OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha men's soccer team returns to action this Saturday, Oct. 13, against Western Illinois. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at John MacKenzie Alumni Field in Macomb, Ill.
Follow the Mavericks
Links to live stats are available on OMavs.com.
From the Touchline
• Omaha returns to the pitch for the first time since Oct. 3. The Mavericks had matches against Drake (Oct. 6) and SMU (Oct. 6) canceled due to field conditions and weather.
• The Mavericks played to a scoreless draw on Oct. 3, against non-conference foe Campbell.
• Sophomore
Diego Gutierrez led UNO with a career-best five points on two goals and an assist against Purdue Fort Wayne on Sept. 29.
• Gutierrez leads the Mavericks in points (14), goals (5), assists (4), shots (23) and shots on goal (12) through seven contests. He is third in the Summit League in points and assists. He is also tied for fourth in The Summit League in goals.
• Junior
Ugo Tritz has allowed the fewest goals in The Summit League (seven). Tritz is second in save percentage (.767) and fifth in saves (23). He also is fourth in goals-against average (1.22)
• The Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll picked Omaha to finish second. The Mavericks garnered 22 total points, including two first-place votes.
• Junior
Seth Rinderknecht and sophomore
Stevie Siy earned spots on the league's Players to Watch list.
• UNO captured the 2017 Summit League Tournament championship by defeating regular-season champion Denver 9-8 in an 11 round shootout. The victory allowed Omaha to qualify for the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament for the first time in program history.
• UNO became a member of the Summit League in 2012 and claimed a share of two league regular-season crowns and one postseason tournament title in seven seasons.
Scouting the Omaha Mavericks
Omaha is 2-5-1 overall and 1-1 in Summit League action following a scoreless draw against Campbell on Oct. 3. Matches against Drake (Oct. 6) and SMU (Oct. 9) were canceled due to field conditions.
Diego Gutierrez leads the Mavericks in every scoring category this season with 14 points on five goals and four assists.
Martin Veys is next with six points on three goals, while
Marcos Bautista has three points on a goal and an assist. Senior
Billy Hoffmann has the other UNO goal.
Denzel Woods has two assists, followed by junior
Seth Rinderknecht with one.
Ugo Tritz has appeared in six games with five starts. Tritz is 2-2-1 with a 1.22 goals-against average and .767 save percentage. He also has both of the team's shutouts this season (Utah Valley, Campbell).
Bob Warming is in his first season as head coach of the Mavericks, posting a 2-5-1 record. Prior to Omaha, Warming had stops at Penn State (2010-17), Creighton (1990-94, 2001-09), St. Louis (1997-2000), Old Dominion (1996), Charlotte (1982-88), Barry (1977-81) and Transylvania (1976). He is the third-winningest active NCAA Division I coach with 463 victories.
Scouting the Western Illinois Fighting Leathernecks
• Western Illinois is 2-7-3 overall and 0-1-1 in Summit League play.
• The Fighting Leathernecks are 0-3-1 in their last four matches and have lost two straight.
• So far this season, WIU is 2-3-1 at home.
• Western Illinois has been outshot (132-118) and outscored (18-6) this season.
• Head coach Dr. Eric Johnson is in his 22nd season at the helm of Western Illinois with a 172-206-40 mark, and 215-259-44 in his 27 years if coaching.
• Johnson's assistant is Luke Oesterle.
Tracking the Fighting Leathernecks
• No. 5 Paul Kirdorf (MF, So.): leads the team with two goals and four points.
• No. 2 Orsy Gonzalez (D, Sr.): one goal
• No. 10 Daniel Kadima (MF, Sr.): one goal
• No. 19 Xavier Brown (MF/F, Fr.): one goal
• No. 22 Christian Junna (MF/D, Jr.): one goal
• No. 33 Tim Trilk (GK, Jr.): is 2-7-3 with three shutouts this season…has a 1.47 goals-against average and a .684 save percentage.
Series History
Saturday's meeting will be the eighth all-time between Omaha and Western Illinois. The Mavericks lead the series 4-2-1.
Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Tuesday, Oct. 16, against Bradley. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Peoria, I
