LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (4-5-1, 1-1-1) vs.
UT TYLER (6-5-1, 2-2-0)
Saturday, Oct. 23 – 2 p.m.
Perkins Soccer Complex – Tyler, Texas
 
CHAPARRAL HEADERS

•  Lubbock Christian is back out on the road on Saturday for a matchup with UT Tyler, who currently sits one spot ahead of them in the LSC standings with six points.
• The Chaps faced UT Tyler twice during the spring 2021 season and beat them twice, including a 1-0 win in Tyler in which Jonathan Woods netted the game-winner
• Lubbock Christian's scoring average of 1.50 goals per game and goals against average of 1.60 both rank fifth in the Lone Star Conference
• Patriot goalkeeper Mathias Eriksen has a goals against average of 1.50, which is the third-worst in the league behind only Oklahoma Christian and UT Permian Basin's keepers
• The Chaparrals have recorded 10 assists on their 15 goals this season, led by three from Fernando Flores, who now has 13 in his LCU career

 
BOUNCE BACK
When they meet UT Tyler at 1 p.m. Saturday, Lubbock Christian will be looking to bounce back from last week's 3-0 loss at home to No. 8 Midwestern State, which was just their second loss on their home field. LCU has done a good job of responding to losses so far this season, only losing back-to-back games once. They have bounced back from a loss in the season-opener with a win over Adams State, responded to a loss against MSU-Denver with a 1-0 overtime win against CSU-Pueblo, and after a 3-0 loss to MSU earlier this season, they returned home and shut out nationally ranked West Texas A&M 3-0.
 
OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
Through the first 10 games of the season, the Chaparrals have managed 1.50 goals per game on 10.5 shots. While their 105 total shots is the second-fewest in the Lone Star Conference, they have been incredibly efficient, putting 50.5 percent of those shots on goal for an average of 5.30 per game, which is the fourth-best mark in the league. The goals have come from 11 different players, and Luciano Rodriguez leads the team with three. Only Fernando Flores and Luca Hollenstein (two each) have also scored multiple goals. Flores is the team leader in points with seven, thanks to three assists.
 
MAINSTAYS
Tomas Casas is the only Lubbock Christian player to have started all 10 games for the Chaps, and he is second on the team in minutes played with 831. Casas has scored one goal this season and assisted two others from the midfield. Only four other players have appeared in ever game, including Hollenstein, Rodriguez, Niklas Neumann and Kevin Mejias. Hollenstein actually leads the team in minutes played with 856. The only game he did not start was the season-opener against Fort Lewis.
 
HE'S A KEEPER
Although he has not started every game this season, Braxton Thorne has become LCU's go-to goalkeeper, starting every game since the Sept. 12 matchup with CSU-Pueblo. The local product out of Frenship H.S. has allowed 19 goals while making 46 saves, posting a save percentage of .706 that ranks third in the league. His goals against average is 1.20, which is the second-best mark among LSC keepers. Thorne has been the Chaps' starting goalkeeper in the majority of games since he stepped on campus, and with one more save will notch the 200^th of his career. In 71 career games, he has a goals against average of 1.33 and a save percentage of .737.
 
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Saturday's game will be Lubbock Christian's fifth on the road this season, where they are 1-3-1 this year. The one win came in the second game of the season against Adams State by a score of 3-0. The Chaps have averaged 1.40 goals per game on the road with 44 shots, 21 of which have been on goal. In their most recent road game, LCU fought through two overtimes to a 1-1 draw at Oklahoma Christian. UT Tyler plays at the Citizens 1^st Bank-Perkins Soccer Complex, which features a natural grass playing surface. The Patriots are 5-0-0 on their home field this year, including a 1-0 win against Oklahoma Christian last Saturday.
 
LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET
Lubbock Christian and UT Tyler last faced off on March 13, 2021 at the LCU Soccer & Track Complex. The teams were deadlocked through the first half, despite a combined 12 shots in the opening 45 minutes of play. In the 64^th minute, LCU earned a penalty, which Hector-Rodriguez-Cabo converted to give the Chaps the lead. UT Tyler tied things up in the 75^th minute, but LCU pulled back in front for good just two minutes later. Flores took a corner kick, which Agustine Contreras-Orsi deflected to Ivan Muanze-Bengono, who scored the eventual game-winner. Thorne made three saves in the win.
 
SCOUTING THE PATRIOTS

• UT Tyler comes into the match averaging just 1.33 goals per game, which is the third-lowest mark in the conference
• Patriot head coach Kenny Jones is in his 20^th season leading the program and is the only head coach in the history of the UT Tyler program. He was the Co-Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year in the spring 2021 season
• UTT has played solid defense this season, allowing an average of 1.42 goals per game, which is the fourth-best mark in the conference
• Nine different Patriots have scored goals this season, led by Sergio Sola with five goals and 11 points. Soren Wald has also scored three goals, and Birkir Eydal has a pair
• UT Tyler's most recent game was also against Midwestern State, as they fell 4-2 to the No. 7 Mustangs on Wednesday

 
A WIN ON SATURDAY WOULD:

• Be the 96^th win in program history (95-80-22)
• Be the 37^th win in head coach Paul Gilbert's career (36-46-10)
• Be the fourth win over UT Tyler since the series began in 2019 (3-0-0)