Matt Baldridge will enter his third year as an assistant coach for the Skyhawks in 2026. A former five-year forward under head coach David Oberholtzer from 2019-23 and a 2023 RMAC Regular Season Champion, Baldridge brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding of Oberholtzer’s approach on the pitch.
In 2025, Baldridge assisted the Skyhawks in producing six All-RMAC talents, including freshman phenom Alessio Andreottola who became the second player in the league’s history to be named the Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the same season en route to a pair of Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association and United Soccer Coaches All-South Central Region First-Team Selections and the elite title of First-Team All-American by the D2CCA. Freshman forward Lorenz Guintini added 13 goals and four assists, including five game-winning goals, for 30 total points. Senior Casey Stracher, a defender who often found himself in the attack, also supplied four goals and two assists for 10 points. The duo was both named to the D2CCA All-American Third Team. Rounding out the squad were midfielders Francisco Pinto and Raul Baptista Filipe, who both picked up All-RMAC Honorable Mention.
Fort Lewis as a team ranked third in shots per game (17.65), fifth in goals per game (2.65), fifth in points per game (7.76), eighth in assists per game (2.47), and eighth in shots on-goal per game (7.65) among 193 teams across NCAA Division II.
Baldridge got his coaching start in 2024, assisting an elite Fort Lewis squad that saw the program return to the NCAA National Quarterfinals. Finishing the season at No. 6 on the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll, and backed by D2CCA Third-Team All-American David Citron and RMAC Freshman of the Year Fabrizio Aguilera, the Skyhawks amassed a 14-4-6 overall record with a 7-2-1 mark in league play. The Skyhawks finished the regular season in third place before making a run to the RMAC Tournament Title match. Fort Lewis earned the sixth seed in the region for the NCAA Tournament and defeated No. 3 UCCS (Nov. 24) and (RV) Midwestern State (Dec. 1) on the road to reach the quarterfinals.
The Skyhawks were one of the best defensive teams in the country in 2024, boasting the sixth-most shutouts (11) and 25th-lowest team goals-against average (0.991). Sophomore and Honorable Mention All-RMAC selection Lucas Martin stood between the posts and boasted the second-best save percentage (84.4%), made the fifth-most saves (92), and tied for the fourth-most shutouts (10) in Division II. Junior David Citron had an incredible year on the offensive end for Fort Lewis, earning a plethora of all-conference and all-region honors, culminating in being named a College Sports Communicators First-Team Academic All-American and Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association Third-Team All-American. In addition, seniors Tomas Duenes, Gabriel Legendre, Jakob Larson, and junior Casey Stracher earned nods to the D2CCA and USC All-South Central Region Teams. All six Skyhawks were tabbed with All-RMAC honors, while freshman Fabrizio Aguilera was named the RMAC Freshman of the Year, giving Fort Lewis the award in back-to-back seasons.
As a player, Baldridge registered 15 starts across his 49 career games and 2,259 minutes on the pitch for the Skyhawks. At forward, Baldridge supplied five career goals and two career assists on 25 total shots, 11 of which were placed on-goal. Baldridge was a 2019 graduate of Hellgate High School in Missoula, Montana.
