DENVER, Colo. - After being shutout in their last two matches, the Lubbock Christian men's soccer team looks to get back on track with a match against the South Dakota School of Mines on Saturday, Sept. 3.

Lubbock Christian (1-1-1) vs South Dakota School of Mines (1-1-1)
Saturday, Sept. 3 - 2 PM
Denver, Colo. - Assembly Athletic Complex

CHAP HEADERS
• Lubbock Christian is coming off a 2-0 loss to MSU Denver. It is the first time Lubbock Christian has been shut out in back-to-back matches since Nov. 9, 2019, when the Chaps fell 2-0 to Eastern New Mexico and then on dropped a 1-0 decision against St. Edward's on Nov. 12.

• The match also marked the first time LCU has lost a match in which the Chaps recorded more corner kicks than their opponents since Sept. 22, 2019 when Lubbock Christian fell to Saint Martin's 2-1. The Chaps tallied seven corner kick chances to just four by MSU Denver

• Pablo Galietero Diez is tied for first in the Lone Star Conference in shots with Kenny Brown of West Texas A&M with 13. Brown, Galietero Diez and Toi Yamoka of Midwestern State are all tied for the conference lead in shots on goal with 7. 

• The Chaps have not been shut out in three straight matches since Oct. 19-26, 2017. LCU went 0-3 and was outscored 7-0 in that stretch.

A LOOK BACK
The 2021 Fall season was arguably one of the best in program history for the Lubbock Christian men's soccer team. The Chaps finished the season 6-1-1, outscoring their opponents 24-6 and recording six shutouts, including three straight in the Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament. After finishing the first two overtimes deadlocked at zero goals apiece, the Midwestern State Mustangs bested the Chaps for the third time in 2021, defeating LCU 5-4 on penalty kicks. The second-place finish is the highest finish in program history in the LSC, and the Chaps first ten-win season since 2013. The Chapparal offense averaged 2.17 goals per game while allowing just 1.22 goals per game, the second-best in the conference. Luciano Rodriguez finished fourth in the conference in points with 19 and sixth in the conference in goals with six.

FURTHER BACK
The Lubbock Christian men's soccer program began in 2010 with a 3-1 win against the University of the Southwest (N.M.). On Nov. 9, 2021 in the opening round of the LSC Tournament, the Chaps won their 100th match in program history, rolling over UT Permian Basin 6-0. The Chap program enters the 2022 season with an overall record of 101-81-23.

THE NOT SO SECRET WEAPON
With a hat trick against Adams State on Aug. 25, Pablo Galietero Diez became the first Chap since Corey Hutchison did so against St. Mary's on Oct. 14, 2017. Galietero Diez added an assist in the second half to finish the match against the Grizzlies with seven points, the second most in a match by one Chap in program history. His three goals are second in the entire Lone Star Conference so far this season.

IN THE MOUNTAIN AIR
LCU has played ten games in program history within the state of Colorado, going 4-7-0 there all time. The first-ever Chaparral trip to the Centennial State was a successful one, as they beat Colorado Christian 5-1 behind a hat trick from Mbongeni Ndlovu on Sept. 11, 2015. They also beat Adams State 2-1 on that 2015 trip. Last season, LCU went 1-1 in the Centennial State, falling 3-1 to Fort Lewis in Durango, while defeating Adams State 3-0 in Alamosa. The Chaps will play four straight matches in Colorado from Sept. 1-9, facing MSU-Denver and South Dakota Mines in the Mile High City before facing UC-Colorado Springs and CSU-Pueblo on the road.

NEW YEAR, NEW TEAM
LCU will feature an astonishing 24 new players on the 2022 Fall roster. Of those new players, 12 are true freshmen, while the other 12 are transfers from either the junior college ranks or other universities. It is a diverse group, with seven players from Texas, four from England, four from Brazil, and the rest from Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico and Spain internationally, along with new faces from Oklahoma, Pennslyvania, and Wisconsin in the states.

PRESEASON POLL
For the first time since joining the Lone Star Conference, the Chaps earned a first-place vote in the preseason polls, slotted to finish fourth in the LSC this season. The last time the Chaps earned a first-place vote was prior to the 2014 season, when LCU earned four first-place votes and were predicted to finish second in the Heartland Conference.
 
THE CONE ERA HAS BEGUN
 - Collin Cone was hired as the Head Men's Soccer Coach at Lubbock Christian University in April of 2022, coming to LCU after leading the men's soccer team at LeTourneau University for the last four seasons. He posted back-to-back winning records in 2021 and the 2020-21 season, and had the team improve in every year he was the head coach. The YellowJackets 6-5 showing in the 2020-21 season was the program's first winning season since 2010.
- Cone also spent three years at Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana. He played a key role in the recruiting efforts for the Lancers while working with the goalkeepers. In his final season at Grace, the Lancers won the Crossroads League Championship for the first time in 25 years and made it to the NAIA National Championship for the first time in 35 seasons. Cone's time at Grace as a coach was marked by one conference championship, one NAIA national championship, two NCCAA National Tournaments, and two regional tournament titles.


SCOUTING THE HARDROCKERS
- SD Mines was picked 10th in the RMAC preseason poll
- The Hardrockers went 1-15-1 last season, winning their first match of the season over Saint Cloud State before tying the Huskies in the next match. SD Mines then lost 15 straight matches.
- SD Mines broke their 18 match winless streak on Sept. 1 with a 4-1 win over Dakota Wesleyan. The Hardrockers are 0-16-2 in their last 18 matches against Division-II opponents.
- Head Coach Ryan Thompson is in his first season as head coach of the SD Mines men's soccer team. Thompson was previously the assistant coach of the Hardrockers and also coached at Iowa Western Community College. 

THE SERIES WITH THE HARDROCKERS
The Chaps and Hardrockers last met on Sept. 3, 2017 in Grand Junction, Colo. with SD Mines taking a 2-0 win. The two teams have only faced each other in neutral site action and only in the state of Colorado. 

A WIN WOULD
- Be the first neutral site win for the Chaps since the 2021 Lone Star Conference Semifinals on Nov. 12, 2021 against West Texas A&M. LCU won 3-0 in a match played in Wichita Falls, Texas.
- Be the first win ever over SD Mines.

UP NEXT
The Chaps will stay in Colorado for another week, facing UC Colorado Springs on Wednesday, Sept. 8.