By CAYDEN SANDERS
Tiger Media Network
After being forced to work with a short offseason and recruiting period when he was hired in January of 2024, Fort Hays State men’s soccer Head Coach Alex Nichols has now had a full offseason to build upon last year’s success as he enters his second season at the helm of the program.
Senior Joseph Street throws a ball during an exhibition match against Dodge City Community College. Street is a transfer from Warner University. 
Senior defender Jackson Elgas passes a through ball to a teammate during the match. 
Sophomore midfielder Mamadou Oumar Ndiaye saves the ball from going out of bounds. 
Junior forward Elias Ovelar Semeiuk plays keep away from the defender to give the Tigers a corner kick during the match. 
Street takes form to strike the ball from 25 yards out. Graduate student midfielder Delmoon Aho tries to stay out of the Street’s way. 
Senior goalkeeper Simon Niksch tries to save a penalty kick during the match. 
Street looks to throw the ball during Sunday night’s match. 
Elgas walks to fill his position as the right back. 
Senior goalkeeper Michael Brennan kicks a free kick during the match. Brennan is a transfer from Harris-Stowe State University. 
Freshman forward Tucker Eason looks to cut towards the box to create an opportunity during the match. Eason is from Frisco, Texas. 
Freshman forward Dalton Cates makes a play on the ball.
In the short window the coaching staff and players had to get to know each other last season, the Tigers notched a 13-4-4 overall record and made the program’s 10th appearance in the NCAA tournament after claiming the GAC/MIAA Tournament championship. Nichols said preparing for his second season has been much easier to prepare for than year one.
“Oh my gosh, a 100% yes, this is an easier season to get into,” he said. “I am very proud of what every single player did last season, individually and as a team. In a first year, it is all about building culture, and we always hope the sky is the limit.”
Nichols sees different challenges for this year’s squad and he is counting on his returners to hold high standards and make sure the team stays on track; however, so far he says everyone is doing their part to achieve that goal as a group.
“This year, it is about keeping the culture and also building off of it,” Nichols said, “This season, I have 17 coaches, and I can rely on those guys to help get what we want. It helps the understanding of what we are doing, but speeds up the process of learning.”
In his first season as head coach, Nichols had to replace nearly the entire roster from the 2023 season, and went all in on the transfer portal. This season, he signed 10 new players from the portal along with seven freshmen. But with many of last season’s transfers graduating, the Tigers lost a number of key players in the program’s foundation.
“I wish that the Diego Pavia ruling came to Division II because we would still have key pieces from last season like Bryce (Dickerson), Jeremiah (Johnson), and Anders (Sandsto),” nichols said. “Those guys helped build our culture here in a short amount of time.”
Entering the 2025 season, FHSU and Southern Nazarene tied for first place in the GAC/MIAA Coaches Poll. While being recognized as a favorite is nice, Nichols said the conference is tough and each game matters.
“If you take a conference team lightly, they can beat you,” he said. “Everyone has so many goals going into the season and every game. Right now, everyone has high individual goals; that’s what we are focused on. The only ranking that matters is the one at the end of the season.”
After the first couple practices of the year, FHSU scrimmaged Dodge City Community College on Sunday. While the Tigers eventually won, the goals of improving the team are still there.
“We have been grinding with the days that we have had, we have put them through a good amount of what we want, it’s just been a lot of mental hard work,” Nichols said. “It is a lot of information to take in. I am happy with all the information that they have been able to retain quickly.”
For the Tigers, the defense will be headlined by senior defender Jackson Elgas.
Elgas has been a part of the Tigers program for the last three seasons, collecting two conference All-Defensive team honorable mentions. In his freshman season, he earned D2CCA All-Central region second-team honors.
Elgas spoke about his roles on the team and helping lead this program.
“We do have a really good core from last season, and there’s a lot that Coach Nichols wants from us. We are just trying to teach the new guys what to do, whether it is the guys from last season or them playing,” Elgas said. “We are all family and a team; it’s all about getting the new guys up to speed.”
Elgas said the culture change under Nichols has been positive, and has helped the team achieve a winning mentality.
“My first two seasons, it was about getting by week to week, but now with Coach Nichols here, we have a bigger picture,” he said. “We want to win the conference, host the conference tournament, and it’s just a winning mentality through and through.”
Another player to watch is junior forward Elias Ovelar Semeniuk. In his two seasons with the Tigers, Ovelar Semeniuk has earned both first and second-team All-Conference honors and Central Region honors.
“This season is special for me, this will be my last season, and last year here. I am so happy to exemplify a good leader here,” he said. “We have a base from last year, but with the new guys, we are trying to lead with purpose, and hopefully we can try to make a difference.”
FHSU opens the season on the road at Rockhurst on September 4 and MSU Denver on September 7 before its home schedule kicks off against CSU-Pueblo at 6 pm on September 11 at FHSU Soccer Stadium.