No. 25 Musketeers Return to Non-Conference Action vs Evansville

Tuesday, October 6

Cincinnati, Ohio

6:30 p.m.

Xavier University

Evansville

No. 25 Musketeers Return to Non-Conference Action vs Evansville

10.05.26 | Men's Soccer

Live Stats Watch Live

First touch is set for 6:30 p.m. from Corcoran Field

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - No. 25 Xavier men's soccer returns to non-conference action vs Evansville on Tuesday, Oct. 6. First touch is set for 6:30 p.m. from Corcoran Field.

MATCH INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (7-0-2) vs EVANSVILLE PURPLE ACES (2-5-2)
Game Info - Tuesday, Oct. 6 - 6:30 PM - Corcoran Field (1,000)
Live Stats - xavier.statbroadcast.com
XAVIER+ - goxavier.com/watch

ABOUT EVANSVILLE

2026 Record: 2-5-2
2025 Record: 7-5-8
2025 Postseason: None
Series History: Xavier is 5-18-4 all-time vs Evansville
Last Meeting: Xavier 3, Evansville 3 (Sept. 10, 2025 - Arad McCutchan Stadium)

NOTABLES
• Evansville was picked to finish third in the Preseason Missouri Valley Coaches' Poll and received one, first-place vote. Midfielder Devin Shepherd was named to the preseason all-conference team.
• The Purple Aces have only been shut out twice this season. Evansville is 1-3-1 in road matches.
• Evansville has played three ranked teams this season (No. 22 Indiana, No. 21 Louisville and No. 9 Georgetown). The Purple Aces have played the 25th toughest schedule in the NCAA this season (past opponents have a .602 winning percentage).
• Alejandro Fernandez leads five Evansville players who have scored a goal this season with three. He leads the team in points with seven (three goals, one assist). Devin Shepherd ranks second on the team in points with five (two goals, one assist).
• Hugo Amo (2-5-2) has a 1.44 goals against average with 25 saves and three shutouts this season.

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier is 5-18-4 all-time vs the Purple Aces. The Musketeers are 2-1 vs Evansville at Corcoran Field since 2000.
Xavier and Evansville are playing for the third straight season. The Musketeers are 3-0-2 in the last five meetings with the Purple Aces.
Xavier and Evansville played to a 3-3 tie at Arad McCutchan Stadium last season on Sept. 10. The Musketeers won the last meeting vs the two teams at Corcoran Field, 2-0, on Sept. 24, 2024.

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 3-0 win over Marquette on Oct. 3 at Corcoran Field.
The Musketeers scored three or more goals in a BIG EAST match for the first time since Oct. 28, 2023 (W, 4-0 at UConn).
Xavier held a 14-6 advantage in shots, including a 6-5 advantage in shots on goal. Nine different Musketeers took a shot in the match, paced by Johnny Gourley and Efraims Valutadatils who both took three shots.
Xavier took one more corner kick (7-6) than Marquette and committed six more fouls (9-3). Both teams were issued one yellow card.
Jonny Mennell (7-0-2) posted the win in goal. He recorded his fifth shutout of the season to go along with five saves. Mennell now has a 0.46 goals against average on the season.
Gun Ha Lee scored his second goal of the season vs Marquette. He now has two goals and two assists, ranking tied for second on the team in total points with six. He has 13 career points in a Xavier uniform (five goals, three assists).
Ekene Okeke scored his third goal of the season, ranking tied for first on the team in total goals with Nolan Brice and Gerard Lorente. He now has 10 career points (four goals, two assists).
Johnny Gourley scored his first career goal on Friday night. He has one goal and one assist on the year.

XAVIER in the rankings

Xavier men's soccer ranks No. 25 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll. The Musketeers also rank No. 25 in the TopDrawerSoccer.com Poll (most recent polls on Sept. 29; next poll release on Oct. 6).
Xavier is one of four BIG EAST teams ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Poll: No. 3 Georgetown, No. 4 Creighton, No. 18 Akron and No. 25 Xavier.
The Musketeers are ranked for the first time since Oct. 25, 2022 (ranked No. 19 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll). Xavier reached as high as No. 9 in the poll in 2022, matching the highest ranking in school history.

MENNELL - XAVIER SCHOOL RECORDS

Jonny Mennell has a 23-17-16 career record with 24 shutouts and a 0.99 goals against average (fourth in school history). His 23 career wins rank third in school history (He is two wins away from moving into a tie for second place with Eric Osswald).
Jonny Mennell has program-best 24 career shutouts.
Jonny Mennell has 180 career saves, ranking eighth all-time at Xavier. He is 22 saves away from moving into seventh place with Mark Armstrong (1984-86).

