It was a perfect night for OVC men's soccer teams, as SIUE knocked off No. 16 Saint Louis to regain possession of the Bronze Boot, and UTRGV blasted South Florida 5-0.
SIUE 1, #16 SAINT LOUIS 0
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Bronze Boot is back in Edwardsville after Ryley Gibbs' header in the 37th minute lifted SIUE men's soccer to a 1-0 win over rival Saint Louis Sunday at Korte Stadium.
The Cougars (1-3) grabbed the win in front of a home-opener crowd of 1,947 and laid claim to the Joseph Carenza, Sr. trophy for the third time in four years. It is the best stretch for the Cougars in the series since winning three straight meetings in 1978-79.
Saint Louis slipped to 2-2-1 with the defeat.
Gibbs tally, the second of his career, came after SLU failed to fully clear the ball several times. The ball came to loose ball fell to Daniel Murray, who spun a pass into the box, where Gibbs flicked it home to give SIUE a lead it would never relinquish.
Saint Louis' best chance came two seconds after the final whistle, when a cross came into the box and was headed in. The play was reviewed and confirmed to have come after time expired in the game.
SIUE goalkeeper Ioannis Koupepides made five saves to secure his first shutout as a Cougar. Saint Louis outshot SIUE 9-7 overall and held a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal. SLU goalkeeper Lucas McPartlin turned made two saves for the Billikens.
UTRGV 5, SOUTH FLORIDA 0
TAMPA, Fla. - Junior Elias Taj delivered a career night to lead The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men’s soccer team to a dominant 5-0 win over the South Florida (USF) Bulls at Corbett Stadium Sunday.
Leading the way for the Vaqueros was Taj, who netted his first career brace and tallied two assists. The Vaqueros also received goals from fifth year Eduardo De Oliveira, sophomore Sammy Jadid, and senior Mouhamed Pouye. Senior Malang Mandiang tacked on two assists. Meanwhile, De Oliveira tallied an assist and freshman Victor van der Aa recorded his first career assist.
Taj’s performance etches him into the UTRGV single-match record books as he is now tied for seventh in points scored (6). Taj is the first Vaquero to enter the record books for points in a match since 2021, when Reshaun Wilkes tallied six points at Central Arkansas. Taj, Wilkes, and William Akio are the only Vaqueros to enter the record book for points scored in a match since the program restarted in 2015.
As a team, the Vaqueros notched 16 points, which is tied for seventh in program history and ranks first when facing NCAA DI opponents. The Vaqueros’ six assists are also tied for fourth in program history and tied for first when facing NCAA DI opponents.
This is the first time the Vaqueros scored at least five goals in a match since Sept. 25, 2025 when they defeated Texas A&M International 6-1 and the first time against an NCAA DI opponent since their 5-1 victory over Air Force on Oct. 13, 2024.
The Vaqueros wasted no time getting on the board as they used a swift counterattack led by junior Tobias Buch on the backline. Mandiang received the pass, turned upfield, and found the sprinting Taj on the wing. A grounded cross from Taj found the foot of De Oliveira who finished off the spectacular play. The goal came a mere 24 seconds into the match.
In similar fashion, De Oliveira found Taj on the opposite wing who dribbled the ball just outside the box and flashed a beautiful cross to the center. Jadid, in perfect position, redirected the ball just past the keeper to give the Vaqueros a commanding 2-0 lead in the 13th minute.
The Bulls started to find some momentum before Geoffrey Oyaka was assessed a red card in the 28th minute. Playing a man down, the Bulls were on the receiving end of a balanced and powerful UTRGV attack.
In the 34th minute, Mandiang was on the receiving end of a perfect through pass in the channel before stopping on a dime and crossing into the center of the box. Pouye jumped in front of Jack Kiefer, leading with his right foot to send the ball into the bottom right corner of the net, putting the Vaqueros up 3-0.
The Bulls and Vaqueros battled through a scoreless opening 25 minutes of the second half before Taj broke through with his first career goal. He deked a defender on the receiving end of a pass before sending the ball through the legs of the Bulls keeper to notch the fourth UTRGV goal of the evening in the 70th minute.
Then, in the 82nd minute, Taj capped off his career night with another goal. This time, a wonderful series of passes put the Vaqueros in the box with numbers. Jadid, on the left wing, found junior Alexander Mink inside the box. Mink dropped it off to Taj in the middle. Taj passed inside to De Oliveira who flicked it back to Taj who buried it into the left side of the goal.
UTRGV outshot USF 15-9 with an 8-1 advantage on goal. Bulls goalkeeper Eric Axtman tallied three saves while UTRGV goalkeeper Conrad Knight recorded one save in the shutout victory.