No. 17 Missouri State (11-2-2, 6-0-1 MVC) at Drake (9-3-3, 5-0-2 MVC)
Date	Wednesday, November 6 | 7:00 p.m. CT
Location	Des Moines, Iowa | Drake University
Site	Mediacom Stadium
Admission	Free
Follow Along	Watch (ESPN+) | Live Stats | Game Notes (PDF)
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Device) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Missouri State	Men's Soccer Home Page | Twitter/X | Instagram | Facebook

SPRINGFIELD - Missouri State men's soccer (11-2-2, 6-0-1 MVC) concludes its regular season with a pivotal match to decide the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship against Drake (9-3-3, 5-0-2 MVC) on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at Mediacom Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. CT. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.

On the Pitch

• Missouri State is coming off back-to-back 12-win seasons under head coach Michael Seabolt, who is in his third season at the helm of the program. MoState can clinch its sixth straight 12-win season with a victory on Wednesday. 

• Since the beginning of the 2019 season, Missouri State men's soccer holds the best Division I overall record of 82-13-10 (.829), best conference record of 45-2-4 (.922) and second-best home record of 46-6-5 (.851), behind Hofstra (43-4-5, .875). The Bears are tied for the fourth-best win percentage in 2024 with Cornell (.800).

• MSU has made five straight NCAA appearances, joining Kentucky, Indiana, Wake Forest, Pittsburgh, New Hampshire, Georgetown, Marshall and Clemson as the only nine DI teams in the nation to make every tournament since 2019.

• Missouri State is ranked No. 17 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll released on Tuesday. The ranking moved the Bears down four spots from No. 13 the week prior. Missouri State has been ranked in seven consecutive seasons.

• Missouri State is 10-0-2 in its last 12 matches after a 6-1 senior night win over Evansville last Friday. The Bears took a season-high 24 shots while holding the Aces to a season-low five shot attempts. Six different Bears scored the six goals.

• Senior forward Jesus Barea is tied for second in the nation in total goals this season (14). Only Akron's Emil Jaaskelainen (20) has more. Barea's 14 goals are the sixth-most by a Bear in a season.

• Barea leads DI in shots per game (4.93) and shots on goal per game (3.20). He is third in goals per match (0.93) and fourth in points per match (2.07). Barea is fourth in total points (31) behind Jaaskelainen (47), UC Santa Barbara's Alexis Ledoux (33) and Cornell's Alex Harris (32).

• Barea is third all-time in Missouri State history in goals (33) and points (84). He tied Jamal Sutton for seventh in assists (18). He is the all-time program leader in shots (254), surpassing Sutton's 236 shots he took from 2000-03. Barea is tied for second in matches started (82) and will break the tie with Jack Denton if he starts on Wednesday.

• MoState is fifth in DI in shot accuracy with 104 of 206 shots being on goal (.505). Missouri State was fourth in that category last season (124-of-240; .517). Barea is fifth in DI in individual shot accuracy with 48 of 74 shots being on goal (.649). He was fourth in shot accuracy last year (29-of-48; .604). His 74 shots are the third most by a Bear in a season.

• Senior goalkeeper Will Lowry has four solo shutouts in his 10 starts. He leads the nation in goalkeeper goals against average (.580). Lowry has 18 saves in just over 931 minutes of play.

• Missouri State's stifling defense has allowed six goals during its 12-match unbeaten streak. The Bears have only allowed 25 shots on goal in that span. MoState is outshooting opponents 206-92 across the season.

MVC Regular Season Championship Clinching Scenario

Missouri State can clinch the MVC regular season title and No. 1 seed + hosting rights for the 2024 MVC Championship if:

• Missouri State ties or defeats Drake on Wednesday. The Bears would be the No. 2 seed to Drake if the Bulldogs win.

Series History vs. Drake

• The Missouri State Bears and Drake Bulldogs go head-to-head for the 44th time overall and the 19th time ever in Des Moines. MoState is 22-12-9 all-time against Drake and 9-5-4 on the road.

• The Bears have an 11-match unbeaten streak against the Bulldogs. Missouri State won a series-most seven straight from 2019-21 before the two tied in 2022, 1-1. In 2017, the team's fought to a 0-0 draw in their regular season finale in Des Moines to give Missouri State the outright MVC regular season title.

• Last season, Missouri State beat Drake, 2-0, on Nov. 1, 2023 on Missouri State's senior day. Pedro Arcoverde scored in the 6th minute with assists from Jack Denton and now-assistant coach Kian Yari. Barea sealed the win with a goal in the 84th minute, his fifth goal out of six last season. Forward James Jennings earned an assist on the goal.

Scouting the Bulldogs

• Drake enters Wednesday's match 9-3-3 with a 5-0-2 MVC record. The Bulldogs ride a five-match unbeaten streak, including three straight conference wins against Bradley, UIC and Northern Illinois.

• The Bulldogs most recently defeated NIU, 3-2, on Friday on the road. The win kept them in contention to play for the regular season championship on Wednesday. Northern Illinois scored first in the 13th minute, but Drake scored three straight goals to secure the win.

• Drake is 16th in the nation in shot accuracy with 73 of its 152 shots this season being on goal (.480). The Bulldogs only trail the Bears, who have the fifth-highest shot accuracy in the country (.505).

• The Bulldogs have had 12 players combine for the team's 27 goals this season. Junior midfielder Damian Segura leads the team with five goals, which is tied for ninth in the MVC despite not playing since Sept. 17. Freshman forward Preston Kipnusu has four goals for Drake, including the game-winner in the seventh minute against UIC on Oct. 26.

• Freshman goalkeeper Tomas Butkovic has played every minute for the Bulldogs at net this season. His six shutouts lead the conference. Butkovic has 35 saves on 16 goals allowed. He is fourth in the league in goals against average (1.067), good for tied for 54th in the nation.

Bears to The American

• On Oct. 25, Missouri State announced that it will join the American Athletic Conference as an affiliate member in men's soccer starting July 1, 2025.

• This will be the 34th and final year that men's soccer competes in the Missouri Valley Conference.

• The Bears have won 11 regular season MVC titles (1997, 1999, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022), just one shy of the 12 owned by Creighton. Missouri State also has four MVC Tournament championships (1999, 2020, 2021, 2022), which also trails Creighton (13).