DECATUR, Ala. (November 28, 2022) – St. Thomas University Men's Soccer will continue its quest to the retrieve the school's first team national championship. The Bobcats have had an impressive year so far but still have a large task ahead of them. Head Coach Feliks Mats has led his team back to the final site for the second time in three seasons. In the 2020-21 season, the Bobcats had their furthest finish in program history finishing in the NAIA National Tournament Quarterfinals.
 
How We Got Here
This season STU has been ranked within the top-10 all year long with as high as fourth and finishing seventh. The Bobcats got their berth into the tournament as an at-large selection. St. Thomas swept their first two opening matches in the First and Second Round hosted at AutoNation Field on campus.

In the first-round matchup, three first half goals would guide the Bobcats past fourth seeded Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) as they cruised to a 4-0 victory. The second round saw a familiar foe in local rival, Florida National for a spot to the final site. Hernando Suarez was the man on the match helping STU break a 211-minute scoreless rut against the Conquistadors scoring a goal and assisting on another.
 
Key Players of the Match
Franco Acerbi is the heart of the Bobcat defense keeping the net on lock down. The graduate student goalkeeper has 13 shutouts on the season, nine in the last 10 games. Juan Manuel Collazo is a big contributor as the captain and the center back. The defense has allowed just four corner kicks in the past two games.

On the offense it is Hernando Suarez and Guido Cacciabue that lead the way. Suarez has come off the bench and taken advantage of his opportunity these playoffs. The sophomore has five points in the national tournament so far, with a goal and three assists. Cacciabue has been the offense all season long leading the team with 22 points off eight goals and six assists.
 
Opening Round Match Up
The opening round of the final site in Decatur, Ala. Is set for Tuesday, November 29 at the Jack Allen Soccer Complex. The Bobcats as set to face a red-hot Lindsey Wilson College team that defeated Sun Conference foe, Keiser University in the second round to punch their ticket to Alabama. Lindsey Wilson reached the tournament with an automatic qualifier bid winning the Mid-South Conference tournament. Both teams provide a lot of offense averaging over 16 shots per game, while both defenses have made over 50 saves and average 3 saves per game.
 

#7 St. Thomas	2022 Statistics	#10 Lindsey Wilson
11-1-5 (5-0-2 SUN)	Season Record	12-6-3 (6-3-1 MSC)
279 (135)	Shots (on goal)	353 (150)
16.4	Shots per Game	16.8
47	Goals	51
88	Corner Kicks	121
8	Goals Allowed	33
51	Saves	65
3.00	Saves Per Game	3.10
13	Shutouts	4

 

Tournament Information
When – Tuesday, November 29 at 5 p.m. EST / 4 p.m. CST
Where – Jack Allen Soccer Complex; Decatur, Ala.
Live Stats – https://naiastats.prestosports.com/sports/msoc/2022-23/boxscores/20221129_l0te.xml
Live Video – https://portal.stretchinternet.com/naia/
Social Media – @STU_MSoccer