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

Sept. 28 - Gerard Lorente - Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 28 - Beckham Williams - Freshman of the Week
Sept. 28 - Nolan Brice - Defensive Player of the Week
Sept. 14 - Ekene Okeke - Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 8 - Ekene Okeke - Weekly Honor Roll
Aug. 31 - Ekene Okeke - Weekly Honor Roll

STAT RANKINGS

Xavier has only allowed four goals this season, the second fewest allowed in NCAA Division I Men's Soccer this season.
Xavier ranks second in NCAA Division I Men's Soccer in goals against average (.444).
Jonny Mennell ranks first in the BIG EAST and fourth in the NCAA in goals against average (0.458). He also ranks first in the BIG EAST and fourth in the NCAA in shutouts with five.
Xavier ranks first in the BIG EAST and third in the NCAA in corner kicks per game (8.00).
Xavier ranks fourth in the BIG EAST and 21st in the NCAA in assists per game (2.33). The Musketeers have 21 assists on the year, ranking third in the BIG EAST and 29th in the NCAA.
The Musketeers rank third in the BIG EAST and 17th in the NCAA in points per game (6.78). Xavier's scoring offense (2.22) ranks third in the BIG EAST and 23rd in the NCAA.

NOTABLES

Xavier is one of only five remaining unbeaten teams in NCAA Division I Men's Soccer (Creighton and Xavier are the only two remaining unbeaten teams in the BIG EAST).
Xavier has six shutouts in nine matches this season. The Musketeers only had four shutouts during the 2025 season.
Xavier has posted three shutouts in a row and has not allowed a goal since the 89th minute at DePaul on Sept. 18 (have not allowed a goal in 271:35).
The Musketeers have three shutouts in a row for the first time since Sept. 13 - Sept. 28 during the 2024 season (four straight shutouts).
Xavier ranks No. 14 in the latest NCAA Division I Men's Soccer RPI standings (Oct. 3), one of four schools from the BIG EAST ranked in the top-25.
The Musketeers have surpassed their win total from last year with a 7-0-2 record (went 5-6-4 in 2025).
Xavier remains unbeaten at 7-0-2, the longest unbeaten streak to start the season since 2022, when the Musketeers started the season at 9-0-5.
Nine different players have scored a goal this season for the Musketeers, paced by Nolan Brice, Gerard Lorente and Ekene Okeke who have three goals each. Lorente has a team-high 11 points (three goals, five assists).
A total of 11 different players have recorded an assist, paced by Gerard Lorente and Alejandro Silvestrini who have a team-high five assists. They are the first Musketeers with five or more assists in a season since Jerome Jolly in 2020 (six assists).
Xavier has eight players with multiple goals this season. The last time Xavier had eight players with multiple goals in the same season was 2022.
Jabari De Coteau and Cooper Forcellini were taken in the MLS SuperDraft 2026. A total of nine Musketeers have been taken all-time in the MLS Draft, including five under head coach John Higgins.
Forcellini was taken in the second round (43rd overall pick) by St. Louis CITY SC. The 2025 All-BIG EAST First Team selection finished the year ranked fifth in the BIG EAST and 51st in the NCAA in total points (22). The midfielder was named to the 2025 United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Third Team and was selected to participate in the 2025 MLS College Showcase.
De Coteau was taken in the third round (86th overall pick) by the Colorado Rapids. He played in 38 matches in three seasons for the Musketeers with one goal and one assist. The defender helped the team post 20 shutouts in three seasons. In 2023, the defense posted a school record 0.83 goals against average with nine shutouts (tied for third in school history).
In 2025, Xavier scored 24 goals in 15 matches - an increase of 10 goals from the 2024 season (had 14 goals in 17 matches).
Cooper Forcellini, Jonny Mennell, Alejandro Silvestrini and Ezra Widman were named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team in November of 2025.
All told, the Musketeers return 12 letterwinners from last season. Offensively, Harun Bakaran and Gun Ha Lee both scored three goals and recorded one assist.
Xavier welcomed 14 newcomers to the roster in the fall of 2026.

