Men's Soccer Begins Season Thursday at WT

SEASON OPENER
Thursday, August 25 • Canyon • The Pitch
St. Mary's (0-0, 0-0) at #17 West Texas A&M • 7 p.m.

Quick Test: St. Mary's kicks off the 2022 campaign with a quick test, facing 17th-ranked West Texas A&M in a non-conference bout. The Rattlers and Buffs played a pair of thrillers a season ago, with StMU winning both, 3-2 on Oct. 2 in a non-conference matchup and 2-1 in double overtime in league action.

Preseason Poll: The Rattlers were chosen to finish third in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll. StMU received three first place votes and 199 points, trailing only Midwestern State (245) and West Texas A&M (230) in the 10-team league.

2022 LSC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll
Rk    School    1st    Total
1    Midwestern State    15    245
2    West Texas A&M    7    230
3    St. Mary's    3    199
4    Lubbock Christian    1    162
5    UT Tyler        153
6    Texas A&M International        128
7    UT Permian Basin        100
8    Oklahoma Christian        83
9    DBU        78
10    Eastern New Mexico        52

Exhibition Recap: The Rattlers split a pair of exhibition games during the preseason, losing 2-1 at UTRGV before winning a rain-soaked 3-1 decision over Concordia at home on Monday evening. 

West Texas A&M History:  The Rattlers are 6-21-2 all-time against the Buffs since the series began in 1991. Four of the six wins have come during Head Coach Johnny Clifford's tenure and the Gold & Blue have won three of the last four meetings. The Rattlers are also 4-10-1 in Canyon, winning the last two meetings.

Melting Pot: On the 2022 roster, there are players hailing from 13 different countries and within the United States, three states are represented. The club has multiple players from the US (12), England (3), Scotland (3), Brazil (2), Ireland (2) and Paraguay (2) and has one player from Colombia, Germany, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, United Arab Emirates and Uruguay.

A Gentleman & A Scholar: Fifth-year senior Deni Cresto was named the Male Scholar Athlete of the Year in the Lone Star Conference for St. Mary's in 2022. Cresto has played 48 games, starting 46 over the last three seasons for the Rattlers and he is a perfect 4-for-4 in penalty kicks. He is working on his master's degree in exercise & sport science and was a selection to the LSC All-Tournament team a season ago.

Players to Watch: Sophomore midfielder Andrick Ferrer, junior goalkeeper Andre Schlaefli and senior defender Lewis Wilson were all named to the inaugural Lone Star Conference Players to Watch List.