MSOC Comes Back Home For Mid-Week Game vs. Saint Louis

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University men's soccer team returns to Valley Fields this week for a non-conference tilt against the Saint Louis Billikens. First touch is set for Tuesday, Oct. 1 at 7:05 p.m. Central time.

The Golden Eagles are coming off two important road victories last week. They kept a clean sheet on Tuesday in a 2-0 win over in-state rival Wisconsin and came from behind to defeat Xavier on the road on Friday night. MU's win against the Musketeers was its first on the road in Cincinnati, Ohio since 2013.

Tuesday's meeting between MU and SLU will be the 28th all-time between the two programs. The teams have played in each of the past three seasons after taking a 12-year hiatus from 2004-16. Two of the past three matchups between MU and SLU have gone to overtime.

STATS/STREAM:
Live stats and streaming will be available on GoMarquette.com.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

After last week, MU has now won three of its last four BIG EAST road games and four of its past seven road games overall.
The Golden Eagles are looking for their first win against Saint Louis since taking a 1-0 victory at Valley Fields on Sept. 7, 2002. They're 0-3-2 in the last five matchups against the Billikens.
Three-time all-conference midfielder Luka Prpa played a season-high 80 minutes at Xavier Friday night. He looks to be full-go after working his way back from a foot injury.
Freshman Christian Marquez earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week after scoring game-winning goals against both Wisconsin and Xavier last week. They were his first two goals of his career at MU.
Defender Patrick Seagrist tallied two assists against the Badgers and leads the team with four in 2019.
15 different Golden Eagles have started in the first seven games and six have started every game.
Josh Coan netted his team-leading fourth goal of the season to tie the match against Xavier in the second half on Friday night. He's tied for third in the conference in scoring.
Lukas Sunesson and Christian Marquez scored their first goals of the season in a 2-0 win over UW.
Freshman keeper Jackson Weyman earned BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week after he posted his second clean sheet of the season Tuesday at Wisconsin and held Xavier to one goal in a 2-1 win.

OPPONENT FORM:
SAINT LOUIS (4-3-0, 1-0-0 ATLANTIC 10)
The Saint Louis Billikens are led by second-year head coach Kevin Kalish, an SLU alumnus and former All-American in the blue and white. In his first season as the man in charge, his team notched a 6-7-4 overall record, including a 3-1-4 mark in conference play.

So far in 2019, the Billikens have won four of their seven games. They've won games against SIUE, Tulsa, Davidson and Rhode Island and have a notable one-goal loss to Notre Dame. SLU returns 21 of its 26 goals (80.8 percent) from last season, and so far in 2019 the team has scored nine goals and six of their seven games have been decided by one goal.
SLU's top goal-scorer from last year, John Klein (19 points, nine goals), returned along with six of the seven other top point-getters from 2018. Leo Novaes, who tied for second on the team with four goals last season, leads all Billiken scorers with three goals and two assists so far in 2019.

SERIES HISTORY:
Marquette and Saint Louis have met 27 times in the history of the two programs, and the Billikens lead the overall series 22-3-2. Saint Louis has an 0-3-2 record in the past five meetings between the two teams. MU's last win in the head-to-head series came on Sept. 7, 2002 in a 1-0 victory at Valley Fields. SLU's last trip to Valley Fields resulted in a 1-0 overtime victory on Sept. 9, 2017.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING:
Head Coach Louis Bennett: "I thought we did a nice job of playing our game [against Xavier] and sticking to what we do well. I'm proud of this group and I can't wait to see us continue to push forward."

Senior forward Connor Alba: "Saint Louis is a good team and will be a tough test for us. We're just trying to focus on ourselves, be the best we can, and the result will take care of itself."

KEY POINTS:
COAN LEADING MU: Senior midfielder Josh Coan came into the Sept. 13 game against NIU without any points on the season. He quickly changed that, notching career-highs in points (5) and goals (2) in a game. He had a hand in all three goals, scoring two off set pieces and assisting on Connor Alba's goal in the 31st minute. He also scored the team's only goal in the Milwaukee Cup. He also buried the game-tying goal vs. Xavier on Sept. 27. He leads the team in shots (32), shots on goal (18), points (9) and goals (4).

SUNESSON BREAKS THROUGH AT WISCONSIN: After finishing second on the team with five goals in 2018, sophomore Lukas Sunesson struggled to find the net in his first six games this season. He posted a season-high five shots (two on goal) against Creighton but couldn't bury any of his opportunities. That changed in a 2-0 win at Wisconsin, however, as he outran the Badger defense down the left sideline and finished with his left foot to seal a 2-0 victory and score his first goal of the year.

MARQUEZ MAKES HIS MARK: Like his teammate and fellow forward Lukas Sunesson, Christian Marquez was able to score his first goal of the season on Sept. 24 at Wisconsin. The Berwyn, Illinois native volleyed a pass from Patrick Seagrist into the right corner of the net to score his first career goal as a Golden Eagle. The goal, which put MU up 1-0 on UW, ended up being the game-winner as Marquez and his team were able to keep a clean sheet. He followed it up with another game-winner, this time at BIG EAST foe Xavier, in a 2-1 win on Sept. 27. On Sept. 30, Marquez was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week for his performances.

WEYMAN EARNS SECOND BIG EAST HONOR: During his first week as the starting keeper at MU, Jackson Weyman earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week for his play. He accumulated his second weekly honor after leading the Golden Eagles to a 2-0 record on the road this past week. He posted his second clean sheet of 2019 with a 2-0 win (two saves) at Wisconsin Tuesday and allowed just one goal in a 2-1 win at Xavier on Friday evening. On Sept. 30, the conference named him BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week.

UP NEXT:
The Golden Eagles stay home for a primetime matchup with No. 9 St. John's at Valley Fields on Friday, Oct. 4. First touch is set for 7:03 p.m. and will be streamed on the BIG EAST Digital Network through YouTube and Caffeine TV.

PROMOTIONS:
Fans in attendance will get FREE Jimmy Johns gift cards if they bring at least two cans of food for our Canned Food Drive. Gift cards will be given out while supplies last.

TICKETS:
Tickets for all regular season home games are on sale. Single game tickets are priced at $5 while groups of fifteen-or-more are $2 per person. Single game and season tickets are available online. For groups, call the ticket office at 414-288-4668.

Keep up with the Marquette men's soccer program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteSoccer) and Instagram (@MarquetteSoccer) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteSoccer).