RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's soccer earned their first point in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) standings after battling to a scoreless draw with the reigning champion
Lindenwood Lions at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex Saturday.
The Vaqueros (2-2-2, 0-0-1 OVC) relied on sophomore goalkeeper
Conrad Knight, who notched his second clean sheet of the season while recording three saves. He helped UTRGV shut down a potent Lions offense that entered the match averaging 1.75 goals per game this season.
Offensively, freshman
Mauricio Arreguin led the charge for the Vaqueros, tallying two shots, both on goal. Alongside Arreguin, junior
Alvaro Abeal and senior
Malang Mandiang each put a shot on frame in the match. Arreguin and Abeal both recorded career-high marks in shots and shots on goal in the match.
In addition, the stout backline of junior
Tobias Buch, sophomore
Emmanuel Gore Bi, and freshman
Victor van der Aa played the entire 90 minutes in the shutout.
Goalkeeper
Quinn Closson kept the Lions (3-2-4, 0-0-1 OVC) in the match, recording four saves to help the Lions earn their first point of OVC play.
UTRGV is now unbeaten in three all-time meetings against Lindenwood (1-0-2).
In the first 45 minutes, the Vaqueros worked into the wind but pushed through to create some great opportunities in the frame.
Arreguin recorded his first shot on goal after dribbling through three Lions to enter the left side of the box. His strike was deflected by Lindenwood goalkeeper
Quinn Closson in the 10
th minute.
In the 16
th minute, Arreguin received a nice cross from sophomore Pharr native
Dylan Hernandez who launched the ball across the pitch just outside the box on the left side. Arreguin proceeded to cross it into the box, just missing the cutting Abeal.
Abeal started another great run, delivering a solid pass to Taj in the attacking half. Taj sent a nice through pass to Arreguin who couldn't convert on a shot opportunity. Fifth-year captain
Eduardo De Oliveira took possession of the deflection and sent a cross into the box for Taj, whose header missed wide left.
The second half continued a tight, aggressive battle for possession. Shots were limited and opportunities were rarely presented for either side.
However, in the 64
th minute, Abeal once again created a solid opportunity with his footwork, deking a defender on the right side of the box and finding open space and delivering a strike that was stopped by Closson.
The Vaqueros and Lions both recorded eight shots in the match with the Vaqueros holding a slight 4-3 advantage in shots on goal. Knight's three saves are his highest in a shutout this season.
UTRGV will continue a three-match homestand on Thursday when it hosts Houston Christian at 6:30 p.m. at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex. All matches at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex are free and open to the public.
UTRGV Athletics has a clear bag policy for spectators attending all athletic events hosted by UTRGV. You can get all the details
here.
Fans can watch live domestically on
ESPN+ or internationally via
Southland International. Fans can also follow along through
live stats.
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