• OVC Men’s Soccer Report – August 29 (PDF)
This Week’s Schedule
Monday, August 28
@Eastern Illinois 1, Governors State 0
@Liberty 3, Belmont Abbey 1
Wednesday, August 30
Southwest Baptist
at Lindenwood, 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 31
UTRGV
at UIW, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Friday, September 1
Southern Indiana at Green Bay, 12:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
HCU vs. Belmont, 4:30 p.m. (Birmingham, Ala.)
Liberty at UMBC, 6:00 p.m. (AE.TV)
Chicago State at UAB, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, September 2
SIUE vs. #14 Saint Louis, 7:30 p.m. (CITYPARK – St. Louis)
Sunday, September 3
Chicago State vs. Belmont, 11:00 a.m. (Birmingham, Ala.)
Bradley
at Eastern Illinois, 1:00 p.m.
HCU at UAB, 2:00 p.m.
Liberty at Navy, 6:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
UIW at Cal State Fullerton, 8:00 p.m.
OVC Players of the Week
OFFENSIVE
D'Alessandro Herrera, MF • 5-9, 160, So. • Houston, Texas • HCU
After being shutout in the season opener (two shots on goal), Herrera found the back of the net twice and assisted on another goal as HCU topped Omaha 4-1 on Sunday. His first goal came in the 27th minute, giving the Huskies a lead they would not relinquish. He added his second goal at the 88:01 mark on a penalty kick and just over a minute later assisted on a goal by Thomas Wyke to cap the scoring. Herrera logged 156 minutes in the two games, finishing with eight shot attempts (four on goal). Entering the week he ranked 13th nationally in total points (5).
Others Nominated: Jaiye Shepard, Chicago State; Leo Conneh, Liberty; Alsadiq Hasan, SIUE; Miles Merritt, UIW.
DEFENSIVE
Aaron Crabtree, D • 5-11, 170, Sr. • Manchester, England • SIUE
Crabtree was the anchor for a defense that allowed only two goals during the opening weekend, as SIUE won twice to start the season 2-0 for the first time since the spring 2021 season. The Cougars shutout Butler in the second half on Sunday, as the team broke open a 1-1 halftime tie to win 3-1. The team opened the week with a 2-1 win at Central Arkansas. Crabtree played 175 of a possible 180 minutes in the games.
Others Nominated: Calwayne Allen, Chicago State; Thomas Wyke, HCU; Dylan Navarijo, UIW.
GOALKEEPER
Sam Gomez, GK • 6-1, 180, Grad. • St. Louis, Mo. • SIUE
Gomez played all 180 minutes in two victories as SIUE began the season 2-0 for the first time since the spring 2021 season. The graduate student made nine total saves for the week, allowing only one goal against each Central Arkansas and Butler.
Others Nominated: Lucas Fontana, Chicago State; Alex Aitken, HCU; Hugo Constant, UIW.
Notes From Around the League
Highlights From Around the League: The first weekend of OVC men's soccer competition saw teams compiled 6-6-1 records overall with SIUE leading the way with two victories ... Liberty senior midfielder Gabe Finley scored the first-ever goal by an OVC soccer player, finding the back of the net just 7:18 into the contest against Saint Peter's ... Leo Conneh assisted on that goal and later the game winning (in the final minute) and currently ranks second nationally in assists/game ... Chicago State overcame a two-score deficit to win at Milwaukee on Sunday; it was the first road win for the Cougars since adding the sport in 2020 (they had previously been 0-15-5) ... SIUE started the season 2-0 for the first time since the spring 2021 season; the Cougars won its home opener for the sixth-straight year in topping Butler on Sunday ... SIUE will play its "Bronze Bot" rivalry game with Saint Louis University on Saturday; the game is part of a doubleheader with the women's teams and is being played at CITYPARK, a 22,423 seat venue home to the St. Louis City SC ... HCU's Alex Aitken ranks 18th nationally in saves/game (5.5).
Inaugural Season of OVC Men's Soccer: This year marks the inaugural season of OVC men's soccer. It was announced as the conference’s 19th-sponsored sport in March 2023. Four OVC institutions currently field men’s soccer teams: Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, SIUE and Southern Indiana. In addition, Chicago State, Houston Christian (HCU), Incarnate Word (UIW) and Liberty are affiliate members, giving the OVC eight men’s soccer programs for 2023. Western Illinois, who joined the OVC in other sports on July 1, 2023, is competing one final year in the Summit League and will be in the OVC in men's soccer in 2024.
Liberty Picked as 2023 OVC Preseason Favorite: Liberty University was picked as the preseason favorite in the inaugural season of Ohio Valley Conference men’s soccer in a vote of coaches and communications directors. The Flames picked up eight of the 16 first-place votes to tally 88 points, which was two points ahead of SIUE (who picked up four first-place votes). Houston Christian (HCU) picked up the other four first-place votes to tally 81 points in being picked third. Lindenwood was picked fourth (62) and followed by UIW (53), Southern Indiana (29), Eastern Illinois (25) and Chicago State (24).
2023 OVC Tournament: The inaugural OVC Men's Soccer Championship will be held on the campus of SIUE in Edwardsville, Illinois. The top six seeds will make the field, with the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds getting byes to the semifinals.
All Teams Eligible for OVC Tournament: Both reclassifying teams, Lindenwood and Southern Indiana, are eligible to compete and win the OVC Tournament Championship this season. Should a transitioning school win an OVC Tournament Championship, the AQ shall be awarded to the tournament runner-up. Should the tournament runner-up also be a transitioning school, the AQ representative shall be the third-place team (where the third-placed team cannot be determined, the AQ shall be the semifinal team that had the highest remaining seed going into the tournament).
ESPN+: This year marks the sixth of the OVC’s 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. This season over 200 men’s and women’s basketball regular season Conference games and non-conference games will be streamed on ESPN+. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for $9.99 a month (or $99.99 per year) or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu ($15.99/month). ESPN+ is an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices). More information can be found at
www.OVCSports.com/ESPN.