Head coach Jon Leamy completed his 19th season at the helm of the Missouri State men's soccer program as the team finished 8-7-3 (4-1-2 in the MVC) and reached the semifinals of the MVC Tournament. Despite a schedule that included four top-25 opponents and a six-game road trip, the team was able to battle and overcome obstacles en route to a better-than .500 record for the second straight season.

"We came into the season extremely excited about the level of competition on our schedule," said head coach Jon Leamy. "We always want to play the best teams we can to prepare our team for conference play."

Regular Season
The men's soccer team had to wait out a two hour and 30 minute lightning delay in Dallas, Texas on Sept. 1 before it could kick off the 30th season in the program's history. The Bears jumped out to a 2-0 halftime lead on goals from junior Heath Melugin and freshman Callen Roselieb. But SMU responded with two second-half goals and the decisive goal in the second overtime to defeat MSU, 3-2. The Mustangs ended the season in the Elite 8 and ranked No. 8 in the final NSCAA poll.

Missouri State turned around and headed to Kansas City for a showdown with UMKC on Labor Day evening. The Kangaroos' Diego Rojas buried a highlight-reel goal with a bending shot from 30 yards away as the only tally of the match. The Bears dropped to 0-2 for the first time since 2001, but things would turn around for MSU.

The Bears kicked off a brief two-game homestand against Green Bay on Sept. 10. The Phoenix had made the NCAA Tournament in 2009 and would out-shoot the Bears in the match 13 to 12. But senior Paul Paradise scored in the second minute of play and fellow senior Alex Riggs made three saves in the 1-0 shutout win.

Two days later, MSU hosted IUPUI and quickly evened its record at 2-2-0. Junior Jordan Hoffman scored his first goal of the season and propelled the Bears to a 3-0 shutout of the Jaguars. Melugin and junior Gerard Barbero also tallied goals in the win. Riggs again made three saves for the shutout.

Missouri State set out on its longest road trip since 1985 with a visit to No. 10 Louisville on Sept. 18. Once again, the Bears got on the board early with a Melugin goal in the 14th minute. The Bears held a 1-0 lead at halftime, but the Cardinals evened the score in the first minute of the second half and added the game-winner in the 53rd minute for a 2-1 win over the Bears. Louisville remained in the top-10 the rest of the season and ended up losing in the NCAA Tournament Championship match to Akron.

Three days later, junior Edin Sabic put the Bears in front of No. 2 Tulsa with his first goal of the year in the 14th minute. Again the Bears were unable to hold a halftime lead as the Golden Hurricane tied the match in the 74th minute and won it in double overtime.

The road trip continued as Missouri State kicked off conference play at Central Arkansas on Sept. 25. The match remained scoreless until the final minute of double overtime when Barbero scored off of a free kick for the game-winner. Riggs was only required to make one save for the shutout win, his second of the season.

MSU headed to Saint Louis on Sept. 28 for a rematch of the 2009 NCAA Tournament first round tilt with the Billikens. The two squads battled for 110 minutes of scoreless play. Riggs made three saves for his third shutout of the year. It was MSU's first shutout of the Billikens in the series history.

The Bears turned the calendar to October with a stop in Evanston, Ill. for another matchup with a 2009 NCAA Tournament team. Northwestern got a second half goal and beat the Bears, 1-0. Paul Paradise tallied four of MSU's eight shots in the match.

Missouri State looked to avenge its only loss of the 2009 MVC campaign as they wrapped up the road trip at Eastern Illinois on Oct. 9. Melugin scored in the first minute of play and Riggs made seven saves as MSU prevailed, 1-0. The win moved the Bears to 2-0-0 in conference play for the first time since 2001 and the back-to-back shutouts to begin conference play were a first since 1998. Alex Riggs was named MVC Defensive Player of the Week after his performance.

A week later, the Bears began a four-game homestand by hosting Drake. The Bulldogs jumped out to the early lead with a 10th minute goal. Late in the second half, however, Drake was called for a penalty in the box and Barbero converted the PK. Neither team scored in overtime and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

On Oct. 20, Missouri State played host to Evansville. It was the first matchup since the Purple Aces knocked off the Bears in the 2009 MVC Tournament semifinals. Barbero converted another PK in the 24th minute, his second in as many matches and the first Bear since Derek Phillips in 1993 to convert a PK in consecutive matches. Melugin and Hoffman tacked on goals late in the match as MSU pulled away for a 3-0 shutout win. Riggs was again named MVC Defensive Player of the Week after his strong performance.

