Trinity Men's Soccer (4-2-3) hits the road on Tuesday to open SAA conference play at 11th-ranked Southwestern University (8-1) in Georgetown, Texas, before hitting the road for Sunday's matchup against Centre College (2-6-2) in Danville, Kentucky.

Last weekend, the Trinity Tigers stayed unbeaten at home, rallying from a two-goal deficit to earn a draw before turning in their most complete performance of the season. On Friday, Trinity battled back for a 3-3 draw with UC Santa Cruz at Paul McGinlay Field, then followed it up Sunday with a 7-0 rout of Concordia, improving to 4-2-3 on the season.
Against UC Santa Cruz, Milo Williams (Austin, Texas / University of Texas HS) gave Trinity an early lead in the 14th minute, finishing a Leo Jauregui (San Antonio, Texas / Johnson) cutback for the first goal of his Trinity career. The Banana Slugs answered with two first-half goals on the counter and made it 3-1 in the 61st minute, but the Tigers responded quickly. Joey Perryman (Flower Mound, Texas / Flower Mound) pounced on a loose ball to cut the deficit minutes later, then slipped Luke Mayfield (Dallas, Texas / JJ Pearce) in behind in the 72nd minute, and Mayfield's low cross forced an own goal to level the match. Trinity pressed for a winner over the final 20 minutes but couldn't find one, as UCSC finished with a 12-9 shot edge and Jayden Schell (Dallas, Texas / Plano) made two saves.

Two days later against Concordia, Trinity took control after a cagey opening 20 minutes. Hodge MacDonald (Hertford, England / Haileybury) opened the scoring in the 25th minute, and goals from Finnegan Saunders (Albuquerque, New Mexico / Sandia Prep), Gabriel Romanenko (Los Angeles, California / Geffen Academy) and Perryman made it 4-0 at the break. Williams added his second goal of the weekend in the 62nd minute, and Eduardo Parra (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma / Casady School) scored twice in four minutes to bring his team-leading total to five. Trinity finished with a 26-0 shot advantage, while the quartet of Brandon Gongora (San Antonio, Texas / Madison), Jack Madsen (Highland Park, Texas / Highland Park), Luis Yunta (Madrid, Spain / Vermont Academy) and Austin Quitta (San Antonio, Texas / Brennan) combined for the shutout.

Preview

The Trinity Tigers will kick off their week of SAA play on Tuesday, October 6th, at 7:30 p.m. as they face off against the 11th-ranked Southwestern University Pirates in Georgetown, TX, before travelling to Danville, KY to matchup against the Centre College Colonels, on Sunday, October 11th, at 1:30 p.m. (ET)

On the Southwestern University Pirates: The Pirates are a familiar opponent for the Tigers. The two programs have met 50 times and have played every year since their first matchup in 1993, a 10-0 Trinity win at home. The series has been largely one-sided, with Trinity claiming 43 victories, including last season's 2-1 win that crowned the Tigers 2025 SAA regular-season champions. Trinity has lost to the Pirates only once and is unbeaten in the last 22 meetings, so the Tigers will be looking to extend that streak to 23 and avoid their first loss in the series since 2013.

The 2025 meeting between the Tigers and Pirates ended in a 2-1 Trinity comeback win that clinched the SAA regular-season championship, as the No. 5 nationally ranked Tigers needed all three points to leapfrog Southwestern for the top spot at Paul McGinlay Field. The Pirates, who only needed a draw to claim the title, struck first in the 31st minute when Sartorio finished from close range against the run of play. Trinity answered before the break, as Max Salinas (Austin, Texas / Austin) found the now graduated Jason Sukow (Jacksonville Beach, Florida / Reagan) in behind, and Sukow squared it for Saunders, who slotted it through the keeper's legs for his first collegiate goal. The Tigers pinned Southwestern back after halftime, and the winner came in the 65th minute when the graduated Adam Knutson (Dripping Springs, Texas / Dripping Springs) was brought down in the box and the graduated Samuel Theiss (Boerne, Texas / Boerne) converted from the spot. From there, Schell made seven saves, several in the dying minutes, to seal a victory that capped an unbeaten 7-0-0 conference campaign and pushed Trinity to 15-1-0 on the season.

