1 / 2

UVU head coach Kyle Beckerman hugs freshman defender Mateo Palomino when he came off the field during the 3-0 Wolverine win over Air Force at Clyde Field in Orem on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

2 / 2

Utah Valley's Ruby Hladek (8) races down the field with the ball in an NCAA First Round women's soccer match at Colorado on Friday, Nov. 14, 2025.

Courtesy UVU Athletics

❮ ❯

Utah Valley University director of athletics Jared Sumsion has announced that men’s soccer head coach Kyle Beckerman will resign from his position to spend more time with his family and pursue other opportunities.

Associate head coach Michael Chesler will serve as the program’s interim head coach while a national search will be conducted for the program’s next head coach.

Beckerman, the second head coach in the program’s history, compiled a record of 35-31-17 over his five seasons at the helm and led the Wolverines to the WAC Tournament in each of those campaigns.

“Coach Beckerman has done an excellent job leading our team. We are grateful for his time in Orem and for instilling grit in our program. He coached like he played the game — with a winner’s mentality,” said Sumsion. “I appreciate how much he cared about our student-athletes, and we thank him for his service to Utah Valley. We wish Kyle and his family the very best in their future endeavors.”

In his five seasons, Beckerman yielded 20 All-WAC honorees, 38 Academic All-WAC recipients, and back-to-back WAC Freshmen of the Year in 2021 and 2022. Beckerman also produced the program’s first-ever MLS SuperDraft pick in Jojea Kwizera, who was taken 15th overall by CF Montréal in 2022. Kwizera has also gone on to become the first Wolverine to appear with a senior men’s national team, registering 15 caps with Rwanda.

In 2024, Omar Yehya led the WAC and ranked in the top 10 nationally in goals scored with 12 to earn first team All-Region honors. Yehya also earned first team Academic All-America recognition, the fifth in team history. In 2022, Beckerman guided the Wolverines to their highest-ever result against a ranked team, a draw on the road at No. 5 Oregon State.

A national search for the next head coach will begin immediately. Please send nominations, expressions of interest, inquiries and resumés to sport administrator and Deputy Athletic Director Adam Sanft at adam.sanft@uvu.edu

Women’s soccer loses heartbreaker in NCAA first round

BOULDER, Colo.–After playing Colorado to a 1-1 draw through regulation, Utah Valley fell 2-1 on a golden goal in the 106th minute of double overtime in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night at Prentup Field.

Utah Valley wraps up its 2025 season with a 14-5-3 overall record. Twelfth-ranked Colorado advances to the round of 32 to face the winner of the first-round match between Dayton and Xavier.

Utah Valley struck first in the fifth minute. Ruby Hladek beat a CU defender into the box and dribbled toward the end line before dropping a left-footed pass back to the top of the 18. Bailey Peterson one-touched it into the back of the net with her left foot to give the Wolverines an early 1-0 lead.

Colorado’s Vivi Zacarias provided the equalizer in the 39th minute after a cross was deflected in the box. The ball popped out to Zacarias, who drove it into the goal to level the match at 1-1.

The teams remained deadlocked at 1-1 at the end of regulation. Neither side scored in the first 10-minute overtime period. In the second overtime, CU’s Ava Priest sent a ball into the box and Reagan Kotschau headed in the golden goal in the 106th minute for the game winner.

“My thoughts are soccer can be cruel, and I really, truly hope that our players are proud of the performance that they put out there,” Utah Valley head coach Chris Lemay said. “I thought that we were very good tonight and executed our tactics well. Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way.”

“Certainly, the senior class specifically should be really, really proud of what they’ve done for this program, not just this season but the years that they’ve been here and the relationships that they’ve built with their teammates,” Lemay added. “Obviously we’re disappointed that we didn’t get the result that we felt like in a lot of ways we deserved and earned. But at the end of the day, that’s what it is.”

Colorado outshot Utah Valley 28-21, but the Wolverines held an 8-7 advantage in shots on goal. The Buffaloes had 12 corner kicks to UVU’s 11. Faith Webber led Utah Valley with eight shots, including three on frame, while Hladek added five shots with two on goal.

Goalkeeper Leah Wolf went the distance in goal for the Wolverines, finishing with four saves.

Utah Valley closes the year with plenty to be proud of after winning its fourth straight WAC regular-season title and earning the program’s second at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines also boasted one of the nation’s most potent attacks, ranking third nationally at 3.29 goals per game.

