SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State men's soccer team (6-3-1, 2-0 MVC) will play host to Central Arkansas (2-6-1, 0-2 MVC) on Saturday (Oct. 8) to begin a four-game stint of Missouri Valley Conference competition. The battle between the Bears is set to kick off at 7 p.m. from Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium.
Match Information:
Missouri State Bears vs. Central Arkansas Bears, 7 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 8
Location: Springfield, Mo.
Site: Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium (1,000)
Live Stats
Series History
Missouri State is 7-2-1 all-time against Central Arkansas, and 4-1 over the last five meetings. Last season, MSU topped UCA, 3-0, in Springfield. Alum
James Thomas tallied the game-winning goal for the Bears, while
Conor Ingram and
Scott Midgley added to MSU's first-half lead.
Harry Lewis,
Phil Woods and
James Routledge were credited with assists.
Quick Kicks
- Beginning this season, the MVC schedule will increase to eight matches from six, as each school will play a second match against two league opponents in addition to the round-robin schedule. Missouri State will begin this rotational home-and-home series with Evansville and Central Arkansas.
- With MSU's 3-0 victory over Eastern Illinois at Allison South Stadium on Wednesday (Oct. 5), the Bears improved to 6-3-1 on the season, matching the season win total from last year. The Bears are 13-1-4 at Allison South Stadium, allowing just five goals in the 18 matches played at the home facility.
- Missouri State's Tyler Swanner tallied his first two assists since joining the Bears' squad in Wednesday night's shutout victory over Eastern Illinois. The senior is the first to dish out two helpers in a single match since James Routledge did so in 2013.
- MSU goalkeeper, Liam Priestley, has five shutouts on the season, the second-most in the MVC. The junior ranks second among keepers in save percentage (.786), allowing just six goals so far. Priestley leads the league in goals against average (0.59) and would rank fourth among single-season leaders all-time at MSU in the category.
- The Bears have taken 10 or more shots in eight of the team's 10 matches so far this season. Emmerich Hoegg leads the Bears' squad with 21 shots and is currently fifth in the league in the category. Hoegg registered his third goal of the season, and the 16th of his career, in MSU's 3-0 victory over the Panthers on Wednesday. The senior is one game-winning goal away from becoming MSU's all-time career leader in the category.
Scouting the Opponent
The Central Arkansas Bears enter Saturday's match with an overall record of 2-6-1 and are searching for their first road victory of the season (0-4). The Bears opened 2016 with victories over Green Bay (5-0) and Central Baptist (4-0), before falling to Georgia State (3-1) and Houston Baptist (2-1). Central Arkansas went on to play to a 1-1 double-overtime draw with Incarnate Word in the first match of a home-and-home series with the Cardinals. Since then, UCA has dropped its last four matches to Incarnate Word (2-1), Evansville (1-0), No. 12 Loyola (3-1) and Oral Roberts (3-2).
Follow the Bears
For more information on the Missouri State men's soccer team, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow the Bears on Twitter (@MSUBearsMSoccer).
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