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Even though the New Mexico men’s soccer team leads the Conference USA standings and holds a No. 14 RPI nationally, head coach Jeremy Fishbein said the Lobos can’t rest easy.
UNM (7-3-2 overall) remains undefeated three weeks into C-USA play after three wins and a tie. The Lobos, unranked since they lost to UC Davis in late September, are once again receiving votes in the national coaches polls.
Fishbein’s team looks to keep its unbeaten streak going Saturday at the UNM Soccer Complex when the Lobos host seventh-place Florida Atlantic. The game will be the first-ever meeting between UNM and FAU (6-2-2, 1-2-1 C-USA).
UNM, No. 21 Alabama-Birmingham and Old Dominion appear to be those teams moving ahead of the field. All three have three conference wins, but UAB has a loss and a tie and ODU has one loss.
According to the NCAA website, the Lobos have the highest ratings percentage index of any other Conference USA team. UAB and Old Dominion also rank in the top 30 in RPI.
“Any time you’re in a top conference, or for that matter any team, you want to get yourself into the NCAA tournament whether it be through an automatic bid or be an at-large. That’s where the RPI comes in,” Fishbein said.
UNM enters Saturday’s game following last weekend’s 2-1 victory over Florida International. FAU, meanwhile, comes to Albuquerque for the first time after a falling to South Carolina 2-1 on Wednesday.
The Owls rank at the bottom in C-USA in shots taken, averaging 8.6 shots in 10 games. Defensively, Florida Atlantic has given up 15 goals and has three shutout victories. The Lobos have 20 goals on the season, fifth-most in the conference. Their five shutouts are in a three-way tie for most, and they rank No. 2 in goals against average at .87 per game. UNM goalkeeper Michael Lisch, this week’s top conference defensive player, has 20 saves.
UNM women host Nevada teams
Much like the men, the Lobo women have their sights set on maintaining their Mountain West Conference lead this weekend. UNM hosts Nevada this evening and UNLV Sunday afternoon.
UNM (6-8-2, 4-1-0 MWC) holds a first-place tie with San Diego State, which has a 6-6-2 overall record. Fresno State also has 12 points for a share of the lead while holding 4-2-0 in conference.
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A win gives UNM a berth in the conference tournament.
“It’s very tight. We have a great conference,” assistant coach Jorge Vela said. “It’s a tremendous competitive conference between the quality of the teams, the locations of the universities, the playing surfaces. A lot of things like that can equal the level of play.”
The Lobos won three of their last four games, most recently a 1-0 victory at Air Force on Sunday. The lone loss during that stretch came in overtime, a 3-2 defeat at Wyoming. Both Nevada schools are in the middle of the conference standings. UNLV (7-6-2, 2-3-0 MWC) is sixth while Nevada (4-7-3, 2-3-0) is seventh.
