WINFIELD, Kan. — Southwestern College men's soccer returns to Richard L. Jantz Stadium on Wednesday, Sept. 9, as the Moundbuilders welcome Oklahoma Panhandle State University for a 10 a.m. kickoff in their final home nonconference match of the season.
Southwestern enters the matchup 0-2 after opening the season against a pair of strong opponents in Northwestern College and Hastings College. Despite falling 2-1 in both contests, the Moundbuilders have shown their ability to compete throughout the opening stretch of the season.
The Builders are coming off a 2-1 road loss to Hastings on Saturday. After entering halftime down 2-0, Southwestern responded in the second half and cut the deficit to one when Bernabe Lopez found the back of the net off an assist from Luke Anderson. Southwestern continued to create opportunities late but was unable to find the equalizer.
Through two matches, Southwestern has received scoring from two different players. Nicola Antiglio scored the Builders' first goal of the season against Northwestern and has started both matches, while Lopez added his first goal of the year against Hastings. Cooper Bates and Anderson have each recorded an assist.
Several Moundbuilders have also provided consistency through the opening two matches. Bates and captain Adrian Gimenez have played all 180 minutes, while Aidan Wiggs has logged 173 minutes.
Freshman goalkeeper Franco Guazzotti has started both matches and played all 180 minutes in goal for Southwestern. Guazzotti has already collected 13 saves while posting a .765 save percentage, providing a strong presence in goal for the Builders early in the season.
Oklahoma Panhandle State enters Wednesday's matchup with a 1-3 overall record. The Aggies are coming off a 2-1 loss to KCAC opponent Kansas Wesleyan.
OPSU has scored four goals through its opening four matches while totaling 53 shots with a .075 shooting percentage. Kendrick Lysius-Cherubin leads the Aggies offensively with two goals, while Zusipheyena Gxarisa and Miguel Castejon have each added one.
In goal, Mateja Stefanovic has started all four matches for the Aggies and has recorded eight saves with a .615 save percentage.
Wednesday gives Southwestern another opportunity to build on the progress shown through its first two matches while returning home to Richard L. Jantz Stadium.
The matchup with Oklahoma Panhandle State will be Southwestern's final home nonconference contest of the season. The Moundbuilders will have one more nonconference match remaining before KCAC play begins next week.