Southwestern posted an impressive 15-2-3 record last season, going 6-1 in SAA play before making a deep run in the SAA Tournament before falling 2-1 in the final to Berry College, the same side that eliminated Trinity on penalties in the semifinals. Though the Pirates have since lost several key contributors, including their 2025 United Soccer Coaches Third Team All-American and three of their four 2025 All-SAA First Team selections, the squad remains formidable, returning eight of 11 starters and five 2025 All-SAA selections.

This fall, the Pirates have picked up right where they left off. At 8-1 and ranked 11th nationally, their lone loss came against East Texas Baptist on opening weekend. Since then, Southwestern has won seven straight, scoring 15 goals and conceding just one, highlighted by a 3-1 win over 14th-ranked Lynchburg. Their non-conference slate also included a 2-0 win over Texas Lutheran, a 1-0 win over La Verne and a 1-0 win over Concordia, three teams Trinity beat 4-1, tied 1-1 and beat 7-0, respectively. With the Pirates unbeaten at home this season and in strong form, Trinity will be walking into the lion's den against a side eager to finally get one over on the Tigers.

Players to watch: Sophomore forward Grey Richards leads the Pirates' attack with five goals and two assists. Senior defender Cooper Pero, a 2025 All-SAA First Team selection, has chipped in four goals from the back. Junior midfielder Daniel Wasserman, a 2025 All-SAA Second Team pick, has started every match and tallied two goals and an assist, while junior midfielder Ross Anderson, a 2025 All-SAA Honorable Mention, has also started every match and leads the team with five assists.

On the Centre College Colonels: The Colonels are a relatively familiar opponent for the Tigers, with the two programs having met 23 times. Their first matchup came in 1991, a 3-2 Trinity loss, but the series has since tilted heavily in the Tigers' favor, with Trinity claiming 16 victories, including last season's 5-0 home win, the only meeting between the two in the last 15 years. Trinity has lost to Centre just twice since 1996 and will be looking to avoid its first loss in the series since 2011.

The 2025 meeting between the Tigers and Colonels ended in a 5-0 Trinity rout, as the No. 6 nationally ranked Tigers controlled the match from the opening whistle at Paul McGinlay Field. Senior captain Theiss opened the scoring in the 13th minute, striking home a half volley off a rebound for his ninth goal of the season, and Luke Chandler (Glasgow, Scotland / Balfron) doubled the lead seven minutes later, heading in an Alex Baltov (Shreveport, La. / Caddo Parish Magnet) corner at the back post. Zachary Anderson (Davis, Calif. / Davis) made it 3-0 in the 25th minute, finishing a slick move down the right involving Knutson and Theiss. After the break, Baltov found Mayfield at the back post for a headed fourth in the 52nd minute, before Parra curled one into the top corner with the outside of his boot moments after coming on in the 76th. From there, Gongora and Schell combined for the clean sheet as Trinity outshot Centre 15-1, moving to 10-0-1 on the season and 3-0-0 in SAA play.

Centre endured a difficult 2025 campaign, finishing 3-9-6 overall and 1-4-2 in SAA play, before making a surprise run to the SAA Tournament semifinals, where they fell 3-1 to Southwestern. Despite the disappointing season, the Colonels retained most of their squad. Their only notable departure was 2025 co-captain and All-SAA Second Team selection Deem-Ranzetta, while both of their other 2025 All-SAA honorees return.

So far, this fall has looked much the same for the Colonels. With just two wins in 10 matches and a four-game winless streak, Centre is not entering this matchup in the best of form. The Colonels opened SAA play with a 3-1 loss to Berry and a 1-0 loss to Oglethorpe, and they will host 11th-ranked Southwestern before facing the Tigers, hoping to avoid an 0-3 start in conference play.

Players to watch: Junior midfielder Tyler Smith leads the Colonels with four goals. Junior defender Ethan Cajuste, a 2025 All-SAA Honorable Mention, has started every match and added an assist, while junior midfielder Ryan O'Hara, also a 2025 All-SAA Honorable Mention, has contributed two goals and two assists.

Looking Ahead

Trinity Men's Soccer will return home on Friday, October 16th, at 7:30 p.m. to match up against Berry College, before facing off against Oglethorpe University on Sunday, October 18th at 1:30 p.m.