CANYON, Texas – The West Texas A&M men's soccer team opens the 2017 home slate with an enormous Heartland Conference matchup against rival No. 8 Midwestern State Thursday evening at 7 p.m. at The Pitch. The Buffs are 2-1, while Midwestern State is 4-0. The Buffs then will host Oklahoma Christian Saturday at 12 p.m. at The Pitch.
The game will feature free live stats and audio/video, along with play-by-play from James Hadnot. Fans can access the links for live stats and audio/video on the men's soccer schedule page at www.gobuffsgo.com. Saturday's game will only have live stats, no audio/video streaming.
WT is coming off a disappointing 2-1 loss at Northeastern State as the RiverHawks scored a goal with one second left in the second half, breaking a 1-1 tie. WT dominated the game, outshooting NSU 20-5 and 12-3 in shots on goal, but was unable to come up with a second score.
The RiverHawks scored the first goal 9:37 in to the game and led 1-0 at halftime. WT junior Callum Challinor scored his team-leading third goal of the season in the 53rd minute to tie the game, where remained until the closing seconds. WT freshman goalkeeper Alexander Vencel had one save and two goals allowed in 90 minutes as he fell to 2-1 on the year.
For the season, WT is led by Challinor, who has 12 shots with eight on frame and one game winner. Junior Julio Vargas leads the team with two assists and has one game winning goal. He has 13 shots with four on goal. Junior Ivan Ulloa has one goal on a penalty kick, with seven shots and three on goal.
WT has scored nine goals in three games and allowed four goals. Vencel has played all 270 minutes, allowing four goals with 11 saves and a 2-1 record with one shutout and faced 28 shots. WT has outshot the opposition 61-28 and 32-15 in shots on goal for a .148 shooting percentage and a .525 percentage on frame. The Buffs have recorded 32 corner kicks compared to the opposition with 10.
Nationally speaking, WT ranks second in the Heartland Conference and 38th nationally in points per game at 6.67 as Midwestern State leads the conference at 7.00 per game. The Buffs are 16th nationally in scoring offense to lead the league at 3.00 goals per game and seventh in shots per game (20.33) and fifth in shots on goal per game (10.67) to lead the conference. The nine goals by WT ranks second in the conference behind 10 from Midwestern State and the Buffs rank 32nd nationally, while the 20 points is fourth in the league. MSU leads the league with 28 points.
Individually, Vargas is tied for the league-lead in assists per game at 0.67 ranking 43 nationally, while Challinor is second in the LSC and 22nd nationally in goals per game at 1.00. He also ranks third in the league in points per game at 2.00, which is good for 47th nationally. Vargas is 42nd nationally and tied for league-lead in assists with two, while Challinor's three goals ranks him 39th nationally and second in the league.
Midwestern State enters with a 4-0 record and eighth in the latest United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Men's Top 25. The Mustangs are coming off a 4-1 win over Fort Hays State and a 1-0 win on a late penalty kick at Northeastern State. The Mustangs posted shutouts their first three games, and have outscored the opposition 10-1 for the season. MSU is 10 of 52 in shots (.192) and 28 of 52 in shots on goal (.538).
Individually for the Mustangs Scott Doney leads the team with three goals and two game winners. He has 13 shots with nine on frame, while Koby Sapon-Amoah is second in scoring with four points and two goals. Pierre Bocquet leads the team with two assists on the year. In goal, MSU has played two keepers as Ricard Goss is 3-0 with a 0.41 goals against average, allowing one goal with 12 saves in 220:35 minutes. Taylor Lampe also has seen action in 139:25 minutes with three saves and a 1-0 record.
The Buffs are 17-28-3 all-time against Midwestern State. MSU has won the last eight in the series with four of those wins coming in overtime. WT's last win came on Oct. 21, 2012 in a 2-1 win in overtime at The Pitch.
Oklahoma Christian is 2-1 on the year and will play at Eastern New Mexico on Thursday before heading to Canyon for Saturday's matchup. The Eagles dropped a 2-1 decision at home to Oklahoma Baptist after wins over Harding and Southern Nazarene the first week of the season.
The Eagles have scored seven goals on the year and allowed four. The team has 56 shots (.125) and 25 on frame (.446), while recording six assists. Jai van der Heijden and Chandler Parris lead the team with two goals each as Parrish has a team-high eight shots with four on goal. Between the pipes, Gianluca Marchetti has played and started all 270 minutes, allowing four goals (1.33 GAA), with 17 saves and a 2-1 record with one shutout.
The Buffs are 7-0 all-time against Oklahoma Christian, including a 3-0 win on the road last season. The Buffs are 4-0 against OC in Canyon and 2-0 in Oklahoma City. Last season's win was the fourth shutout for WT in the series.
