No. 19 Tiger Men's Soccer continues into their third week of Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) play after two dominant wins over the University of Dallas and Austin College.
The Tigers (8-1-2) took a 3-0 win over the University of Dallas and a 4-0 win over Austin College. In their match against the University of Dallas,
Joseph Kuri (San Antonio, Texas / TMI Episcopal) and
Braden Shuey (Frisco, Texas / Wakeland) scored their first goals of the season and senior
Pieter Blank (The Hague, The Netherlands / Dalton Voorburg) found the back of the net for his second goal of the season. In their dominant 4-0 win over Austin College, sophomore
Luke Chandler (Glasgow, Scotland / Balfron) and senior
Jack Downes (Sheffield, England / Queen Ethelburgas) put the ball in goal for the first time this season. Also,
Michael Meese (Williamsburg, Virginia / Jamestown) and
Hunter Cain (Katy, Texas / Cinco Ranch) added goals to their seasons. With their two wins, the Tigers now sit tied for first place in the SCAC standings with Texas Lutheran and Southwestern.
Offensively, the Tigers are immaculate. The Tigers rank in the top 25 nationally in scoring offense (3.00) and total assists (27). Senior
Chen Adjei (Euless, Texas / Trinity) is ranked nationally for total assists as an individual (5). In their two matches, the Tigers produced seven different goal scorers.
United Soccer Coaches Rankings - Tigers Jump to 19
With the impressive wins over the weekend, the United Soccer Coaches have bumped up the Tigers to the number 19 spot nationally. This is a six-spot jump after last week's ranking of 25. The top two spots remain the same, and SCAC rival Texas Lutheran sits in the 16 spot and Colorado College joins the rankings at 22.
SCAC Player of the Week - Pieter Blank, Defensive
Senior
Pieter Blank has been selected as the SCAC Defensive Player of the Week. Blank is the first Tiger to win the award this season.
Blank led 19th-ranked Trinity to a pair of SCAC shutout victories at home last weekend. Blank led the Tiger defense that held the two teams to two total shots in the two games. Led by Blank, Trinity kept Dallas to just two shots, and he also added a goal to his tally. On Sunday, Blank and the Tigers limited Austin to zero shots.
Weekend Preview - No. 19 Tigers vs Mountaineers
The Tigers will take a short trip to Kerrville, Texas to play against the Schreiner Mountaineers on Saturday, October 14th at 1:00 PM.
On the Schreiner Mountaineers: The Mountaineers hold a 4-6-2 (0-3-1 SCAC) record in 2023 so far. The Mountaineers got off to a hot start, going 3-1-1 in their first five games, but have since gone 1-5-1 in their last seven. The Mountaineers have dropped conference matches against Texas Lutheran, Southwestern, and Austin College. They have drawn a 1-1 tie with the University of Dallas. The Tiger defense will turn their heads to stopping sophomore Travis Matthews, the leading goal scorer for the Mountaineers. The Tigers hold an 18-0 record against the Mountaineers since 2010, taking last year's matchup in an 8-0 blowout.
Looking Ahead - Big Cat Matchup
After the conclusion of their match against Schreiner, the Tigers will travel to Colorado to play the 22nd-ranked Colorado College Tigers on Friday, October 20th.
