THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK MEN'S SOCCER... The Upper Iowa men's soccer team will wrap up the 2016 season at home on Senior Weekend as they host a pair of matches at Pattison Field. The Peacocks will take on the No. 21 Tigers of Fort Hays State University on Friday afternoon in the final MIAA match of the season. On Sunday afternoon, Upper Iowa will recognize their five seniors when they host the Marauders of the University of Mary in a non-conference game to close the season. UIU comes into the weekend with a 6-9 overall record and a 3-4 mark in the MIAA. Upper Iowa is 1-6-1 all-time against Fort Hays State, after dropping to the Tigers in double overtime last month in Kansas. The Peacocks will square off with U-Mary for the first time on Sunday. UIU and U-Mary are members of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference in most of their other varsity sports, and are the only two schools in the NSIC with men's soccer programs.
LIONS TOP PEACOCKS LAST WEEKEND... The Peacocks traveled to St. Charles, Mo. to face off with the then-ranked No. 13 Lindenwood Lions. Lindenwood, one of the MIAA's best teams, secured at least a share of the conference title after posting a 3-0 shutout over UIU. LU led 1-0 at halftime, and used two second-half goals to put the match away. Lindenwood controlled play throughout the game, winning in shot attempts (29-11), shots placed on goal (10-3), and corners earned (9-5).
Connor Rortvedt tallied 11 total saves in the net for the Peacocks.
SENIOR WEEKEND... The Peacocks will honor their five seniors after their match on Sunday against the University of Mary.
Fausto Ordenana,
Hugo Alves,
Alejandro Gota,
Angel Cardoso, and
Ryan Pinkerton have all been a part of the success of the p
rogram over the last four years. As a group they have compiled 42 wins, including 26 in the MIAA. This group played a major role in the historic 2015 season w
hich saw the Peacocks win the MIAA championship and reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. These five have combined for 189 matches played and have taken 185 shots. Together they have scored 25 goals and tallied 22 assists for a total of 72 points.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS...
VS. #21 FORT HAYS STATE... The Tigers (12-3-1 overall, 5-1 MIAA) are ranked No. 21 in the latest NSCAA Division II Top 25 Poll, released on Tuesday. FHSU dropped just one spot in the poll, despite winning both of their matches last week. Fort Hays State is riding a five-match winning streak, and is led by Derick Gonzales, who has a team-high nine goals, and have three other players with seven scores on the season.
VS. U-MARY... The Marauders (6-9) are on a current four-match losing streak, and are an independent school in men's soccer. U-Mary dropped a pair of 4-3 decisions over the weekend to Oklahoma Baptist and Southern Nazarene. The Marauders are led by Jordan Pearce, who holds the team-lead nine goals on the season.
