• OVC Men’s Soccer Report – September 16 (PDF)
This Week’s Schedule
Monday, September 15
UIW 0, @Pitt 0
Tuesday, September 16
IU Indy
at Western Illinois, 4:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Eastern Illinois at Northern Illinois, 7:00 p.m. (NIUHuskies.com)
Wednesday, September 17
Belmont
at Southern Indiana, 6:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
HCU at UTRGV, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
UMKC
at SIUE, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Friday, September 19
#21 UNC Greensboro
at Liberty, 6:00 p.m.
Lindenwood at UTRGV, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Sunday, September 21
SIUE at Omaha, 1:00 p.m.
Western Illinois at Kansas City, 5:00 p.m. (Summit League Network)
Eastern Illinois at Central Arkansas, 7:00 p.m.
OVC Players of the Week
OFFENSIVE
Juan Monrreal, F • Fr. • Irving, Texas • UIW
Monrreal scored the game-tying and assisted on the game-winning goal as UIW topped in-state foe (and future OVC opponent) UTRGV 2-1 to complete a perfect 2-0 week and move to 4-2-1 on the season. Coming off UIW's win over nationally ranked SMU to start the week (in which Monrreal did not play), the Cardinals fell behind 1-0 to the Vaqueros 12 minutes into the match. The freshman scored the equalizing goal (the first of his collegiate career) at 58:32 and five minutes later assisted on Tatenda Chigede to push his team to the eventual victory.
Others Nominated: Luca Bartoni, Lindenwood; Liam Gainey, Western Illinois.
DEFENSIVE
Carlos Trott, D • 6-3, 185, Sr. • Camp Bom, Brazil • Liberty
Trott anchored a Liberty defense that allowed just one goal in two matches, as the Flames remained undefeated on the season. Trott played all 180 minutes as Liberty topped Longwood 2-1 and played James Madison to a scoreless draw. Against Longwood the Flames defense did not allow a goal until the 84th minute. On Saturday, the team held JMU to three shots on goal in recording their third shutout of the year. The senior center defender did not allow a shot from the center of the field throughout the game.
Others Nominated: Luke Neely, Lindenwood; Giovanni Padilla, UIW.
GOALKEEPER
Alejandro De La Torre, GK • 6-4, Grad. • Georgetown, Texas • UIW
Torre was instrumental in UIW completed a 2-0 week, including a 2-1 victory at No. 18 ranked SMU to begin the week. Against the nationally ranked Mustangs, the graduate made eight saves and helped UIW maintain a 1-0 advantage until a penalty kick in the 79th minute tied the match. The Cardinals would score eight minutes later to pick up the victory. He capped the week by making five saves in a 2-1 win over UTRGV. After allowing an early goal, he shutout the Vaqueros over the final 78:15 as the team improved to 4-2-1 on the season. Nationally De La Torre ranks second in total saves (36), third in goalie minutes played (630:00) and 14th in saves/game (5.14)
Others Nominated: Tyler Beck, Liberty; Quinn Closson, Lindenwood.
Other Notable Performances
Below are other notable performances from the past week.
•
Tyler Beck (GK, So.), Liberty. Made nine saves in 180 minutes last week as Liberty was 1-0-1. Recorded a shutout in a draw with James Madison and allowed one goal in final minutes in 2-1 victory over Longwood.
•
Liam Gainey (F, Sr.), Western Illinois. Scored two goals on six shots (three on goal) in road loss at UIC.
•
Luca Bartoni (F, Sr.), Lindenwood. Scored a goal in both of Lindenwood's victory last week, as team topped Westminster and Le Moyne.
•
Giovanni Padilla (D, So.), UIW. Played 152 minutes in helping a defensive attack that helped UIW to a 2-0 record last week, including a victory over No. 18 SMU (a match in which he added the game-winning assist).
•
Luke Neeley (D, Jr.), Lindenwood. Played 77 minutes in two matches, as Lions were undefeated. Added game-winning goal in 2-0 victory over Le Moyne.
•
Quinn Closson (GK, Grad.), Lindenwood. In his lone action of the week, made six saves and recorded a shutout in 2-0 win over Le Moyne. It marked his fourth shutout of the season.
