Three Kentucky men’s soccer players earned Sun Belt Conference preseason honors on Wednesday.
Junior goalkeeper Sebastian Conlon was picked as Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. Sophomore midfielder Agustin Lopez and junior defender Josh Gordon were also named to the Preseason First Team.
The Wildcats are picked to finish fourth in the conference by the league’s coaches.
Here is a press release from UK Athletics:
NEW ORLEANS, La. – With the kickoff to the 2025 NCAA men’s soccer season just eight days away, the Sun Belt Conference announced its preseason awards and coaches’ poll, per the release from the conference office Wednesday afternoon.
As voted on by the league’s head coaches, the Wildcats were voted to finish fourth in the Sun Belt Conference standings with 67 total votes, predicted to finish behind reigning champion Marshall, West Virginia and UCF.
Conlon, a junior goalkeeper from transferring from Sun Belt rival James Madison, earned 2025 Sun Belt Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year honors. In his three seasons with the Dukes, Conlon recorded 183 saves in 58 starts and 5,151 total minutes between the posts. He currently ranks ninth in JMU program history in clean sheets with 16, with eight coming during the 2024 season. Following his junior year, Conlon was named 2024 Sun Belt Goalkeeper of the Year and was listed to the All-Sun Belt First Team and the United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region Team.
After earning All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team honors in 2024, junior defender Josh Gordon and midfielder Agustin Lopez were both named to the All-Conference Preseason Team. Last season, Gordon led Kentucky in assists with six, including two in a season-opening, 3-2 win over Oral Roberts. He started in all 17 of his appearances last season, recording six points, 14 shots and four shots on target in 1,445 minutes on the pitch.
Lopez, in his first collegiate season, was named to the All-Conference Second Team after scoring two goals and two assists from his central midfield role for the Wildcats in 2024. Lopez appeared in all 18 matches last season and made 17 starts, recording 30 shots with 10 on frame in 1,402 minutes of play. Through the first nine matches of 2024, the Wildcat freshman was named to the TopDrawerSoccer Midseason Freshman 100 list.
The Wildcats will continue their preseason schedule this week, as they face Northern Kentucky on Saturday, Aug. 16 at 7:30 p.m. at the NKU Soccer Stadium.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Preseason Awards
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year:
Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Sr., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year:
Takahiro Fujita, Marshall (Jr., Nara, Japan)
Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year:
Sebastian Conlon, Kentucky (Sr., Reston, Va.)
Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
F – Ethan Ballek, South Carolina (Sr., Timnath, Colo.)
F – Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Sr., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
F – Ryan Holmes, Georgia Southern (Jr., Milton Keys, England)
M – Agustin Lopez, Kentucky (So., Santa Fe, Argentina)
M – Isaac Scheer, West Virginia (So., Charlotte, N.C.)
M – Alexander Stjernegaard, South Carolina (Sr., Rungsted Kyst, Denmark)
M – Alejandro Velazquez-Lopez, South Carolina (So., Knoxville, Tenn.)
D – Takahiro Fujita, Marshall (Jr., Nara, Japan)
D – Carlos Hernando, West Virginia (Grad., Madrid, Spain)
D – Josh Gordon, Kentucky (Jr., Scarborough, Ontario)
GK – Sebastian Conlon, Kentucky (Sr., Reston, Va.)
*Ties were not broken.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Marshall (8) – 97
2. West Virginia (2) – 92
3. UCF – 74
4. Kentucky – 67
5. South Carolina – 65
6. James Madison – 48
7. Old Dominion – 36
8. Georgia Southern – 30
9. Georgia State – 24
10. Coastal Carolina – 17
Parentheses indicate first-place votes
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s soccer team, follow @UKMensSoccer on X, Facebook and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKAthletics.com.
