Tiger Men's Soccer dribbles into Houston in hopes of securing a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship this weekend.
 
The Tigers (11-2-2, 6-2 SCAC) won their final two games of the season with a 4-2 victory over the University of St. Thomas and a 6-1 win over Centenary College. The Tiger win over the Celts was key in securing their spot in the SCAC Men's Soccer Tournament and the win against Centenary was the cherry on top. Hunter Cain (Katy, Texas / Cinco Ranch) and Rylee Hawes (San Antonio, Texas / John Marshall) each scored a goal on the weekend. Senior Jack Downes (Sheffield, England / Queen Ethelburgas) added two goals to his season total while Chen Adjei (Euless, Texas / Trinity) and Michael Meese (Williamsburg, Virginia /  Jamestown) both collected three goals in two matches. The Tigers now rank 13th nationally in scoring offense (3.20), 18th in assists per game (2.40), and 14th in shots on goal per game (9.27).
 
United Soccer Coaches Rankings
 
The United Soccer Coaches have ranked the Tigers as the 3rd team in Region X. Pacific Lutheran sits in the top spot. SCAC rival Colorado College ranks second while Southwestern, Texas Lutheran, and St. Thomas are 4th, 5th, and 6th.
 
SCAC Player of the Week - Michael Meese, Offensive
 
For the first time in his career, junior Michael Meese has been selected as the SCAC Offensive Player of the Week for week nine. Meese is the only Tiger this season to collect the award.
 
 Meese led Trinity's men's soccer team to a pair of victories to close out the regular season over the weekend, earning critical points in the standings to qualify for the SCAC Tournament. Meese had a weekend hat trick along with an assist in the two games. Meese notched a pair of goals against the Celts on Friday. Meese then assisted on the game-winner in the 62nd minute of play. He also added a second-half goal against Centenary to close out the season.
 
Preview - SCAC Tournament
 
The Tigers will play in the tournament as the second-ranked seed and will compete in the semifinal against the Pirates of Southwestern on Friday, November 3rd at 7:30 PM. If the Tigers were to win the match, they would play against the winner of the Colorado College/St. Thomas match for the championship. 
 
On the Southwestern Pirates: The Pirates come into the tournament as the third seed after having a 10-2-3 (6-2 SCAC) record in the 2023 regular season. The Pirates tacked off their season with a 2-1 victory over Texas Lutheran. The Tigers defeated the Pirates by a score of 4-0 in their most recent match back in September. Since that loss, the Pirates have gone 6-1 in their next seven games. The Tigers will look to stop defender Raghav Sharma, the leading goal scorer for the Pirates. The last time that the Tigers faced off against the Pirates in the SCAC Tournament was in 2018. The two teams would finish in a 1-1 draw, but the Tigers would take the title with a 4-2 advantage in the shootout. 
 
Keys To The Game
 
Ball Control: During the last match, the ball control was almost split evenly between the two squads, 52-48 in favor of the Tigers. Even with the split time, the Tigers won the game 4-0. Look for the Tigers to take more control of the ball to have more efficient offensive possessions.
 
Looking Ahead - NCAA Playoffs
 
If the Tigers were to take home the SCAC Title, they would collect an automatic bid to the NCAA III Playoffs on November 11th and 12th.