CANYON, Texas — Three years ago, St. Edward's men's soccer left Canyon with its first victory since the program's return. On Wednesday, the Hilltoppers left with another chapter still to play.
BARTEK ZABEK scored a first-half hat trick, including two goals 13 seconds apart, as St. Edward's defeated West Texas A&M 4-2 at The Pitch at Buffalo Sports Park to secure a Lone Star Conference Tournament berth.
Zabek, who scored twice in the program's breakthrough victory here in 2023, delivered three more in the regular-season finale. SHUNJI WATANABE added a goal, giving the Hilltoppers four before halftime and enough separation to withstand the Buffaloes' second-half push.
St. Edward's finished the regular season 5-7-4 overall and 4-4-2 in conference play, collecting 14 points after closing with consecutive victories over DBU and West Texas A&M.
After rallying from a two-goal deficit on Senior Day, the Hilltoppers took control early Wednesday. Standing over a free kick just outside the penalty area, Zabek followed a teammate's decoy run across the ball and drove a low shot past the defensive wall and beyond diving goalkeeper Luke Southerington for a 1-0 lead at 6:14.
KALEO PEREZ-FRANCIS preserved the advantage with a save against Delahmu Reeves in the 14th minute, and St. Edward's continued finding ways through at the other end.
The second goal came from the Hilltoppers' persistence after a corner. West Texas A&M pushed the initial service away from the crowded goalmouth, but St. Edward's recovered possession outside the box and worked the ball back into the middle. JAKE CICCARELLO found Watanabe near the top of the penalty area, where the senior slipped between converging defenders and drove a low shot past Southerington at 23:14.
Seven minutes later, Zabek turned a comfortable lead into a commanding one.
IZAIAH GARZA helped carry the attack forward from the right flank before feeding Zabek on the left side of the advancing Hilltopper front. Zabek drove toward the penalty area, keeping the ball beyond a defender's attempted sliding challenge before sending a low finish past Southerington at 30:21.
West Texas A&M barely had time to restart before Zabek was through again.
FILIP ADAMSKI lofted a pass behind the Buffaloes' back line, and Zabek accelerated between defenders to chase it into the penalty area. With Southerington coming off his line and defenders closing from behind, Zabek reached the ball and nudged his finish past the goalkeeper to complete the hat trick at 30:34.
In 13 seconds, the Hilltoppers had doubled their lead. Before 31 minutes had elapsed, Zabek had scored three times.
St. Edward's put five of its nine first-half attempts on frame while limiting West Texas A&M to one shot on goal before the break. Zabek finished the night with eight goals this season, converting all three of his attempts on target.
The Buffaloes responded with 14 shots in the second half, getting on the scoreboard at 59:03 when Desire Essis finished off an assist from Myles Taylor. Jonathan Atzmon added another at 81:03, assisted by Ido Einstein, to cut the Hilltoppers' lead to two.
Perez-Francis helped close the door, making two saves in the final two minutes to finish with four. West Texas A&M held a 22-17 advantage in shots, but St. Edward's generated a 7-6 edge in attempts on target.
Zabek led the Hilltoppers with five shots, while ISAAC GUAJARDO added four off the bench. Garza, Ciccarello, and Adamski each contributed an assist.
For the Hilltoppers who helped restart the program, Canyon once marked the end of a season and the beginning of something to build. This time, their return ensured the season would continue.
