Bethel Men’s Soccer picked sixth in preseason standings
Bethel College Men's soccer picked sixth under first-year head coach, Juan Zamora
The Threshers look to get rolling and open another season coming off their best season last year. The sidelines will look a little different this year as first-year head coach Juan Zamora takes the helm. Before becoming head coach, Zamora was an assistant coach under the helm of former coach Luka Milicevic for two years. In April of 2025, he was named the head coach of the Threshers.
Zamora is no stranger to the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC), as he is the all-time leading goal scorer at Friends University with 56 goals. While playing for the Falcons, he was named a two-time NAIA All-American. In 2020 he helped capture the KCAC conference championship for the Falcons.
Bethel is coming off a 9-8-3 overall record and a fourth-place finish in the conference, the best finish in 20-plus years. The Threshers are looking forward to keeping momentum going this season, while building off of last year.
During this year's media day, Zamora was asked about key players for this year. He stated, “Gabriel Okita is a dynamic player who can take you on 1v1, Aden Braggs, who is a very technical player, and Calvin Bell, a dynamic player to keep the game flowing.”
Bethel also adds some transfers with great experiences in their previous junior colleges. Seif Ghodhbani originates from El Mourouj 1, Tunisia. Ghodhbani is a transfer from Crowder College, where he played in 35 games across two years. The second transfer is from Bicester, England; Joseph Armand transfers to Bethel from Genesee Community College, where he played 29 games and helped lead his team to the national championship game.
Under this new era, Zamora was asked what he wanted the team culture to be. “I want my team to have standard, in games and practice. I want my players to be creative and to have a high standard in everything they do.” Adding to this new culture, Zamora adds to his staff in Bethel alumnus and local trainer Jose Rojas. Coach Rojas comes back to serve as an assistant coach three years later after graduating from Bethel.
Bethel was picked sixth in the preseason poll. When asking Zamora his thoughts, he said, “We are a top three team in the conference.” The Threshers open up the season on Aug. 26, against Oklahoma Panhandle State University at Thresher Stadium. Kick-off is slated for 5:00 P.M.