Clarksville, Ark.-The U of O men's soccer team (12-5-0, 8-3-0) earned their third consecutive playoff appearance with two conference wins over the weekend. Only the top two teams in each division of the American Southwest Conference make the playoffs.
In head coach Dave De Hart’s four seasons at U of O, he has led the Eagles to three playoff appearances. The Eagles, as the East division representative, have played in the conference championship match the previous two seasons. "Our goal at the beginning of the year was to make the playoffs," said De Hart. "We are quite a bit better now than we were at the start of the season. We tested the theory of it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We are peaking at the right time." On October 25, the Eagles scored five goals in the second half on their way to a 7-1 win over East Texas Baptist University. Freshman forward Ron Hogsett (McKinney, TX) led the Eagles with two goals. Ricky Herrera (Las Cruces, NM), Aaron Coats (Boise, ID), Will Masterson (Georgetown, TX), C.J. Smith (Jackson, MS) and Mike Guernica (Frisco, TX) each scored goals. Masterson recorded three assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Chris Schultz (Coppell, TX) earned his tenth win of the season. On October 26, the Eagles sealed their conference playoff spot with a 4-1 victory over LeTourneau University. Herrera and Masterson both had two goals. Schultz earned the win. The Eagles have two matches remaining. They will travel to Fort Worth, Texas to play Texas Wesleyan on November 1 and Richardson, Texas to play UT-Dallas on November 3.
Topics: Athletics