University of the Cumberlands Athletics

Under the direction of Head Coach Chris LeFevre, Joel Sundell finished his second season as Assistant Coach of the University of the Cumberlands Men's Soccer program in 2023. Sundell, who was hired in 2022, has assisted the Patriots to a 17-8-10 (9-3-4 Mid-South Conference) record over the course of his two seasons at UC. 

This past season, the Pats made their fifth straight NAIA Postseason Appearance and marked themselves in the record books. The Patriots finished the season with an overall record of 7-4-5 and concluded the MSC season with a record of 3-1-2 to finish third in the conference. The team received an at-large bid to the NAIA Tournament after taking down Top-25 opponents, #1 Bethel (IN) and #23 Life University, during the season. UC also recorded draws against #5 Lindsey Wilson and #12 Georgia Gwinnett. The Patriots competed in the NAIA Tournament in the Oskaloosa Bracket against #13 William Penn, where they fell 0-1 in a defensively charged battle. The team had six players receive MSC All-Conference honors with four on First Team and two on Second Team. History was made with Salvador Martinez becoming the first Freshman to earn the title of MSC Freshman of the Year by netting 11 goals on the season to lead the MSC. Martinez recorded one assist and had a combined total of 23 points for a team and MSC best. Bruno Garcia also marked his name in the record books by being the first player to earn the title of MSC Defensive Player of the year. Garcia recorded four assists for a combined total of four points and helped hold opponents to 1.33 goals per game and a .488 shots on goal percentage. Both players are the first to receive this award in UC history.

In 2022, the Pats had a record breaking year finishing with an overall record of 10-4-5 and 6-2-2 in the MSC. The team received an at-large bid to the NAIA Tournament to mark their fourth consecutive appearance. The team saw seven players garnered with MSC All-Conference honors with four on First Team and three on Second Team. Pablo Vazquez made UC history after becoming the first Freshman to be named MSC Player of the Year. He only allowed nine goals all season, holding opponents to a .63 goals against average (15th best in the NAIA) and recorded 33 saves and five shutouts on the year. Vazquez is the third player in UC history to be garnished with this award. The Pats traveled to compete in the NAIA Tournament in the Dalton Bracket, but fell short in a penalty shootout. To round out a record setting season, Stephen Appiah and Vazquez were named NAIA All-Americans Honorable Mentions. This marks the first time since 2020 Cumberlands has earned a NAIA All-American honor and the first time since 2008 that the program had two honorees in the same season.
 

Year	Overall Record	MSC Record	Conference Finish	MSC Tournament	NAIA Tournament
2022	10-4-5	6-2-2	3rd	1-1-0	0-1-0
2023	7-4-5	3-1-2	3rd	1-1-0	0-1-0
Total	17-8-10	9-3-4	-	2-2-0	0-2-0