CANYON, Texas – West Texas A&M heads to the NCAA postseason tournament for the seventh time in program history as the No. 17 Buffs face the No. 10 Azusa Pacific Cougars on Saturday, Nov. 20.  Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT at the Cougar Soccer Complex in Azusa, Calif. 
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Live stats and stream will be available for tomorrow's match provided by the APU athletic communications staff.  Tickets for the match can be bought at the gate prior to kickoff.  Adults can purchase tickets for $12 while seniors can purchase for $7 and students $5.  
 
SERIES HISTORY
Though this will be the first time the two programs will meet on the pitch, it's not the first time WT has played at the Cougar Soccer Complex.  The Buffs played a pair of matches in California during the 2018 postseason. 
 
SUPER-REGION 4
Cal State-Los Angeles earned the No. 1 seed in the Super-Region 4 followed by Midwestern State in second with each hosting a side of the bracket.  Azusa Pacific is the third seed in the regional followed by Colorado Mesa, Colorado School of Mines, West Texas A&M, Cal Poly Pomona, CSU-Pueblo, Seattle Pacific and Biola. 
 
SCOUTING AZUSA PACIFIC
The No. 10 Cougars head to their third consecutive NCAA tournament after claiming the PacWest Championship title while also hosting a playoff game for the third year.  APU enters Saturday's match 12-2-2 (8-1-1 PacWest) under 13^th year head coach Dave Blomquist who posts a 139-55-13 career record.
 
APU averages 2.06 goals per match led by David Kwinn with a team-high seven and four game-winners.  Gregorie Diep and James Ndubueze have each collected six goals this season.  
 
Brendan Fix has appeared in 10 matches between the post for the Cougars for 6-2-2 overall record, including four shutouts with a .714 save-percentage.  Leo Moreno has also earned six wins for APU with a team-high .947 save percentage with five shutouts. 
 
BUFFS IN THE POSTSEASON
Saturday's match marks WT's seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament since its first run in 1997.  In 2018, the Buffs claimed their first South Central Regional Championship with a 1-0 victory over Colorado Mesa.  Former Buff Callum Challinor connected with the golden goal in the 93^rd-minute to send WT to the NCAA Quarterfinals.
 
A LOOK AT THE HERD
The Buffs have outscored opponents 42-32, averaging 2.47 goals per match on 16.1 shots including a .440 shot-on-goal percentage.  Giancarlo Saldana has scored a team-high nine goals followed by Stefan Andjelic with eight and Denis Herrera with six while Rotem Weiss and Ben Siri pace the offense with six assists each.  WT's defense has limited opponents to 10.2 shots per match with goalkeeper Tom Miles recording 12 victories with 38 saves for a .603 save-percentage. 
 
LAST TIME OUT
WT fell in the Lone Star Conference semifinals last weekend to third-seeded Lubbock Christian.  The Chaps won 3-0 to advance to the conference championship match.  LCU scored early in the 4^th-minute before doubling the score to lead at the half.  The Buffs outshot LCU 13-8, landing five shots on target. 
 
BUTCH LAUFFER
Butch Lauffer is in his 31st season as head men's soccer coach at West Texas A&M University.  The Buffs match against UT Permian Basin marked Lauffer's 550^th-career victory at WT.  As the longest tenured head coach in WT history, Lauffer has coached the men to 29 consecutive non-losing seasons and the women to 12-plus victories in 12 seasons. Lauffer has recorded a 363-160-39 (.678) record at the helm of the Buffs with a 552-227-56 (.693) overall record at WT.
 
USC DIVISION II TOP-25
West Texas A&M men's soccer ranked 17^th in the final regular season United Soccer Coaches Division II Top-25 Poll. Young Harris ranked first in the national standings at 15-0-1 followed by Palm Beach Atlantic, Davis & Elkins, Franklin Pierce, and Charleston.