COACH HIGGINS

John Higgins was named the seventh men's soccer head coach in program history on March 28, 2022. Higgins joined the Musketeers from the University of Indianapolis where he compiled a 150-56-29 overall record in 12 seasons with the Greyhounds.
John Higgins has posted a 33-19-24 (10-11-14 BIG EAST) record in five seasons at Xavier. His teams have posted 33 shutouts in 76 matches.
John Higgins had two players taken in the MLS SuperDraft 2026. Five of the nine MLS Draft Picks in school history have come under Coach Higgins.
In 2023, Higgins led the Musketeers to the program's first BIG EAST Championship - defeating No. 3 Georgetown in the tournament championship via penalty kicks to earn the conference's automatic NCAA Tournament bid. Xavier advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in school history and the first time since 2014. The Musketeers also had two top-25 wins during the season.
In 2022, the Musketeers had a 14-match unbeaten streak during the regular season - matching the program record for longest unbeaten streak. Xavier also climbed to as high as No. 9 in the United Soccer Coaches' Poll, matching the highest ranking in school history. The Musketeers also advanced to the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time since 2018.

SCHEDULE NOTES

Xavier will play 11 matches at Corcoran Field this fall, including the team's season opener on Aug. 20 vs Purdue Fort Wayne.
The Musketeers will play three teams that finished the 2025 season ranked in the top-25 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll: Georgetown (No. 5), Akron (No. 12) and UConn (No. 24).
Xavier played two matches during preseason. The Musketeers played host to Western Michigan on Aug. 8 and traveled to IU Indy on Aug. 15 (Xavier won both matches).
The Musketeers play four teams that participated in the 2025 NCAA Tournament: Western Michigan (Aug. 8), Seton Hall (Oct. 10), Akron (Oct. 24) and UConn (Oct. 31).
Xavier plays teams from four different conferences during non-conference action: ASUN, Big Ten, Horizon (3) and MVC.
BIG EAST action begins on Sept. 18 at DePaul. Xavier also travels to Seton Hall (Oct. 10), Akron (Oct. 24) and Butler (Nov. 6) during conference action.
The Musketeers open home BIG EAST action on Sept. 26 vs Villanova. Xavier also plays Marquette (Oct. 2), Creighton (Oct. 15) and UConn (Oct. 31) at Corcoran Field during conference action.
The BIG EAST Championships returns to the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md., on Nov. 12-15.

BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL

East Division
(first-place votes)
1. Georgetown - 66 (11)
2. UConn - 46
3. Providence45 (1)
4. St. John's - 37
5. Seton Hall - 36
6. Villanova - 16

Midwest Division
(first-place votes)
1. Akron - 66 (11)
2. Creighton - 56 (1)
3. Xavier - 43
4. Marquette - 34
5. DePaul - 27
6. Butler - 20

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Xavier men's soccer has reached the NCAA Tournament in five of the last 16 seasons. The Musketeers have also won 10 or more matches in seven of the last 16 seasons.
Xavier was the only program in the nation with five consecutive major conference awards from 2012-16, including 2016 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Cory Brown.
Xavier has qualified for eight of the last 13 BIG EAST Championships, including trips to the title game in 2014, 2017 and 2023.
Xavier has been ranked in the nation's top-10 four times in the last 13 years by the United Soccer Coaches. The Musketeers have been nationally-ranked in at least one major college soccer poll (United Soccer Coaches, Top Drawer Soccer, College Soccer News, Soccer America) in all but two seasons since 2011.
Xavier was ranked as high as No. 9 on Oct. 19, 2022 - matching the highest ranking in program history (was also ranked No. 9 on Oct. 28, 2014).
In 2015, Xavier knocked off the national No. 1 (Creighton) and No. 2 (Notre Dame) on the road. The Musketeers are widely believed to be the first program to ever knock off both a No. 1 and a No. 2 on the road in the same season.
Nine Xavier players have been selected in the MLS SuperDraft in the last 14 years.

XAVIER MLS HISTORY

2025 - Jabari De Coteau - 3rd Round (86th) - Colorado Rapids
2025 - Cooper Forcellini - 2nd Round (43rd) - St. Louis CITY SC
2024 - Matthew Senanou - 1st Round (6th) - Colorado Rapids
2022 - Cole Jensen - GK - 1st Round (18th) - Inter Miami CF
2022 - Makel Rasheed - D - 3rd Round (65th) - Nashville FC
2018 - Cory Brown - D - 3rd Round (62nd) - Vancouver Whitecaps FC
2017 - Jalen Brown - MF/F - 2nd Round (38th) - NYC FC
2014 - Nick Hagglund - D - 1st Round (10th) - Toronto FC
2013 - Luke Spencer - F - 1st Round (23rd) - New England Revolution

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Xavier will broadcast all 10 home matches on either Xavier+ or ESPN+.
The subscription cost of Xavier+ will be $10 per match or $45 for a fall men's soccer season pass to watch all six home Xavier+ broadcasts. All purchases are subject to the customer's state sales tax.
A subscription to ESPN+ is required to view the four home men's soccer matches aired on ESPN+. An ESPN+ subscription will also include a number of road men's soccer contests (determined by the host institution).