Saturday, April 3
Conway, AR
4:30 p.m.
Missouri State University
at
Central Arkansas
No. 8 Bears Head to Central Arkansas for Non-Con Battle
April 02, 2021 | Men's Soccer
SPRINGFIELD – No. 8 Missouri State men's soccer (8-0-0, 7-0-0 MVC) faces former Missouri Valley Conference rival Central Arkansas (6-8-2, 3-3-0 Sun Belt) on Saturday, April 3 in Conway, Ark. for its final non-conference match of the season.
Match Details
Kickoff from Bill Stephens Track/Soccer Complex is set for 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 3. Live stats and a live stream (UCASports $) of the match are available at MissouriStateBears.com.
For all of the latest information and in game updates on the Missouri State men's soccer team, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow @MSUBearsMSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
Quick Kicks
| #8 Missouri State at Central Arkansas | |
| Date | Saturday, April 3 | 4:30 p.m. |
| Location | Conway, Ark. |
| Site | Bill Stephens Track/Soccer Complex |
| Follow Along | Live Stats | Watch (UCASports $) | MSU Game Notes |
| Missouri State | Men's Soccer Home Page | Record Book | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook |
Match Details
Kickoff from Bill Stephens Track/Soccer Complex is set for 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 3. Live stats and a live stream (UCASports $) of the match are available at MissouriStateBears.com.
For all of the latest information and in game updates on the Missouri State men's soccer team, visit MissouriStateBears.com or follow @MSUBearsMSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
Quick Kicks
- No. 8 Missouri State (8-0-0, 7-0-0 MVC) continued its dominant tear through Missouri Valley Conference play with a 4-1 victory at Evansville on Tuesday, March 30. The Bears recorded a season-high four goals with Nicolo Mulatero providing the scoring on two of them for his second multi-goal game of 2021. MSU also registered a season-high 26 shots against the Purple Aces for its second 20-plus shot outing of the year after putting up 21 at Bradley on March 18.
- The Bears are one of just five teams in all of Division I men's soccer to hold a perfect record on the season and boast the most wins (8) among the remaining clubs. It marks the second straight year Missouri State has rattled off eight consecutive wins to begin the season after the 2019 squad became the first DI program to post a perfect regular season (16-0-0) since Akron in 2009.
- The MSU attack features a relentless charge in their offensive half, leading the nation in corner kicks per game (9.88) with 79 corner set-pieces in eight matches. Additionally, the Bears have sent a total of 59 shots towards goal in 2021 which ranks fifth-best nationally on a per-game basis (7.38). Missouri State leads the league in most statistical categories, sitting atop the conference in goals (18), assists (18), shots per game (15.13) and goals against average (.495).
- Nicolo Mulatero (Jr., F, Givoletto, Italy) recorded his second brace of the season with a goal in each half versus the Purple Aces on Tuesday. He had two goals against Drake on March 22 where he also chipped in the fifth assist of his stellar junior campaign. The Italian forward leads the MVC in goals (6) and points (17) while his two game-winners and five assists is tied for best in the conference.
- Michael Creek (Sr., GK, St. Louis, Mo.) has allowed just three goals in his 717:59 minutes in goal this season, starting all eight matches and logging all but 11:24 of MSU's goalie minutes. His five clean sheets in 2021 gives him 18 for his career to rank fourth on the program's career shutout list. Creek earned MVC Goalkeeper of the Year in 2019 after finishing the season with seven shutouts and a 0.645 goals against average that ranked ninth in the nation.
- Aadne Bruseth (Jr., F, Batnfjordsøra, Norway) scored a goal for the second consecutive match in what proved to be the game-winner of Tuesday's victory at UE. He has tallied five dimes on the year, highlighted by a three-assist performance against Drake on March 22. Prior to the game against the Purple Aces, Bruseth was announced as the MVC Offensive Player of the Week for his game-winning goal at Loyola on March 26. He joined Adrian Barosen (Fr., D, Bodo, Norway), who earned MVC Defensive Player of the Week honors, for another Bears sweep of the conference's weekly awards, following the footsteps of previous MSU winners Mulatero (March 23, March 2), Greg Stratton (March 23), Kyle Hiebert (March 16), Dawson Lee (March 9) and Connor Langan (March 2).
- Josh Dolling (Sr., F, Liverpool, England) recorded his first goal of 2021 by capping MSU's four-goal outing at UE with a header in the 86th minute. As a reigning United Soccer Coaches All-American, Dolling has 19 shots on the year with 11 of them coming on target. His 22 career goals is tied for seventh with Heath Melugin (2008-11) on Missouri State's all-time scoring list.
- As the 2020-21 champions, MSU secured the program's ninth overall MVC regular-season crown and its sixth championship in the past 10 years. With the top seed locked up for the 2020-21 MVC Tournament, Missouri State will host the semifinal round match at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium on April 13. This season's conference tournament is being played at the site of the higher seeds.
- Central Arkansas (6-8-2, 3-3-0 Sun Belt) fell 1-0 to 2019 NCAA Tournament runner-up, Virginia on March 23 in Charlottesville, Va. UCA played eight regular-season matches this past fall and closed out the 2020 campaign with a 1-1 draw in the Sun Belt Championship where the purple Bears fell to Georgia State on penalty kicks. In the spring portion of its schedule, Central Arkansas is 3-3-1.
- UCA's attack is led by senior forwards Soren Jensen and Kasper Anderson who were named to the Sun Belt All-Conference team along with teammate Alberto Suarez. Suarez has a team-high five goals to pace a Central Arkansas squad that averages 11.6 shots per game. Goalkeeper Zach Schawl has contributed to four shutouts from the UCA defense and has 29 saves in his 969:31 minutes in goal.
- Ross Duncan is 57-87-16 since taking over head coaching duties in 2012. He is 4-6-2 against Missouri State, including a 2-2-0 record when facing MSU in Conway.
- MSU leads the all-time series 10-5-3 against UCA with Missouri State winning 1-0 in the last meeting between the two teams on Sept. 10, 2019. Josh Dolling's last-minute goal capped a thrilling hard-fought match which featured a third straight clean sheet for the MSU defense.
- Missouri State is 3-2-1 when facing the purple Bears in Conway.
- Head coach Jon Leamy has been on the sideline for all 18 matches in the series which includes three meetings in the MVC Tournament where he is 1-1-1 against the former conference foe.
#BearsUnite
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