The Ottawa men's soccer team begins their 2023 campaign by taking on two top ten opponents, #7 Missouri Valley on Wednesday and #6 Mid-America Christian on Saturday. James Cottage is at the helm for his second season at Ottawa, going 11-4-5 in his first season with the Braves.
 
The Braves have many returners, including KCAC Freshman of the Year Slobodan Novicevic as well as KCAC First-Teamer Bence Molnar and KCAC Second-Teamers Jack Hatswell and Filippo Della Pasqua.
 
This is the opening game of the season for Ottawa, while Mid-America Christian got their season started with a 1-0 win over (RV) LSU-Shreveport on Thursday. Ranked sixth in the opening NAIA Top 25, the Evangels went 19-2-2 last season with a Sooner Athletic Conference title and NAIA National Tournament appearance. Mid-America has a new head coach this year, with Neil Hilton being promoted after two years as an assistant coach for the Evangels.