RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's soccer program battled to a 1-1 draw against the UIW Cardinals Thursday in an Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) match at UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
The Vaqueros (4-5-5, 2-3-4 OVC) ended the season with a 1-0-5 home record. This is the first time since 1997 that UTRGV finished the regular season without a home loss.
The six home matches played this season are the most in program history for a season in which UTRGV finished undefeated at home. The Vaqueros join 30 other NCAA Div. I programs with unblemished home records in the 2026 season.
Following the draw, UTRGV is tied for fifth in the OVC standings with Eastern Illinois, Southern Indiana and Western Illinois. The top six teams in the OVC standings at the end of the regular season will qualify for the OVC Men's Soccer Tournament.
Senior
Malang Mandiang scored the first goal of the game in the 26
th minute after using a give-and-go with junior
Elias Taj to create space inside the box. Mandiang used one left-footed touch to strike the ball past the diving UIW goalkeeper
Victor Salmeron.
The Cardinals (5-7-3, 4-3-2 OVC) tied the match in the 37
th minute as
Evan Kraenzel scored on a free kick.
The Vaqueros maintained a steady offensive pace throughout the match, generating a season-high 14 corner kicks.
The first opportunity for UTRGV came early in the match as the Vaqueros generated two corner kicks in the first five minutes. The second UTRGV corner was played short and passed around before Mandiang controlled possession, turned, and fired to the top right corner of the goal. The shot was just punched away by Salmeron.
After the Vaqueros scored in the 26
th minute, UIW began creating more chances inside the box.
UIW outshot UTRGV in the first half 7-4. However, the second half was all Vaqueros.
UTRGV put up seven shots in the frame, including two on goal by Taj in the final 15 minutes. The final opportunity came in the 90
th minute as sophomore
Alvaro Abeal fired a rocket from the right sideline but it was corralled by Salmeron.
The Vaqueros outshot the Cardinals 11-9 with a 7-3 advantage in shots on goal. UTRGV generated 14 corner kicks to UIW's two.
Salmeron ended the match with six saves while Knight tallied two saves to secure the draw.
UTRGV will now visit the HCU Huskies in its regular season finale Sunday at 1 p.m.
Fans can watch live domestically on
ESPN+ or follow along through
live stats.
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