Thursday, October 19
USAFA, CO
4:00 PM
Air Force Academy
vs
UTRGV
Photo by: Photo by Trevor Cokley
Men's Soccer Hosts UTRGV on Thursday
10/18/2023 11:25:00 AM | Men's Soccer
GAME 15
Air Force (0-13-1, 0-5 WAC) vs. UTRGV (4-8, 1-4 WAC)
4 p.m. MT, Thursday, October 19
Cadet Soccer Stadium – USAFA, CO
The Falcons return home for the first of a three-match home stint to wrap up the regular season. The Falcons host UTRGV on Thursday (Oct. 19). Action at Cadet Soccer Stadium is slated for 4 p.m. MT. The match against the Vaqueros will be AF's only match of the week.
THE SERIES
Air Force and the Vaqueros of UTRGV will be meeting for the 11th time in the all-time series; the Falcons hold a 7-2-1 series advantage. AF has only lost to UTRGV while playing in Edinburg, Texas.
Air Force has won the last four meetings. Last season, the Falcons outscored the Vaqueros, 2-1, in Texas. In the 2022 WAC Tournament, Air Force downed the UTRGV, 1-0, in Phoenix. A header in the final second of regulation play pushed AF past UTRGV in the first round, marking the second-straight year Air Force has eliminated the Vaqueros from the playoff tournament.
AIR FORCE SCORERS
Luke Hill and Remi Smith lead the squad with three goals apiece. Smith is 2-2 in PKs while Hill scored one at the penalty line. Hill has 27 shots to his credit this season, 11 on goal. Smith has taken eight shots on target in 17 total attempts. Thaddaeus notched his first strike this season via PK against Utah Tech (Nov. 15). Carter Rizzo and Aidan Grubbs scored their first career goals while Federico Mion notched his first of the season to round out AF's 11 goals on the 2023 campaign.
THE RACE TOWARD THE WAC TOURNAMENT CONTINUES
Entering matches on Oct. 19, Seattle U maintains its lead in the WAC standings with a 4-0-1 record and 13 points. Both UNLV (3-1-1) and San José State (3-2-1) are deadlocked in second with 10 points each. All nine WAC teams remain in contention for a tournament berth, as the top six teams in the conference standings will take part in the league tournament from Nov. 5-11 in Las Vegas.
UP NEXT
Air Force enters its final week of regular season play with a pair of home matches against Grand Canyon on Thursday (Oct. 26), and California Baptist on Sunday (Oct. 29). Action at Cadet Soccer Stadium is slated for 4 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.
Sunday's match against the Lancers will serve as Senior Day where AF will celebrate the careers of six seniors. Brandon Cobb, Thaddaeus Dewing, Luke and Greg Hill, Remi Smith, and Jakob Stone will be honored prior to kickoff.
LAST WEEK
The Falcons dropped a pair of road matches in Utah, falling to Utah Valley, 2-0, and Utah Tech, 3-2. Prior to Sunday, the Trailblazers had not scored a goal against the Falcons since joining the league in 2020.
DEFEND THE TURF
The Falcons have had success defending their home turf, going 44-13-4 (.725) while playing at home in the last five seasons. In 2018, the Falcons were perfect at home (10-0) for the first time in program history. In 2017, Air Force won a program-best 11 home matches, going 11-1 on the home pitch for the campaign.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
SEATTLE U RISES TO #13 IN UNITED SOCCER COACHES TOP 25
Seattle U jumped seven slots in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll on Oct. 17, leaping to 13th with a 9-2-3 record (4-0-1 WAC). The Redhawks, solo leaders in the WAC standings with 13 points, have earned a result in 12 of their past 13 starts dating back to Aug. 27.
.500 AND ABOVE
A total of six WAC men's soccer members have a .500 or better winning percentage overall this season entering competition on Oct. 19. Seattle U (.750), Utah Tech (.538), Grand Canyon (.538), San José State (.533), UNLV (.500) and California Baptist (.500) each sat at or above the mark.
MORRIS LEADING THE WAC INDIVIDUAL SCORING RACE
Seattle U senior forward James Morris tallied 25 points over his first 14 matches to lead all WAC players. Morris, whose 10 goals also pace the conference in all matches, is also the WAC leader with four goals and 10 points across five league contests.
WAC TEAMS IN THE NCAA RPI
In the latest release of the NCAA RPI for the 2023 season on Oct. 15, a pair of teams from the WAC were ranked among the national top 50 in the key metric that helps seed the NCAA Championship. WAC leader Seattle U checked in 25th with a 9-2-3 overall record, with Grand Canyon slotted 42nd with its 6-5-2 mark. Seattle U's 13th ranked opponent strength of schedule was the best in the WAC as of Oct. 15.
WAC TEAMS AMONG THE NCAA LEADERS
As of the latest NCAA Division I men's soccer national statistics report on Oct. 17, Seattle U was seventh in total goals (30) and UTRGV was seventh in the country in shot accuracy by logging a .516 average on shot attempts on goal thus far this season. Seattle U forward James Morris was fourth in total points (25) and seventh in total goals (10), and Grand Canyon goalkeeper Leon Schmidt ranked 10th in total saves (62).