Men’s basketball falls short at Fresno State

FRESNO, Calif. — Jackson Holcombe’s contested shot at the buzzer didn’t fall, and Utah Valley dropped a 75-74 road decision at Fresno State on Wednesday night at the Save Mart Center.

Utah Valley falls to 2-2 on the season, while Fresno State improves to 3-2.

Tied 72-72 with just over a minute remaining, Holcombe scored at the rim to give the Wolverines a 74-72 lead with 50 seconds left. Fresno State’s DeShawn Gory answered with a three-pointer to put the Bulldogs ahead 75-74 with 22 seconds to play. Holcombe drove on the final possession and had his shot blocked at the horn, and no foul was called as Fresno State escaped with the win.

Hayden Welling led Utah Valley with 17 points, one shy of his career high, on 6-of-12 shooting. He added three steals and two rebounds. Holcombe finished with 12 points, three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Leonhardt tallied 10 points, seven assists, and four rebounds, while Hendricks added 10 points and five boards.

Utah Valley shot 52% (26-of-50) from the field and 38.9% (7-of-18) from three. Fresno State shot 56.5% (26-of-46) overall and 47.1% (8-of-17) from beyond the arc. UVU held a 36-30 advantage in paint points and outrebounded the Bulldogs 29-28.

The Wolverines return home to the UCCU Center on Wednesday night to host future Big West foe UC Irvine. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. The game is part of the Cancun Challenge, held Nov. 25-26 in Cancun, Mexico.

Women’s basketball routs Pepperdine

Utah Valley defeated Pepperdine, 85-56, on Friday night inside the UCCU Center.

UVU (3-1) was led by Amanda Barcello with 19 points on 5-for-6 on three-point attempts in the contest. Utah Valley kept the pressure on Pepperdine (2-1), forcing 31 turnovers in the contest which led to 42 points off turnovers. The Wolverines broke a program record for most 3-point Field Goals against a D1 opponent with 12. Kaylee Headrick finished with 12 points, three boards, and three assists. Tessa Chaney added 11 points, five boards, and four assists. Halle Nelson finished with seven points and eight rebounds as Cambree Blackham added seven points and six assists.

“I was really happy with our effort tonight. I especially loved our defensive execution of the game plan. We were able to turn them over and create some easy baskets while executing well on offense when we were playing in the half court,” said UVU head coach Dan Nielson. “I thought it was our most balanced game of the season with everyone doing their part and being ready when called on. I’m proud how this team is preparing for games and their level of focus. Hopefully we can continue to do that and keep building momentum.”

The Wolverines defensively swarmed the Waves all night, limiting them to 35% shooting and just 27% in the second half of the game. Utah Valley hosts Benedictine on Monday, Nov. 17, at 6:00 p.m. MT inside the UCCU Center. The game will air on ESPN+.

Nokes, Kiplagat will compete at NCAA Championships

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Utah Valley’s Morgan Nokes and Sila Kiplagat have officially punched their tickets to the NCAA Championships on Nov. 22, marking just the second time Utah Valley will send multiple runners to the national meet.

Nokes’ ticket was already secured by virtue of finishing as the third-best runner not on an automatically qualifying team at Friday’s Mountain Regionals. Nokes took seventh place overall — the second-best finish by any Wolverine runner at a regional race — with a time of 20:13.0. This will be Nokes’ second trip to Nationals after going with the 2023 squad, where she posted a team-best 68th-place finish.

Kiplagat secured his spot by virtue of Air Force and Northern Arizona earning at-large team bids for next week’s meet. With the Falcons’ and Lumberjacks’ runners being taken out of the mix for individual bids, Kiplagat slid into the fourth and final spot out of the Mountain region among teams that did not qualify.

Kiplagat ran an impressive 30:22.3 10k on Friday to take 14th overall. Kiplagat’s finish was the second-best by a male Wolverine and the best in 13 years. Only Josh McCabe, who took 11th back in 2012, had a better finish in a regional race.

Nokes’ and Kiplagat’s qualifications mark the second time Utah Valley will send multiple individuals to the national championships, with the other being the spring 2021 season when Britain Reynolds and Maddie Bench Empey each qualified. Utah Valley has also qualified twice as a team on the women’s side, in 2022 and 2023.

The NCAA Championships will be held at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course on Saturday, Nov. 22. The women will race first at 8:20 a.m. MT, followed by the men at 9:10. The meet will be streamed live on ESPNU.