Men's Soccer 8/26/2021 10:00:00 AM

Homestand Continues With Pair of Matchups

The OUAZ men's soccer team opened its season with a convincing victory over Park-Gilbert last Friday, and will look to start 3-0 for the third time in the past four seasons this week. The Spirit will host University of the Southwest (N.M.) on Thursday, then welcomes in Benedictine-Mesa on Saturday evening.

The Spirit last hosted Southwest in 2018, where the teams needed two overtime periods to settle the difference. After waiting two-plus hours for a storm to pass, OUAZ scored the deciding goal in the 103' to take home the victory a little past midnight the next day.

BenU-Mesa is a familiar opponent to the Spirit, as the teams played once a season between 2017-2019. The limited scheduling abilities between both teams during the Spring 2021 season put a hiatus on the series, but the Spirit will look to increase its 2-1 lead over the RedHawks on Saturday night.

OUAZ had five goals from five different players last Saturday. Freshman Mark Lydford was a late addition to the starting lineup, but scored his first career goal in the 10' to get the offense rolling.

Fellow freshman Jamaine Turner buried his first goal on a penalty kick right before halftime, and later assisted Christoph Seeger's goal in the 59'. Kebba Jobe had an excellent game as well to start his senior year, scoring once and dishing two assists in the victory.

Angel Ramirez continued his excellent play from last season, making three saves to start the new campaign. Dating back to last season, Ramirez has posted four shutouts in his last seven starts and has not allowed more than one goal in any regular season start in his OUAZ career.

Spirit Field has been a daunting venue for non-conference opponents, as OUAZ is 10-2 in non-conference matches at home. This includes a sweep of the Arizona schools back in 2019, and the Spirit have not lost a game to an in-state opponent since November 2, 2017.

Southwest will be playing its first match of Fall 2021 when they step on Spirit Field Thursday night. The Mustangs finished 3-5-1 last season, but got results in four of its final six games of the Spring season.

BenU-Mesa is also playing its first game of the new season on Saturday, as they were a last minute fill in for Wayland Baptist, who could no longer make the trip to Arizona. The RedHawks had a successful Spring season, putting together a 7-3 record with a win in the CalPac Conference Tournament. BenU-Mesa was excellent on the road, posting a 5-1 record last Spring away from Mesa.

Tickets for both games are still available, and can be found at ouazspirit.com/tickets. Kickoff for Thursday's match is scheduled for 8 p.m., with Saturday's match set to go at 7 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#7 Kebba Jobe: F; 5' 10"; Senior

#1 Angel Ramirez: GK; 6' 1"; Senior

#9 Christoph Seeger: F; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#14 Mark Lydford: F; 5' 7"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#7 Kebba Jobe
: 5' 10"; Senior
: F

#1 Angel Ramirez
: 6' 1"; Senior
: GK

#9 Christoph Seeger
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: F

#14 Mark Lydford
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: F