This Week in Rattlers Soccer
Thursday, Sept. 19 • Academy of Art (0-1-1) • 4 p.m. • Doubleheader with women
Saturday, Sept. 21 • Texas A&M International (2-1-1) • 5 p.m.
Home Sweet Home: The St. Mary's Men's Soccer team returns home after three straight on the road to host Academy of Art on Thursday and Texas A&M International. The game Thursday is part of a doubleheader with the women's team and the men will be playing first.
A Busy Week: The Rattlers went 0-1-2 last week, drawing with both Colorado Mesa (1-1) on Monday and St. Edward's (0-0) on Sunday with a 1-0 loss to #15 Fort Lewis sandwiched between. Senior defender Lewis Nohar scored the lone goal of the week for the Rattlers, taking his own rebound and finding the back of the net in the 87th minute against Colorado Mesa.
All Tied Up: With the win over the Saints in the season opener, Head Coach Johnny Clifford is now tied for the St. Mary's record with 65 coaching victories. Dave Stolarski established the record in 1981 after eight years at the helm of the program.Â
Opponent History: The lone meeting between the Academy of Art and St. Mary's happened last season, a 3-0 win for the Rattlers in which GK Johnny Thurbin recorded his first complete game shutout. Sophomore Avery Estell scored the lone goal of his career as the ball slipped through the keeper's hands for the 3-0 lead. St. Mary's is 14-18-4 all-time against Texas A&M International with a 9-6-2 mark at home. The Rattlers won both meetings a season ago and is unbeaten in the last six matches (4-0-2).
A Quick Look In: Academy of Art is 0-1-1 this season. Elvis Menah has the lone goal for the Urban Knights, while keeper Florian Grollmann has 11 saves and has allowed three goals in the two games. The Dustdevils are 2-1-1 in 2024 and six different players have each scored once. TAMIU has also used three goalkeepers, with Nicklas Berg-Eriksen recording 16 of the team's 24 saves.
Offensive Pressure: St. Mary's leads the Lone Star Conference and ranks sixth in the nation in both shots per game and corner kicks per game. The Rattlers are averaging 19.25 shots per game and 8.00 corners per contest. Adam Aboohamidi leads the Rattlers with 3.00 shots per game, which is tied for third in the Lone Star and 41st in the nation.
It's Been A While: The five points for Gael Gallegos (two goals, one assist) in the season opener are the most for a Rattler since the Second Round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament when Nenad Markovic scored three goals for six points against Western Washington.
International Flavor: The 2024 StMU roster has players from 12 different countries and one territory. In addition to 14 student-athletes from the United States, there are multiple players from England (4), Italy (2) and Scotland (2).
Picked Third: The Rattlers were chosen to finish third in the LSC Preseason poll, getting one first-place vote and 275 points. A year ago, the Rattlers were 8-5-6 and have won two conference titles in five seasons in the Lone Star. Midwestern State was almost a unanimous pick to repeat as winners, getting 32 of 33 first-place votes and 362 points, while West Texas A&M was chosen second with 303 points.
