Men’s Soccer Ends Homestand With Battle Against Tulsa

SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State men’s soccer (1-2) aims for a winning record in its early-season, three-match spree at home that concludes on Friday, Sept. 6 against Tulsa at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. CT and admission is free. Fans can receive a co-branded Sporting KC/Missouri State rally towel at the main gate while supplies last.

On the Pitch

• Missouri State is coming off back-to-back 12-win seasons under head coach Michael Seabolt, who is in his third season at the helm of the program. MoState has won at least 12 games each season since 2019.

• Since the beginning of the 2019 season, Missouri State men’s soccer holds the best DI overall record of 72-13-8 (.817), best conference record of 39-2-3 (.920) and third-best home record of 41-6-4 (.843). The Bears were tied for the 18th-best win percentage in 2023 (.711).

• MSU has made five straight NCAA appearances, joining Kentucky, Indiana, Wake Forest, Pittsburgh, New Hampshire, Georgetown, Marshall and Clemson as the only nine DI teams in the nation to make every tournament since 2019.

• The Bears dropped to 1-2 this season after a 3-2 loss to the Kansas City Roos on Monday. It was Kansas City’s first win over Missouri State since 2010 and second-ever win in Springfield, the first being in 1995.

• Senior forward Jesus Barea has scored two goals in back-to-back matches. He earned his third career brace by scoring both goals against the Roos. He won his fourth career MVC Offensive Player of the Week award on Tuesday.

• Barea leads the nation in shots per game (6.33) and shots on goal per game (4.33). He single-handedly outshot both Pacific and Kansas City in Missouri State’s last two matches. Barea is tied for the MVC lead with Evansville’s Nacho Diaz Barragan in goals (5) and points (11). Barea has scored five of MoState’s six goals. He got an assist on the other.

• Barea sits in seventh in all-time Missouri State history in goals (24), seventh in points (64) and second in shots (199).

• Barea is one of eight Division I players to score at least five goals this season. He has scored in his last four matches going back to the second round of last year’s NCAA Tournament against Stanford.

• Senior goalkeeper Harry Townsend earned a shutout in Missouri State’s home opener against Pacific. The All-West Region player’s 24 career shutouts are the second most among active DI goalkeepers behind Duke’s Wessel Speel with 25. Townsend is fourth in shutouts in program history, three shy of Michael Creek’s record of 27 clean sheets.

• Missouri State hired former All-American midfielder Kian Yari to the coaching staff in May following a stellar five-year career with the Bears that saw three straight MVC Tournament titles (2020-22) and four straight MVC regular season titles (2019-22). Yari was a 2021 United Soccer Coaches All-American, 2021 and 2022 CSC Academic All-American and the 2021 MVC Midfielder of the Year. He ended his career third all-time in assists as a Bear with 22, including four in 2023.

• Last season, the Bears were fourth in the nation in shot accuracy with 124 of 240 shots being on goal (.517). Missouri State starts 2024 on a similar trajectory with 22 of 41 shots being on goal in its first three matches (.537), 28th-best in DI.

• Missouri State played a clean brand of soccer in 2023. The Bears were sixth in the nation in fewest fouls per game (8.89), only behind Boston College (8.12), fellow MVC opponent Belmont (8.56), Jacksonville, Pittsburgh and St. Bonaventure (8.71). The Bears averaged 10 fouls per game in their first three matches, the fewest in The Valley.

Series History vs. Tulsa

• The Missouri State Bears and Tulsa Golden Hurricane go head-to-head for the 46th time overall and 21st time in Springfield. Missouri State holds a 13-29-3 record against Tulsa and is 8-11-1 at home.

• The Golden Hurricane won eight of the first nine matchups with the Bears winning their first home game against them, 3-1, in 1981. The series has seen long winning streaks for each team. Tulsa won seven in a row from 1982-86, eight in a row from 1989-95 and eight in a row from 2004-16. The Bears went 7-0-1 from 1996-2002, five of those matches went to extra time.

• The two teams last played almost exactly a year again at Hurricane Soccer & Track Stadium on Sept. 5, 2023 in a 1-1 draw that saw two delays for lightning and a stadium lighting outage. Tulsa scored on a penalty kick in the 24th minute. Former Bear Javier Martin Gil scored the equalizer seconds before halftime.

Scouting the Golden Hurricane

• Missouri State and Tulsa enter Friday’s match with a 1-2 record. The Golden Hurricane lost their first two matches against UNLV (Aug. 22) and No. 15 Louisville (Aug. 28) before defeating Cal Poly, 3-2 (Sept. 1).

• Tulsa trailed Cal Poly, 2-1, with 30 minutes left to play before being awarded a penalty shot in the 62nd minute and another in the 88th to win. Tulsa is one of 12 teams to convert multiple penalty kicks into goals. The Golden Hurricane outshot the Mustangs, 12-11, and had double the shots on goal, 8-4.

• Tulsa leads the American Athletic Conference in shot accuracy with 19 of 36 shots on goal (.528), tied for 31st in the nation. Opponents are shooting at a similar clip, with 14 of 27 shots being on goal (.519).

• All four of Tulsa’s goals this season have been scored by different players. Wes Bottenburg scored against Louisville, Camilo Vargas scored the team’s first goal against Cal Poly and Alvalo Torrijos and Ander Bengoetxea scored on penalty kicks against the Mustangs.

• Senior goalkeeper Alex Lopez was named The American Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. He allowed four goals on six saves in the first two matches. Freshman goalkeeper Carlito Saylon made his first career start and appearance against Cal Poly on Sunday, notching two saves on two goals allowed for the win.

• Former Missouri State Bear Gijs Hovius is on the Tulsa roster after scoring six goals for MSU last year.