Air Force (0-13-1, 0-5 WAC) vs. UTRGV (4-8, 1-4 WAC)
4 p.m. MT, Thursday, October 19
Cadet Soccer Stadium – USAFA, CO
The Falcons return home for the first of a three-match home stint to wrap up the regular season. The Falcons host UTRGV on Thursday (Oct. 19). Action at Cadet Soccer Stadium is slated for 4 p.m. MT. The match against the Vaqueros will be AF's only match of the week.
THE SERIES
Air Force and the Vaqueros of UTRGV will be meeting for the 11th time in the all-time series; the Falcons hold a 7-2-1 series advantage. AF has only lost to UTRGV while playing in Edinburg, Texas.
Air Force has won the last four meetings. Last season, the Falcons outscored the Vaqueros, 2-1, in Texas. In the 2022 WAC Tournament, Air Force downed the UTRGV, 1-0, in Phoenix. A header in the final second of regulation play pushed AF past UTRGV in the first round, marking the second-straight year Air Force has eliminated the Vaqueros from the playoff tournament.
AIR FORCE SCORERS
Luke Hill and Remi Smith lead the squad with three goals apiece. Smith is 2-2 in PKs while Hill scored one at the penalty line. Hill has 27 shots to his credit this season, 11 on goal. Smith has taken eight shots on target in 17 total attempts. Thaddaeus notched his first strike this season via PK against Utah Tech (Nov. 15). Carter Rizzo and Aidan Grubbs scored their first career goals while Federico Mion notched his first of the season to round out AF's 11 goals on the 2023 campaign.
THE RACE TOWARD THE WAC TOURNAMENT CONTINUES
Entering matches on Oct. 19, Seattle U maintains its lead in the WAC standings with a 4-0-1 record and 13 points. Both UNLV (3-1-1) and San José State (3-2-1) are deadlocked in second with 10 points each. All nine WAC teams remain in contention for a tournament berth, as the top six teams in the conference standings will take part in the league tournament from Nov. 5-11 in Las Vegas.
UP NEXT
Air Force enters its final week of regular season play with a pair of home matches against Grand Canyon on Thursday (Oct. 26), and California Baptist on Sunday (Oct. 29). Action at Cadet Soccer Stadium is slated for 4 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.
Sunday's match against the Lancers will serve as Senior Day where AF will celebrate the careers of six seniors. Brandon Cobb, Thaddaeus Dewing, Luke and Greg Hill, Remi Smith, and Jakob Stone will be honored prior to kickoff.
LAST WEEK
The Falcons dropped a pair of road matches in Utah, falling to Utah Valley, 2-0, and Utah Tech, 3-2. Prior to Sunday, the Trailblazers had not scored a goal against the Falcons since joining the league in 2020.
DEFEND THE TURF
The Falcons have had success defending their home turf, going 44-13-4 (.725) while playing at home in the last five seasons. In 2018, the Falcons were perfect at home (10-0) for the first time in program history. In 2017, Air Force won a program-best 11 home matches, going 11-1 on the home pitch for the campaign.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
SEATTLE U RISES TO #13 IN UNITED SOCCER COACHES TOP 25
Seattle U jumped seven slots in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll on Oct. 17, leaping to 13th with a 9-2-3 record (4-0-1 WAC). The Redhawks, solo leaders in the WAC standings with 13 points, have earned a result in 12 of their past 13 starts dating back to Aug. 27.
.500 AND ABOVE
A total of six WAC men's soccer members have a .500 or better winning percentage overall this season entering competition on Oct. 19. Seattle U (.750), Utah Tech (.538), Grand Canyon (.538), San José State (.533), UNLV (.500) and California Baptist (.500) each sat at or above the mark.
MORRIS LEADING THE WAC INDIVIDUAL SCORING RACE
Seattle U senior forward James Morris tallied 25 points over his first 14 matches to lead all WAC players. Morris, whose 10 goals also pace the conference in all matches, is also the WAC leader with four goals and 10 points across five league contests.
WAC TEAMS IN THE NCAA RPI
In the latest release of the NCAA RPI for the 2023 season on Oct. 15, a pair of teams from the WAC were ranked among the national top 50 in the key metric that helps seed the NCAA Championship. WAC leader Seattle U checked in 25th with a 9-2-3 overall record, with Grand Canyon slotted 42nd with its 6-5-2 mark. Seattle U's 13th ranked opponent strength of schedule was the best in the WAC as of Oct. 15.
WAC TEAMS AMONG THE NCAA LEADERS
As of the latest NCAA Division I men's soccer national statistics report on Oct. 17, Seattle U was seventh in total goals (30) and UTRGV was seventh in the country in shot accuracy by logging a .516 average on shot attempts on goal thus far this season. Seattle U forward James Morris was fourth in total points (25) and seventh in total goals (10), and Grand Canyon goalkeeper Leon Schmidt ranked 10th in total saves (62).
Players Mentioned
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GK
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