SENATOBIA - Coach Michael Sullivan begins his fourth year as head coach of the Northwest men's soccer program at the start of the 2025 season.  2022, the first year, was a tough one.  The guys played hard, but the results didn't often show on the scoreboard.  The following season, the number in the win column doubled.  It was clear on the pitch that the team bought in to what the coach was selling.  Not only had the wins increased, but the margins of defeat were dwindling as well.  Last year, though the number of wins stayed the same, there were also draws-four to be exact.  In a game where outcomes are often decided by one or two scores, past losses were now becoming ties instead.  This year, Sullivan looks to see that continued incremental improvement in every facet of the program.

"We want to control our destiny as best we can by defining who we are and how we play," Sullivan stated.  He puts clear emphasis on the "We" when he speaks.  "Our goal is to reach one objective at a time.  Take games as they come and not get caught up in 'what-ifs'."  For him, the first goal is to improve in conference and make it to the playoffs.  He's gradually increased the strength of his schedule each year to match the increase in talent he has been able to bring to Senatobia.

The squad will rely heavily on returners like forwards Michael Sanders, Tyler Starnes, Kamden Viverette, and Ben Marchetta to dictate the tempo up front.  Sullivan expects veterans like Richard Patino, stepping into a larger role this year, and Francisco Ambrioso to help control the midfield. His returning defenders - Eli Robinson, Tyler Nehls, Chase Michael, and Carter Burton - are expected to aid his stopper, goalkeeper Jacob Little, in making those margins slimmer game-by-game.  Sullivan believes those veterans can help teach his freshman class the values of the culture he is working to create.  Some of those freshman, like Porter Lindsay and Wesley Kilpatrick, have already seen meaningful minutes in the preseason contests. 

Sullivan has also extended the reach of his international recruiting, adding two new faces from far-away places.  After bringing in Ambrioso and Rodrigo Bandeira last year, both from Portugal, he replaced the graduated Bandeira with Tendai Machingura from Harare, Zimbabwe, and Ariel Vallejo from Quito, Ecuador this year.  Both have started each exhibition, and each has shown flashes of the traits that Sullivan wants his team to exhibit.  "They have brought so much in technical and tactical abilities.  They definitely provide a spark to our already growing culture and improvements as a squad.  There is something special coming together with this program.  I am ecstatic about the potential."

The team has already completed two exhibition matches against four-year Blue Mountain Christian and Wallace State-Hanceville (Ala.). The goal in those exhibitions was simple...to learn the strengths and weaknesses of the team in a short time period.  "With thorough adjustments, we will be able to expand on our strengths and minimize our weaknesses as we develop into the team we know we can be for conference play."

The increase in non-conference strength of schedule - six matches against four-year schools - serves a purpose for Sullivan.  His goal is to "schedule teams that have very good squads and come from very well-established cultures."  By doing so, he believes that the weaknesses exposed by those squads will serve the team's improvement in the long run. "Each year I have been able to recruit better and better players.  With that comes program improvement.  However, every team that is ever assembled has weaknesses. My goal is to expose those weaknesses and teach the team how to work through those issues in non-conference games.  If we learn how to make adjustments early in the season, we are better prepared for adjustments in conference play." 

The Rangers open today with a neutral-site match against Northeast Alabama.  That starts a series of four non-conference road matches that Sullivan believes will prepare his team to play in hostile environments during conference play.  "This league has many schools that host games very well with regards to support and appropriate home field 'banter'.  We must understand what it is like to play outside of our comfort zone."  He also uses these trips to prepare his team for the mental battle of life on the road in the MACCC.  "We travel larger distances over the span of a season than almost all other schools in our league.  We have to understand how to travel and take care of business."

Sullivan expects that by the time his team returns to the Ranger Soccer Complex for two of the final non-conference matches against Belhaven (9/9) and National Park (9/12) it will be battle-tested.  "I expect us to be approaching our highest team potential in the best style for us.  It is important that we have convictions about how we play.  We need to understand who we are and buy into that."

The conference schedule features four teams ranked in the NJCAA DII Preseason Poll.  The Rangers open conference by hosting East Mississippi (9/16) before traveling to No. 19 Hinds (9/19).  They then alternate with a home match against Itawamba (9/23), before hosting Meridian (9/26).  There will be a slight pause in conference play as the squad travels to Blue Mountain (9/30) before finishing with seven conference games throughout October.

Northwest opens October by hosting No. 8 Pearl River (10/3).  The team hosts East Central the following week (10/7), before traveling to No. 12 Mississippi Gulf Coast for a Friday night match-up (10/10).  They will play back-to-back road games at Holmes (10/14) and No. 13 Jones (10/21) before returning home.  The Southwest Bears come to Senatobia (10/24) for the Rangers' final home game.  The squad then makes one last road trip to Copiah-Lincoln (10/28) to wrap up the regular season.

Sullivan is quick to praise the support of the administration and the Northwest community.  He mentions the field reconstruction that allows players to play on a "world-class pitch."  He highlights the new complex construction at every chance he gets - pointing out the well-appointed locker rooms and meeting rooms as "state-of-the-art" and one of the "nicest complexes in the league."  The new field lights "allow more fans to attend night games and aid in increasing a home-field advantage."  He also points out the plans for renovated team bench areas and then looks to the north at the behemoth going up just beyond the softball field.  "That athletic performance facility will be absolutely incredible. It will provide so many resources for our program's development into our full potential.  There will not be another facility like that anywhere else in the state!"

The Rangers open regular-season action in a neutral-site match in Fulton today (8/22) at 2:00 P.M. against Northeast Alabama.  The first regular season home match is scheduled for Tuesday, September 9, against Belhaven.  Coverage for all home games will be available on RangerTV.