The Case Western Reserve University men's soccer team will look to make its third postseason appearance in four years and improve upon its 2024 performance when the team went 5-5-6.
The Spartans finished with a .500 or better record for the third consecutive season and will return 18 players from last year's squad, including All-University Athletic Association honoree goalkeeper Bradley Winter.
Newcomers
Head Coach Carter Poe, entering his sixth season at CWRU, added 10 players to the roster in 2025. Alex Eby, Maximilian Majewski, Milo Stehling, and Gavin Trosch will vie for playing time on the back line, Raj Chitre, Mitchell Fein, Micah Rossen, and Aydin Sumer add depth in the midfield, Ethan Barr is a potential attacking option, and Carter Shedd will likely serve as the backup goalkeeper in 2025.
Goalkeepers
Winter returns as the team's netminder after missing just three games in the previous two years. He was an All-UAA Second Team selection last year and earned All-UAA honorable mention as a sophomore. Across 30 starts, Winter has recorded 86 saves, allowed just 25 goals, posted 12 shutouts, and compiled a 13-7-10 record. He needs four shutouts to match the program career record set by Ben Yabrow in 2011.
Forwards
The Spartans have three returning players at the top of the pitch. Sophomore Amir Awais appeared in 14 games and tallied nine points on four goals, the most among returners, and an assist during his debut season. Senior McLaren Baggett played in three games last year and 25 matches during his career, logging one assist. Last season, senior Stephen Vilardo made the transition from goalkeeper to field player, making one start and earning an assist in five contests.
Midfielders
Senior Camden Larson has missed just one match in his career, totaling three goals and four assists in 49 games since 2022. He will lead the quintet of midfielders who made significant contributions in 2024. Junior Sean Wilson has 30 career appearances (12 starts) and four goals as a Spartan. Junior Adam Pluszczyk started 14 games last season and secured nine points on three goals and three assists. Junior Ohta Kamiya added a pair of assists in 15 games last season, making two starts. Sophomore Ashton McNally scored once in six games during his first collegiate season. Sophomores Owen Guffey, Christian Tan, and Joseph Jung and seniors Hayden Fischer and Ben Collier will add experienced depth in the midfield.
Defenders
Senior Phillip Washington and junior Cameron Thayer are expected to anchor the back line in 2025. Washington missed just 17 minutes last season, leading the team in time on the field, while Thayer missed only 68 minutes of time on the pitch. Junior Daniel Sandall appeared in 10 contests last season, making five starts. Additionally, junior Philip Vlastaris and sophomore Drew Rosenthal will provide depth at the back of the pitch.
Schedule
The Spartans open the 2025 season on the road, kicking off the year at Franciscan in Steubenville, Ohio, on August 29 and at Juniata in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, two days later. CWRU starts a four-match homestand with a contest against Penn State Behrend on September 6. The team then hosts Oberlin on September 10, Wooster on September 13, and Allegheny on September 14. CWRU doesn't return to DiSanto Field for the next three weeks, playing Marietta, 13th-ranked Kenyon, crosstown rival John Carroll, and Otterbein on the road to conclude non-conference play. Four of the team's opponents—Franciscan, Penn State Behrend, Kenyon, and Otterbein—appeared in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
Case Western Reserve opens UAA play at home against Rochester on October 4. WashU visits Cleveland on October 11 before the Spartans play three consecutive games on the road. CWRU travels to face Chicago, Brandeis, and NYU over the following two weeks, before ending the home portion of the season against reigning conference champion Emory on November 1. The regular season ends with a matchup in Pittsburgh against Carnegie Mellon on November 8.
Postseason selections will be announced on Monday, November 10 with the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament scheduled for November 15 and 16 at campus sites. For the second year in a row, the at-large teams will be selected by the NCAA Power Index (NPI). CWRU made consecutive tournament appearances in 2023 and 2022 and has qualified for the postseason five times in its history.
