AUSTIN, Texas — Midterms are still more than a month away at St. Edward's University, but the men's soccer team will face one of the most brutal tests any team in NCAA Division II will encounter all season over the next three games.
St. Edward's hosts No. 14 Western Washington on Wednesday and No. 2 Seattle Pacific on Friday at Lewis-Chen Family Field before opening Lone Star Conference play against No. 6 Midwestern State, the defending national champion.
The Hilltoppers enter the week 1-1-2, highlighted by a commanding 3-0 road victory over then-No. 20 Cal State Dominguez Hills. Reproducing that complete performance at home is the next challenge.
St. Edward's has scored six goals with eight assists, ranking 30th nationally and fourth in the LSC with two assists per match. IZAIAH GARZA leads the conference with 0.75 assists per game and ranks 16th nationally with three total assists, while Tito Don Juan has two. Misa Rangel and BARTEK ZABEK share the team lead with two goals apiece.
Goalkeeping has also provided a foundation for the Hilltoppers. St. Edward's leads the LSC and ranks 23rd nationally with an .821 save percentage. KALEO PEREZ-FRANCIS ranks ninth nationally with a 0.50 goals-against average and 13th with an .857 save percentage, while Edward Alonzi leads Division II with 7.5 saves per match.
Those numbers will be tested against two opponents that rank ahead of St. Edward's nationally in shots and corner kicks per game.
Western Washington arrives with a 4-1-1 record after opening the season with four consecutive victories. The Vikings defeated No. 5 Stanislaus State and No. 4 Point Loma during that run before taking their first loss, then drew 1-1 at Regis.
Edgar Serrano leads a balanced Western Washington attack with three goals. Lunden Fenster and Landon Schulze have two goals and two assists each for a team that has been especially dangerous after halftime.
Wednesday offers St. Edward's a chance to reverse last season's 3-1 loss in Bellingham. The Vikings scored twice in the opening 17 minutes of that match before Rangel connected with FILIP ADAMSKI for the Hilltoppers' goal.
Seattle Pacific enters the week 5-1 after climbing from No. 25 in the preseason poll to No. 2. The GNAC preseason favorite owns victories over No. 5 Stanislaus State and No. 4 Point Loma, with its only loss coming at Regis.
Senior forward Rafael Lucio leads the Falcons with five goals, ranking 10th nationally, and has scored two game-winners. Seattle Pacific has scored 13 times and ranks 40th nationally with 2.17 goals per match, but has also conceded eight goals with a .692 save percentage.
Last season, St. Edward's played Seattle Pacific even for most of the match despite competing with 10 players for the final 35 minutes. The Falcons broke through in the 82nd minute and added a second goal in the closing seconds.
This time, both GNAC powers must travel to Austin. The Hilltoppers have drawn their first two home matches but have already demonstrated the defensive structure, distribution and finishing required to defeat a ranked opponent.
With two national contenders coming to the Hilltop before the defending champions await in the LSC opener, St. Edward's faces one of the country's most difficult three-match stretches—and an opportunity of equal size.
