Opponent Preview: UVU Wolverines to face Seattle in bulk of WAC play

Utah Valley University vs Seattle University

Where: Orem, Utah.

When: Thursday, October 18 at 7 p.m.

 

The men’s soccer team has won four straight games and has gained traction in the WAC. Tied for first with Air Force University, UVU’s young team has a lot of the season left to prove themselves. However, sitting atop of the conference is a nice place for a team to be after struggling less than a month ago.

UVU returns home for three straight games, the second being against conference rival Seattle University. Last season, the Red Hawks beat out the Wolverines 2-1 and withheld UVU from the WAC tournament. The Wolverines will be trying to forget about last season’s heartbreak and continue their current dominance in the WAC.

 

Quick Glance: Seattle University

Nickname: Red Hawks

Location: Seattle, Wash.

Conference: WAC

2018 Season (through Oct. 11, 2018): 9-4 (overall), 3-2 (conference)

The Red Hawks sit at fourth place in the WAC and only have a one loss difference in conference play comparative to UVU. Seattle played well in pre-conference play and even beat in-state rival Washington University 2-0.

Seattle’s WAC play has been above-average, but has some to be desired in comparison to last season. The Red Hawks convincingly won the WAC last year and went 15-4-4 overall. They lost to Akron University in the second round of the NCAA tournament, and had a lot of expectations going into 2018.

Sergio Rivas lead Seattle with eight goals last season, and currently sits second in the WAC with six assists. The senior midfielder has started three straight seasons for the team and is an impressive force on the pitch. Last season, Rivas sent a penalty kick to the back of the net against UVU and put the nail in the coffin on the Wolverine’s season.

The Wolverines have been scoring in bunches lately, and tend to have strong momentum when the team scores first. In fact, UVU has yet to lose a game where they score first this season. UVU will focus on getting the board early and will hope to get revenge on a team that ended the Wolverine’s previous season.

Photo courtesy of: UVU Athletics