One year ago, nobody knew what to expect from the Kansas Wesleyan men’s soccer team.

The Coyotes had won two games in 2022 – one in the Kansas Conference – had a new coach in Bruce Palmbaum and a slew of new players, many of them from foreign countries.

What transpired from late August to early November was nothing short of amazing. KWU finished with a 13-5-2 record, were third in the KCAC standings at 9-2-2 and advanced to the semifinals of the conference tournament.

Palmbaum said recruiting was the key.

“I came in and we recruited a number of guys and the timing of it all just seemed to fit,” he said. “We won games that were difficult for us. We had a couple of disappointments with ties that we should have won but for the most part a lot of things went right for us.

“In soccer the margins are pretty slim. Some things that went right for us last year, had they not gone so well our record might have been a little bit different. It’s a very tight game. It’s not a clear-cut wins and losses thing but I will say that recruiting had a lot to do with our success.”

Six Coyotes received KCAC postseason honors, five of whom return this fall. Forwards Kamille Kum and Abaenya Nundu, defender Mike Wernicke and goalkeeper Santiago Pagnutti were Second Team Selections while forward Jesus Moreno and defender Jacob Langebartels were Honorable Mention. Moreno is the lone starter missing from last year’s squad.

KWU’s roster features athletes from 26 countries along with numerous domestic athletes.

“Essentially, we have about 40 internationals in our program and we have about 40 domestic players,” Palmbaum said. “On our varsity team if we have 20 guys, we almost always have 10 internationals and 10 domestic kids. It’s not like all the internationals play on the varsity, that’s not how it works. It’s split pretty evenly.”

Kum and Nundu scored 11 goals apiece. Wernicke and Langbartels led the back line that allowed 17 goals in conference play (24 overall) while Pagnutti surrendered just 10 goals in 11 matches and had 35 saves in conference play.

Several other capable veterans return in midfielder and Salina native Brandon Oaks, midfielders Selby Fernandez, Noel Zimbeva and Daniel Micheletti (redshirt in 2023), defenders Cole Walgren, Eddie Flores and Kenny Luanglatbandith and forward Cayden Anderson.

Palmbaum expects three newcomers to contribute – transfer forward Diego Albanez, midfielder Gerardo Garcia who transferred in last winter and freshman forward Jovan Momic from Serbia.

Defense will pave the way in 2024 according to Palmbaum.

“That’s probably going to be our DNA,” he said, “it should be really strong.”

Palmbaum would like to see his team possess the ball more and has an ace up his sleeve.

“Our midfield has been upgraded,” he said, “We have Rick Davis helping us specifically with our midfield and the entire team. He played with the New York Cosmos in the late 70s, early 80s period when they had players like Pele and Franz Beckenbauer. He also played in three Olympics.

“He’s bringing a whole new sense of urgency and also a level of patience to our midfield that should help us be better in terms of possession. We were not a very good possession-oriented team last year; we were more of a counter attacking team. This year we should be able to hold on to the ball a little bit better.”

KWU was picked in a tie for third with Friends in the KCAC coaches’ preseason poll. Oklahoma Wesleyan was first and Ottawa second.

“I think OKWU and Ottawa are clearly the class of the conference, they’ve been the ones that have kind of stood out over the past few years,” Palmbaum said. “Certainly, Friends has had a good run as well. I thought they had a really good team and were really well coached.

“Polls don’t really matter anyway and quite honestly our intention is not to finish third. It gives us something to shoot for. I think it’s going to be a really good season.”