Notes From Around the League
Highlights From Around the League: Last week began with UIW winning 2-1 at No. 18 SMU ... The Cardinals led 1-0 for most of the match until SMU tied the game on a penalty kick; UIW got a goal from Noe Robles in the 87th minute to pick up the victory ... Lindenwood won two matches last week to improve to 7-0-0 on the season, its best start since 2013; an 8-0 start would be the best for the program since joining the NCAA in 2012 ... Lindenwood is the only Division I team with seven victories entering the week and one of only three team with perfect records (Delaware and Utah Valley being the others) ... Liberty was 1-0-1 last week and is unbeaten through the first six games to start a season since the 2021 Spring season (when they opened 5-0-1) ... The Flames have allowed only one of their opponents more than 10 shot attempts in a game this season ... Nationally, Lindenwood is first in scoring offense (3.29/game) and goal differential (+19) and second in assists/game (3.86), points/game (10.43) and shots on goal/game (9.0) while Liberty is fifth in scoring offense (3.00/game), sixth in goal differential (+15) and eighth in points/game (8.5) and Eastern Illinois is first in saves (8.25/game) ... Lindenwood's Matteo Landais is fifth in assists/game (0.86) while teammate Quinn Closson is sixth in shutouts (4), UIW's Alejandro De La Torre is second in total saves (36) and EIU's Franco Barba is first in saves/game (8.25).
UIW Knocks Off No. 18 SMU: UIW scored a 2-1 victory over No. 18 ranked SMU on September 8. UIW scored in the 14th minute and led 1-0 until SMU tied the match on a penalty kick in the 79th minute. Eight minutes later Noe Robles scored on a goal off an assist from Giovanni Padilla to lift the Cardinals to the victory.
Liberty Sets OVC Single Match Record for Goals: Liberty scored nine goals (eight in the second half) in a season-opening victory over Regent on August 21. It broke the previous OVC record of eight goals set by Lindenwood in 2023 (vs. UHSP).
Third Season of OVC Men's Soccer: This year marks the third season of OVC men's soccer, which was announced as the league's 19th sport in March 2023. Five OVC institutions currently field men’s soccer teams: Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, SIUE, Southern Indiana and Western Illinois. In addition, Houston Christian (HCU), Incarnate Word (UIW) and Liberty are affiliate members, giving the OVC eight men’s soccer programs.
2025 OVC Tournament: The 2025 OVC Men's Soccer Championship will be held on the campus of Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri for the first time. The top six seeds make the field, with the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds getting byes to the semifinals. The eight OVC men's soccer teams are divided into two scheduling pods, with each team playing the other teams in its pod twice during the season, and teams in the other pod once. The tournament format gives the winner of each pod a first round tournament bye. Seeds 3-6 are based on total points, regardless of scheduling pod.
All Teams Eligible for Postseason Play: Lindenwood and Southern Indiana completed their reclassification to Division I this past summer and are now eligible for NCAA Tournament berths. The two schools finished the transition in a new expediated three-year timeline.
SIUE Picked as 2025 OVC Preseason Favorite: Two-time defending regular season and tournament champion SIUE was predicted the preseason favorite for the 2025 OVC men's soccer season. The Cougars, who claimed both championships during each the 2023 and 2024 seasons, picked up 14 of 16 first-place votes and 98 points in the poll of league head coaches and communications directors. SIUE is 17-1-2 in Conference play in the first two years of men's soccer in the OVC. HCU, who lost to SIUE in double overtime in last year's tournament title game, picked up the other two first-place votes and 69 points in being tabbed second. They were followed by Lindenwood (67), Liberty (64), UIW (55), Western Illinois (39), Eastern Illinois (38) and Southern Indiana (18).
UTRGV to Join OVC as Men's Soccer Affiliate in 2026: The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) will join the OVC as a men's soccer affiliate beginning with the 2026 season. The addition of Vaqueros gives the OVC its third men’s soccer institution in the state of Texas. Located in Edinburg, Texas, the program spent 10 seasons in the WAC before becoming an Independent for the 2025 season.
ESPN+: The OVC has a media rights deal with ESPN to air games on ESPN+, the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company Direct-to-Consumer & International segment. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for $11.99 a month (or $119.99 per year) as part of the ESPN Select Plan or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu. ESPN+ is an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices). More information can be found at www.OVCSports.com/ESPN.