Trinity Men's Soccer kicks their 2024 season into action.
Last Season
The Tigers concluded their season with a 12-3-4 record, including a 6-2 mark in the SCAC. Offensively, they excelled, scoring 54 goals and averaging 2.84 goals per game, ranking in the top 30 nationally. Entering the SCAC tournament as the second seed, Trinity defeated Southwestern to reach the championship round but lost to St. Thomas in a penalty kick shootout. Despite this, the Tigers earned an At-Large bid to the NCAA tournament, where they won a thrilling penalty shootout 9-8 against UT-Dallas. Twelve Tigers were named to the All-SCAC list, and
Chen Adjei (Euless, Texas / Trinity) was honored as SCAC Offensive Player of the Year. Adjei, along with
Pieter Blank (The Hague, The Netherlands / Dalton Voorburg),
Louis Instrall (London, England / Hampton School), and
Michael Meese (Williamsburg, Virginia / Jamestown), was selected for the 2023 United Soccer Coaches All-Region Teams. Additionally, Adjei received Second Team All-American honors.
This Season
The Tigers will be on the pitch for the first time during the 2024 season at home against Hendrix College and Methodist University on August 30th and September 1st. They will be back at Paul McGinlay Field on September 6th and 8th against Whitworth University and Berry College. SCAC play will open on September 28th against Schreiner and then the Tigers will play against new conference foes McMurry and Concordia the following weekend. Trinity will close out their regular season schedule against University of the Ozarks on November 1st and Centenary College on November 3rd.
Trinity will return some key pieces from each part of the field. Defensively,
JonConnor Rule (San Antonio, Texas / Johnson) will head up the back line. Instrall and
Adam Knutson (Dripping Springs, Texas / Dripping Springs) will be in the mid-field while
Will Powell (Bexley, Kent / Beth Grammar School) and
Hunter Cain (Katy, Texas / Cinco Ranch) will look to make more big impacts this season.
United Soccer Coaches & SCAC Poll
In the nationally poll by United Soccer Coaches, the Tigers have received votes. St. Olaf occupies the top spot and SCAC rival Colorado College is ranked 6th nationally. In the conference poll, the Tigers were picked to finish second, receiving two first-place votes for a total of 130 points. Colorado College had six first-place votes and totaled 134 points to be picked as the preseason favorite to win the conference title.
Preview - Opening Weekend
Trinity will open their 2024 schedule on Friday, August 30th against Hendrix College at 7:30 PM. After a day break, they will be back to play against Methodist University on Sunday, September 1st at 8:00 PM.
On the Hendrix College Warriors: Hendrix had a challenging 2023 season, finishing with a 5-8-2 overall record. However, the Warriors had success against SCAC schools last year, going 2-0-1 by defeating the University of Dallas 5-0 and Austin College 2-1, and drawing 3-3 with McMurry. In conference play, Hendrix struggled with a 2-4-1 record, being outscored 5-9 and suffering three shutouts. This season, the Warriors will return their top two goal scorers from last year, Will Keaton and Austin Pettigrew. In their last matchup in 2011, Trinity defeated Hendrix 3-2. Historically, the Tigers are undefeated against the Warriors with a 20-0 record.
On the Methodist University Monarchs: The Monarchs wrapped up their season with a 10-4-2 overall record and a spot in the USA South Tournament. Offensively, Methodist was steady, averaging two goals per game and ranking in the top 50 nationally for shot accuracy at 0.512. Their goals were well-distributed, with assists on 24 of their 32 total goals. This season, Methodist will return midfielder Steven Floyd and forward Casey Atwell, who each scored five goals last year. The only previous matchup between the Tigers and Monarchs occurred in 2007, with Trinity winning decisively 6-1.
Up Next
Trinity will host Whitworth University on September 6th and Berry College on September 8th.
