Box Score HOUSTON - Tiger Men's Soccer advances to the SCAC Championship with a 3-0 win over Southwestern on Friday night.
 
The Rundown
 
The Tigers were ready to show why they're a top-ranked offense in the country when just two minutes into the match Louis Instrall (London, England / Hampton School) lined up for a free kick. Being about 35 yards out, Instrall would boot the ball towards the goal. As the ball was in the air, a Southwestern defender would try to redirect the ball, but Instrall's shot was too heavy and the defender would ricochet the sphere into his net and give the Tigers the 1-0 lead. If it wasn't just six minutes later, Hunter Cain (Katy, Texas / Cinco Ranch) would force a Pirate defender to clear the ball and give the Tigers the first corner kick of the night. The Tigers would send Instrall and his rocket leg to the corner to give the Tigers a shot to take a commanding lead. Although the Tigers stacked the box, Instrall would pull a trick out of his hat. Instrall would take homage to the World Series-winning Texas Rangers and kick a slider toward the goal. Hooking the ball, Instrall would sneak the shot into the top right corner of the goal and score. The Tigers would take a 2-0 lead. The Tigers would cool off for the rest of the second half, but take a dominant 2-0 score into the half.
 
The second half opened up and both teams struggled early to get a clear look at the goal. That was, however, until Pieter Blank (The Hague, The Netherlands / Dalton Voorburg) sent a free kick from half field that would hit off the hands of the Pirate goalkeeper right towards the right foot of Braden Shuey (Frisco, Texas / Wakeland). If Shuey was playing rock-paper-scissors, he chose scissors as he scissor-kicked his shot past five Pirate defenders to find the back of the net. The Tigers would extend their lead to 3-0 with 35 minutes left in the match. With a comfortable lead, the Tigers sat back and played possession soccer. The Tigers controlled the ball and played lockdown defense, only allowing a season-low one shot on goal for the match. As the buzzer sounded, it would be a 3-0 Tiger win, advancing them to the championship. 
 
Looking Ahead - SCAC Championship
The Tigers will match up with the Celts of St. Thomas for a rematch of the 2022 SCAC Championship match on Sunday, November 6th at 2:00 PM.