SAN ANTONIO – For the first time since transitioning to the NCAA in 2000, the St. Mary's University Men's Soccer team captured a regular season conference title as the Rattlers defeated The University of Texas at Tyler on Thursday night to claim the 2019 Lone Star Conference Championship.
The Rattlers finish the regular season with 13 wins, the most since joining the NCAA and the most since 1997 when St. Mary's won 18 matches. St. Mary's claims the crown in their first season in the new-look Lone Star Conference.
Carlos Blasco started the scoring for St. Mary's in the 14
th minute when he buried one in the back off the net off the assist from
Ollie Wright and
Nenad Markovic.
Wright registered his second assist of the match in the 17
th minute when he put a ball on
Martin Ibarreche's foot and Ibarreche took care of the rest, putting the Rattlers up 2-0 in the early going.
Markovic netted his seventh goal of the season in the 27
th minute, giving St. Mary's a 3-0 advantage.
Jacob Sayle faced two shots and turned them both away to hold the Patriots scoreless in the opening frame.
The Rattler attack picked up where they left off in the second half.
Edu Toiny-Pendred gave St. Mary's a 4-0 advantage in the 49
th minute when the freshman netted his seventh goal of the season. Toiny-Pendred added another goal in the 55
th minute, making it 5-0 in favor of St. Mary's.
The Patriots spoiled the Rattlers' clean sheet in the 66
th minute when Steven Chavez struck one that found the back of the net.
The win secures the top seed in the Lone Star Conference Tournament set to begin next week. The Rattlers will host the semifinal and championship round of the tournament on Friday, November 15 and Sunday, November 17.
For more information on the Lone Star Conference Tournament visit www.rattlerathletics.com
