ROLLA, Mo. – For the first time since 2010, Missouri S&T's men's soccer team will host a first round game in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament when it takes on Saint Joseph's Sunday at 1 p.m. at the S&T Soccer Field.
The Miners, who are 10-7-1 overall and finished 9-5-1 in GLVC play after a 2-0 win over Drury Wednesday, and Pumas (9-7-1, 8-6-1 GLVC) will be renewing acquaintances just a week after playing to a scoreless tie in Rensselaer, Ind. The Miners earned the fourth seed and home game as a result of their win after Saint Joseph's fell 2-1 in double overtime to Indianapolis.
Saint Joseph's had a 17-11 advantage in overall shots in the game on Sunday and a 5-4 edge in shots on goal, but S&T's
James Holloway (Cape Girardeau, Mo./Notre Dame Regional) and SJC's Adam Whybrow turned away every opportunity over the 110 minutes of play.
Holloway, who has recorded shutouts in each of his last four starts including Wednesday's game, comes in with a goals against average of 0.57 and has made 22 saves in 474 minutes of playing time. Meanwhile, Whybrow has a 1.41 goals against average and has stopped 76 shots on goal in 1,594 minutes.
Eduardo Abichabki (Sao Jose do Rio Pardo, Brazil/Colegio Unigrau), who scored the Miners' second goal Wednesday, moved into a tie for the GLVC lead in goals with his ninth of the year and is also tied for the conference lead in points with Quincy's Taylor Reis with 21. In addition,
Ryan Lawhead (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) picked up his league-leading eighth assist of the season with one on S&T's go-ahead goal by
Austin Parks (Rolla, Mo./Rolla) early in the second half.
Felipe Andrade (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) assisted on Abichabki's goal to give him six on the year and 18 points, a mark that ranks in a tie for fourth in the league.
Saint Joseph's is led in the scoring department by Sebastian Quinteros with four goals and two assists for 10 points, while Erick Turner has three goals and three assists for nine points. The Pumas, save for a game with Rockhurst on Oct. 18 when they lost 9-0, have been an otherwise solid defensive team as they have recorded seven shutouts – the same number as the Miners – and have won twice in overtime.
The Miners and Pumas have played to ties in each of their last two meetings, as they ended up in a 1-1 draw in Rolla during the 2014 season. The goal scored by Saint Joseph's in last year's matchup is the only one the Pumas have scored against S&T in the last six matchups between the teams.
Missouri S&T is making its eighth appearance in the GLVC Tournament in the 10 years it has been a member of the conference, but its only previous win in the tournament came in the 2010 game in Rolla when it knocked off Bellarmine. Saint Joseph's is the GLVC Tournament for the first time since 1995 following a year in which it made a dramatic improvement in the standings, going from finishing in last place in 2014 to its final finish of fifth this fall.
The winner of Sunday's matchup will play the winner of the game between top-seeded Rockhurst and Southern Indiana on Friday, Nov. 6; if Rockhurst wins, the game will take place in Kansas City, Mo. The highest remaining seed will host the semifinals and championship game, slated for Sunday, Nov. 8.
