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LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (4-6-3) at
WEST TEXAS A&M (5-5-1, 2-2-1)
Wednesday, Oct. 22 – 7 p.m.

LCU Soccer & Track Complex – Lubbock, Texas
 
CHAPARRAL HEADERS


Lubbock Christian bounced back big with a 2-0 win against Oklahoma Christian on Saturday and will now look to win a second-straight in a road contest in Canyon
Senior forward Manu Nunez ranks second in the Lone Star Conference in shots with 35 and has put 19 of those on goal, scoring for the first time this season against OC
Senior defender and team captain Geoffroy Letienne leads the team in time on the field with 1147 minutes played. He also led the team in 2024 with 1452 minutes
Connor Pettigrew matched his season-high with six saves in the win over the Eagles, with all six coming in the second half. He now has 49 this season
This contest will mark the first installment of LCU and WT’s annual Rivalry on the Range series

 
IN THEIR DEFENSE
Lubbock Christian notched its fifth shutout of the season on Saturday in the win against Oklahoma Christian, matching their season total from 2024. The last time an LCU team had more than five shutouts in a season was 2023, when they had seven. Lubbock Christian is allowing just 0.92 goals per game so far this year, which is tied for the best mark in the league. Chap opponents are averaging just 12.5 shots per game and have put only 62 on goal for a shots on goal percentage of .383. If the season ended today, LCU’s goals against average of 0.92 would be the lowest for the team in the last 10 years, which is as far back as data is available.
 
HE’S A KEEPER
A key component to the success of the defense has been LCU’s goalkeeper, Connor Pettigrew, who has played every minute of every match so far this season. In Saturday’s shutout, which was the 12th of his collegiate career, the Frisco, Texas, native made six saves, all in the second half, tying his season high. Pettigrew’s 49 saves on the year are the most by an LSC goalkeeper and he has a save percentage of .803, having played in all 1170 minutes of LCU soccer action this season. He has played 36 games in his four-year LCU career, posting a career record of 12-14-8.
 
RIVALRY ON THE RANGE
The LCU/WT matchup will kick off the 2025-26 school year’s Rivalry on the Range series. Announced on August 6, 2019, the Rivalry on the Range is a year-long competition including 15 sports in which the two schools will compete against one another. The Rivalry on the Range series scoring components includes head-to-head battles in men’s soccer, women’s soccer, volleyball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, baseball and softball, with additional points available in postseason play. The Chaps lost last last year’s series by just two points. Fans can review the scoring system at rivalryontherange.com.
 
OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
Lubbock Christian netted a pair of goals in Saturday’s win with Francisco Horta and Manu Nunez scoring. The goal from Nunez was the senior’s first of the 2025 season, making him the eighth different LCU player with a goal this year. Horta’s goal was his second of the year, making him the fourth different Chap with multiple goals. Overall, LCU’s offense is averaging 1.08 goals per game, which ranks ninth in the Lone Star Conference. They average 13.7 shots per game and have put 38.8 percent of those shots on goal.
 
SHOOTING STARS
Despite their lack of major offensive success this season, LCU has been one of the best teams at creating offensive chances, taking 178 shots overall, which is the second-most in the conference. Their season-high in shots was 28 against Adams State on Sept. 6. Of the total, 69 have been on goal, which is also the second-most in the LSC. They had a season-high 12 of those on Oct. 8 against TAMIU. Nunez ranks second in the Lone Star Conference in shots with 35 and has put 19 of those on goal.
 
LOOKING AT THE LONE STAR

There is a new team atop the league standings this week, after UT Dallas upset Midwestern State in Wichita Falls Saturday, putting the Comets in sole possession of first place. The problem is, UTD is in their final year of transition from the D-III level, meaning they are not eligible for postseason play. If the season ended today, MSU would still be the one seed in the league’s postseason tournament. LCU sits in second with 11 points, followed closely by St. Edward’s with 10. Sul Ross is in fifth, and West Texas A&M and DBU are currently tied for sixth, although DBU owns the tiebreaker between the teams.
 
ON THE ROAD AGAIN

LCU is 2-3-2 in road games at the midway point of the season with wins at Adams State and St. Edward’s . In 2024, the Chaps went 3-3-2 in road games. The last time they had more wins than losses in road games was the 2023 season, when they were 3-1-4. Their best season on the road was in 2013, when they went 6-2-0. West Texas A&M plays at The Pitch, which was completed in 2010, featuring an AstroTurf playing surface and seating capacity for 1500 fans.
 
SCOUTING THE BUFFS


WT is right in the middle of the pack in both scoring average (seventh) and goals against average (fifth)
Seven different Buffs have found the back of the net so far this season, led by D’Jonte Davis with four goals
WT has split time between two goalkeeper, getting five starts from Zach Kos and six from Bryce Cottle
Butch Lauffer enters his 35th season as head men’s soccer coach at West Texas A&M University and is now the longest-tenured coach in the school’s athletic history
WT averages 11.64 fouls per game, which is the third-most in the Lone Star Conference

 
A WIN ON WEDNESDAY WOULD
– Be the 124th  in Lubbock Christian program history (123-106-41)
– Be the 22nd under head coach Collin Cone (21-25-9)
– Be the Chaps’ 9th win against the Buffs since the all-time series began in 2013 (8-11-1)