ROLLA, Mo. – Ask any coach two intangibles it would like to see on its team heading into a season, two of the answers one is sure to get are that of talent and experience.

For Missouri S&T's men's soccer team, the 2015 roster appears to have both of those elements – a veteran squad that has enough talent in place to challenge for a top spot in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings.

"Talent means a lot, but in college athletics, experience maybe means more," said Miner head coach Gabe Hall, who is entering his third year at the helm of the team.  "We've had talented players in the past, but we're not just talking about the experience factor from being in the program, but knowing how to survive through the grind of a GLVC season.

"I love working with this group, as it has really bought into doing their part for the team and wanting others to be successful.  It is very unselfish in that way," Hall added.

The Miners will put that roster to the test right out of the gate with three challenging contests to open the schedule, starting Friday when they face 14^th-ranked Fort Hays State in Tahlequah, Okla.  S&T will take on No. 21-ranked Northeastern State Sunday and opens its GLVC schedule at Rockhurst Sept. 11 before its first home contest two days later against William Jewell.

Last season, the Miners used a strong defensive run late in the year to earn a spot in the conference tournament, winning five of six in one stretch in October and allowing no more than one goal in each of its last nine games – and S&T returns the entire starting lineup it employed for those nine outings.

The goalkeeper throughout that stretch, James Holloway (Cape Girardeau, Mo./Notre Dame Regional), returns after posting a 1.05 goals against average and seven shutouts a year ago.  He will be challenged for the starting role by newcomer Nick Posey (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) and returners Mason Fannin (Kansas City, Mo./Park Hill) and Corey Jolitz (Sussex, Wis./Marquette University HS).

"Nick has definitely created competition for James," Hall said.  "But on the flip side, to James' credit, he worked hard while he was away (doing a co-op in the spring) and he hasn't missed a beat.  Mason also worked hard and had a good spring and he's not far off from the other two and the same goes for Corey.

"With our goalkeepers, we went from being a little unsure to very confident in what we have with all four of them," Hall added.

The line of defense in front of whoever is playing in goal is also intact from a year ago with all four starters back.  The Miners have two seniors in that group, four-year starter Ryan Lawhead (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) as one of the wing defenders and center back Henning Schone, who moved to the back line at the time when the Miner defense stabilized down the stretch.

"The great thing is when we moved Henning to center back last year, it changed a lot of things for us," Hall said.  "He's played at a high level and can organize things; getting him back is a huge deal.  As a center back pair with Mitch Morris (O'Fallon, Mo./Fort Zumwalt West), whose decision making and ability to help Henning with organizing things, you really can't ask for much more.

"And any time you have a player who is a four-year starter like Ryan, he's only going to get better and better.  Not only is he one of our best players on the field, but gives us a great leadership partner along with Henning," Hall added.  "Plus, I don't know if there's anyone more competitive than Matt Kilwin (St. Louis, Mo./Chaminade College Prep), who has been able to make the adjustment from being just a defender to someone who can contribute on both sides of the ball."

In addition to Lawhead and Schone, the Miners also bring back Morris, who has started as a center back for the last two seasons and Kilwin, who plays the wing defender spot opposite of Lawhead.  In reserve, the Miners have newcomer Garrett Trautman (Amory, Miss./Amory), a transfer from Itawamba Community College.

The Miner midfield contingent is headed by seniors Kramer Hall (Liberty, Mo./Liberty HS) and Maxi Fuchs (Munich, Germany) along with sophomores Martin Klevjer (Trondheim, Norway) and David Murphy (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central).  Along with returner Neil Wiaranowski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North), two newcomers to the mix could make an impact in the lineup -- redshirt freshman Austin Parks (Rolla, Mo./Rolla) and incoming freshman Bryce Johnson (O'Fallon, Mo./Fort Zumwalt South), both of whom scored goals for S&T during the pre-season.

S&T's leading scorer from last season, Eduardo Abichabki (Sao Jose do Rio Pardo, Brazil/Colegio Unigrau), had four goals and five assists and leads the offensive attack along with sophomores Felipe Andrade (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) and Brody Boullion as well as newcomers Unnar Ulfarrson and Adam Forestier (Springfield, Ill./Lutheran HS).

"We have a lot of depth in the midfield, which is great and something I don't think we've had in the past," Hall said.

The Miners were picked to finish in the top half of the GLVC and Hall said that the Miners have to be on top of their game every night if they want to earn a spot at the high end of the standings.

"I always tell people that the GLVC is the best league, top to bottom, in Division II.  We certainly have the most competitive league from one to 16 and there is no easy game in this conference," Hall added.

That said, the hope is that the experience will play a big role to possibly bigger things in the upcoming year.

"We knew we were going to be bringing back a lot of players with experience and ultimately, the goal is to make the NCAA Tournament," Hall said.  "To do that, you have to go out and play and beat NCAA Tournament-caliber teams. All three of our non-conference games are against teams who have been in the tournament in the last two years, so it will be a great test for us."