) victory over Judson University in the day's later fixture officially eliminating Nelson from semifinal contention.

Facing the tournament's No. 1 seed, Nelson knew the challenge before them would be a difficult one. Grace wasted no time flexing their muscle, striking just 6:14 in and piling on four more unanswered goals (three in the first half, two in the second) before an unfortunate own-goal in the dying minutes capped the game's scoring. For 90 minutes, the Lancers' attack was relentless, overwhelming the Warriors at times on both ends of the pitch, firing 21 shots while their defense suffocated Nelson, limiting them to just four attempts, and only one after halftime.

Yet even in defeat, the Warriors carried themselves valiantly and with composure, defining characteristics that fans of the club have come to love in the team. The Nelson men remained disciplined to the final whistle, recording zero offsides (against 10 for Grace) and only nine fouls committed. More importantly, their commanding 5-1 victory over Dallas Christian on day one of the tournament kept advancement alive until the very last match of pool play; ultimately missing a wild-card berth by only a single point.

Under first-year head coach Barry Swartz, what began as an 0-5-3 start to the regular season transformed into something most would expect to see scripted from one of the great American playwrights. Coach Swartz worked tirelessly to build a culture of brotherhood and team over individual, consistently encouraging his student-athletes to keep their heads up, and keep focused not on their record, but on what was right - including faith, hard work, dedication, and belief that they could achieve their ultimate goal. In doing so, his squad finished a white-hot 7-1 over their final eight regular-season games, clinching the West Region Championship on the final day and earning the program's first-ever trip to Nationals.

And now, the 2025 chapter has closed at 8-7-3, 1-1-0, but a strong foundation has been laid.

For Nelson Warriors Men's Soccer, this is only the beginning.