Memphis visited Plaster Field on Oct. 26 as the Bears' final non-conference test. Melugin scored his team-leading sixth goal of the year in the 12th minute and sophomore Eric Martin tallied his first career goal as the Bears downed the Tigers, 2-0. Riggs made three saves for his 20th career clean sheet.

The Bears ended the homestand with a visit from Bradley. The match remained scoreless until the 85th minute when Barbero put back a rebound for the game-winning goal, his third GWG of the year. Riggs made three saves for his fourth shutout of the Braves in as many career matches. Barbero was named MVC Defensive Player of the Week for his play. The win extended the Missouri State unbeaten streak in regular season conference play to 12 games, a school record.

MSU headed up to Omaha, Neb. for the final regular season road match against No. 10 Creighton. The Bluejay defense held the Bears to just five shots in the match and CU got a goal in each half for the 2-0 win.

The Bears wrapped up the regular season at home with a tilt against SIU Edwardsville on "Living our Legacy" night in front of 2,027 fans, the second-largest crowd in MSU history. Melugin led MSU with 10 of the 23 shots taken, but neither team was able to tally a goal. Riggs made five saves for his eighth shutout on the campaign.

"We pride ourselves on being organized and playing good defense," Leamy continued. "Our ability to turn away scoring opportunities and make big saves kept us in every game. We had a very good senior class that contributed a lot to this team in their four years as a Bear."

MVC Tournament
Missouri State entered the MVC Tournament in Peoria, Ill., as the No. 3-seed. The Bears faced a first round matchup with the No. 6-seed Purple Aces of Evansville. It was the second consecutive MVC Tournament meeting between the squads.

Missouri State's defense was able to turn back numerous Evansville opportunites as UE outshot the Bears 14 to nine in the match. MSU got on the board in the first half after a Purple Aces turnover. Junior David Buckenheimer found a streaking Paradise who chipped the ball over the UE keeper for a 1-0 lead.

The Bears doubled the lead in the second half as Melugin tallied his team-leading seventh goal of the year. He received a pass from freshman Matt Bray, who earned his first collegiate point on the play.

MSU advanced to the semifinals with a 2-0 shutout win. Riggs made three saves for the shutout, his ninth of the season, the second-best single season total in Missouri State history.

The Bears squared off with SIU Edwardsville in the semifinals, the second meeting between the teams in less than a week. The Cougars came out with early pressure and were able to get the early lead with a goal in the 19th minute. SIUE doubled the lead in the 31st minute and took a 2-0 edge into halftime.

The Bears responded in the second half. In the 78th minute, senior Chad Johnson registered his first goal of the year to draw MSU within one. But Missouri State's efforts were thwarted in the final minutes as SIUE prevailed to advance to the finals, 2-1.

"We played well against Evansville," recalled Leamy. "We were clicking and it felt like we were in control. We stumbled against SIUE. They had some different players emerge, but I thought we had decent chances to draw even in the match."

Riggs and Melugin were named to the MVC All-Tournament team for their outstanding play.

Awards
Senior keeper Alex Riggs headlined the postseason awards for the Bears. He was named MVC Goalkeeper of the Year by the Valley and received a first-team All-MVC nod. Riggs was also named to the NSCAA All-Midwest Region first team for the second straight year.

"Alex (Riggs) is an exceptional goalkeeper," stated Leamy. "He is going to be missed. Hopefully he can continue his career at the next level."

Gerard Barbero joined Riggs on the All-MVC first team. He received a second-team NSCAA All-Midwest Region nod as well.

Heath Melugin was the third Bear on the NSCAA All-Midwest Region squad, also receiving a second team selection. He was named an MVC State Farm Good Neighbor award recipient and an All-MVC second team member. Off the field, Melugin racked up the academic awards. He earned CoSIDA/ESPN Academic All-District VII first team and All-America second team honors from the organization. He was selected to the MVC Scholar-Athlete first team and was named the Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week on Oct. 27.

Other award recipients for the Bears were: junior Thomas Vania, MVC Scholar-Athlete first team; junior Edin Sabic, MVC Scholar-Athlete honorable mention team; junior Jordan Hoffman, All-MVC honorable mention squad; and freshman Dan Williams, MVC All-Freshman team.

"When our athletes are noticed by other coaches, it is a tremendous honor," Leamy said. "It is a tribute to how outsiders see our team."