This Week in Rattlers Soccer
Saturday, Oct. 12 • St. Edward's (3-3-3, 1-0-2) at St. Mary's (6-2-2, 2-0-0) • 5 p.m.
Battle of the Saints: The St. Mary's Men's Soccer team hosts rival St. Edward's in the lone game of the week in the annual Battle of the Saints. The winning team earns three points in the Lone Star Conference standings and one point in the annual contest between the two schools. The Rattlers hold a 1-0 edge this year after women's soccer on Wednesday.
All-Time with St. Ed's: The Hilltoppers hold a significant 48-22-9 lead in the all-time series against the Rattlers, though St. Mary's has not lost in the last five meetings (3-0-2) with the last two being ties, including a scoreless draw in non-conference action back on Sept. 15.
Scouting the Opposition: After beginning the season 1-1-3, the Hilltoppers have gone 2-0-2 in their last four matches, including a 5-0 upset over then-#12 Midwestern State. St. Edward's ended the last two matches in 2-2 ties. Arthur Souza paces the team with 12 points (six goals), while Christian Mezas has a team-high four assists. The Toppers have used three goalkeepers, who have combined to allow 14 goals with 29 saves (.674).
Player of the Week: For the second time this season, a Rattler has been named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week as Gianluca Fiorini earned the award on Oct. 8. Fiorini helped the Rattler defense start LSC play with a pair of shutouts, and he scored the third goal in the 3-0 win over Lubbock Christian. He joins defenseman Pau Mateu Deya, who won the award on Sept. 24 after helping the Rattlers go 2-0 with only four opponent shots on goal.
Showing Respect: St. Mary's is receiving votes in this week's United Soccer Coaches Poll. The Rattlers are the second team outside the rankings. Midwestern State is the only Lone Star team currently ranked, coming in at 22nd.
Double G's: With this brace at UT Tyler, sophomore forward Gael Gallegos matched his goal total from his first season, doing so in 12 fewer shots and 11 fewer matches. Gallegos has six goals on the year and ranks fourth in the Lone Star Conference with 0.60 goals per contest.
Welcome Back: Fifth-year student Juan Jose Valdez Lopez made a big impact in his return to the Rattlers lineup. In his second game of the year against Lubbock Christian, he recorded assists on two of the three goals and at Eastern New Mexico, Valdez Lopez scored the lone goal of the night. He now is tied for third on the team with four points.
Balanced Attack: The Rattlers have 13 different players with at least one point this season, led by sophomore Gael Gallegos with 13. Graduate student Cooper Stephens is second on the club with five points. All six game-winning goals come from different players, two each from forwards, midfielders and defensemen.
Taking the Shot: The Rattlers lead the Lone Star Conference and rank 11th nationally in shots per game with 16.80 and are first in the league and 12th nationally in corner kicks per game with 6.80. On the flip side, the defense is allowing only 0.60 goals per game, which leads the Lone Star and is 10th nationally.Â
Getting the Jump: St. Mary's is 6-0-0 this season when scoring first and 0-2-1 when the opposition finds the back of the net first. The Rattlers are 63-3-4 all-time under Head Coach Johnny Clifford when taking the initial lead.
Stingy Defense: The Rattlers defense has held all nine of 10 opponents to six shots on goal or fewer this season. Goalkeeper Johnny Thurbin ranks ninth in the nation in keeper minutes played (900) and 11th in goals against average (0.60).
