OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 12 MACU Men's Soccer team will make its way down to Chickasha, Oklahoma on Tuesday night for its rematch of last year's Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament match as MACU looks to stave off Science & Arts. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at McLaughlin Field.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 6-1-2 (1-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas) – 3-0 – Sept. 28, 2024 – Dill Soccer Field
• Top Performers:
  • Enzo Nogue – SR – F/M
    • 5 Goals, 3 Assists, 13 Points, 11 Shots, 8 SOG, 1 GWG
  • Federico Palacios – SO – F
    • 3 Goals, 2 Assists, 8 Points, 14 Shots, 10 SOG, 1 GWG
  • Lucas Catosso – JR – D
    • 2 Goals, 4 Points, 8 Shots, 6 SOG, 1 GWG, 520 Minutes
  • Claudio Fuentealba – SR – GK
    • 5-1-1 W-L, 1.00 GAA, 17 Saves, .708 SV%, 2 SHO
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian is coming off its most dominant performance of the season in its SAC opener on Saturday as the Evangels netted three second half goals to complete a 3-0 victory over Wayland Baptist. It was the first result for MACU this season that wasn't decided by a goal or less.
  • As a result, Lucas Catosso was named the SAC Defensive Player of the Week as he helped spearhead a dominant defensive effort as MACU allowed only four total shots with one landing on-frame. Catosso was called up in the big moment as well when the Evangels were awarded a 60^th-minute penalty kick that Catosso put through for the game-winner.
  • Overall, MACU's offense was on-point with its passing as the Evangels recorded double-assists on the other two goals as Mario Garcia and Jimmy Cabrera tallied a dime on Uviwe Qasha's score in the 66^th minute while pinpoint passing by Pietro Musso and Tony Ngombi set up Federico Palacios for his third goal of the year in the 78^th minute.
  • While not the most tested throughout the match, senior goalkeeper Claudio Fuentealba became MACU's fourth goalkeeper to reach 10 career shutouts as he notched one massive save in the 27^th minute.

SCOUTING REPORT
Science & Arts (Okla.)

• Record: 4-3-2 (1-0 SAC)
• Last Match: Won vs. Nelson (Texas) – 4-0 – Sept. 28, 2024 – Chickasha, Okla.
• Series vs MACU (2008-): USAO leads 11-8-4
• Last Match vs MACU: MACU won 3-1 – Nov. 9, 2023 – Dill Soccer Field (SAC Championship)
• Series Streak: MACU won 1
• Players to Watch:
  • Callum Shepard – SR – D
    • 3 Goals, 1 Assist, 7 Points, 12 Shots, 7 SOG
  • Darko Borisavljevic – SR – F
    • 3 Goals, 6 Points, 14 Shots, 8 SOG
  • Fabian Romero – FR – M
    • 2 Goals, 2 Assists, 4 Points, 9 Shots, 3 SOG, 1 GWG
  • Angel Diaz – SO – GK
    • 4-3-2 W-L, 0.99 GAA, 33 Saves, .805 SV%, 1 SHO
• Team Notes:
  • The Drovers are coming off a strong start to SAC play as well as Science & Arts nailed down a 4-0 win over Nelson at McLauglin Field on Saturday night. The Lions were able to battle with USAO, playing to a 0-0 draw through the first 44 minutes, but a 40^th minute red card assess to NU forced the visitors to play down a man the rest of the match. The Drovers took advantage, getting a goal just before the half before netting three more in the second stanza.
  • After getting off to a 1-3-1 start to the regular season, USAO has been playing at a much higher level as the Drovers are 3-0-1 in their last four games, which included a 0-0 draw against No. 5 Bellevue on Sept. 15.
  • Much like MACU, the Drovers don't rely on one or two strikers to handle a bulk of the scoring, but feature a rather spread out offensive attack that has seen 11 different players find the back of the net, led by Callum Shepard and Dark Borisavljevic with three goals apiece and neither player attempting more than 14 shots through the first nine matches.
  • A big reason for the Drovers recent success has been the play of their starting goalkeeper Angel Diaz. Earning the NAIA Defensive Player of the Week award two weeks ago, the sophomore stopper has been strong in-net for USAO, tallying the league's fourth-best goals allowed average (0.99) while notching the second-most saves (33) on the second-best save percentage (.805).
  • Even though Science & Arts owns the lead in the all-time series, Mid-America Christian has fared stronger since 2021 as MACU is 5-0-2 against the Drovers in that time frame. The two teams last met in the SAC Tournament Championship match at the Dill Soccer Field on Nov. 9, 2023. Although the Drovers netted the equalizer with 11:55 remaining, MACU answered back just 21 seconds later with Kolby Godbolt netting the game-winner before Jack Price kicked in some insurance with only three seconds left to seal the 3-1 victory.