The Lobo men’s soccer team will try to continue its unbeaten start to the season when it takes on Loyola Marymount tonight.
UNM is currently ranked No. 11 in the nation and has compiled a 5-0-2 record. The team takes on the Lions in the annual “Stuff the Stadium” event, of which the average attendance in previous years is usually more than 3,000 people.
Head coach Jeremy Fishbein said his team is ready to add to the win tally in front of its home crowd.
“We are excited to play Friday night back at home against another quality team and just keep moving forward; that’s our plan,” he said.
Loyola Marymount comes into the game with a 2-4 record and has struggled so far to find ways to win close games this season.
Fishbein said that now that the Lions have started slow this season they will be looking at this game against the Lobos as a way to erase some of their early mistakes.
“We are at the point now where we have had a good start and we are everybody’s big game,” Fishbein said. “They are a very good team, and I imagine they are coming here looking to jump-start their season with a good result against us.”
Last weekend the Lobos won The University of Akron Tournament after tying No. 4 Akron 1-1 and beating Syracuse in overtime 2-1.
Before playing UNM last weekend, the Zips had won 63 straight games.
The Lobos ended that streak when defender Kyle Venter scored to tie the game with 10 minutes left and neither team could find the back of the net in overtime.
Fishbein said that even though the team tied, the Lobos could have gone one more to beat the Zips.
“Most people would say a tie was a good result, but our guys were disappointed; they went there to win,” he said. “We play to win, we went there to win and we didn’t.”
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Forward Devon Sandoval has led the attack for the Lobos this season and was recognized this week as the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation player of the week.
He was also named the offensive player of the tournament in the TLC Plumbing, Heating and Cooling Invitational two weeks ago and again this past weekend at the Akron Tournament.
Sandoval said that it was a nice feeling winning his first player of the week honors.
“It’s pretty cool; it gives me a little bit of confidence,” he said. “I have been playing well these past few weeks, and Friday I am looking to do more of that — score some goals and help my team out.”
Sandoval started the season off slowly, failing to find the back of the net in his first three games. He has since scored four goals in his past three games, including two game winners.
He said that once he scored his first goal he knew that the goals would keep coming.
“I had a few chances earlier in the season to score and I didn’t tuck them away, and my confidence was not as high as I wanted it to be,” he said. “I just needed that first goal under my belt, and once I got that I was just feeling it.”
Up Next
Men’s Soccer vs.
Loyola Marymount
Today, 7 p.m.
University Stadium
