Lynchburg, Va. -- In the most recent United Soccer Coaches Top 25 NCAA DIII National Poll, the University of Lynchburg men's soccer team jumped to No. 22 in the rankings, announced by USC on Tuesday. Lynchburg now gets ready to welcome Randolph to Shellenberger Field on Wednesday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m.

The Hornets (6-0-2, 1-0-0) received votes in the USC preseason poll, but had not received votes before leaping into the top 25 in week four of the poll. With an eight-game unbeaten record and five-game winning streak, the men's soccer squad will take on the WildCats (2-5-3, 0-1-0) on the home pitch for a midweek bout.

These two sides last matched up on Oct. 9, 2024, which results in a 2-0 home victory for Lynchburg. The last 10 meetings between these two groups have gone the Hornets' way. Randolph's last triumph against Lynchburg was on Nov. 5, 2011, where the Hornets were nipped on the road, 2-1. 

Through 10 games, the WildCats have had eight different goal scorers. Freshman forward Marcus Cortes leads the way offensively with three goals and one assist. Last time out, Randolph matched up against Bridgewater and fell, 3-2, despite Cortes scoring once and dishing out an assist. Defensively, the WildCats' netminder Dominic Cortes ranks second in the conference in saves per game with 4.70. 

Lynchburg's crew has been impressive thus far on both sides of the ball. The Hornets rank atop the conference and 32nd in the country in goals against average, allowing .625 scores per affair. To go along with that, Lynchburg owns the top rank in scoring offense with an average of 2.75 goals per outing, the 28th-best rate in the nation. That paired together allows the Hornets to rank 20th across all of DIII in goal differential at +17.

The Hornets have found success through a collective effort on both ends. Offensively, 11 different performers have found the back of the net and 15 athletes have tallied at least one point, whether it be via assist or goal. Five different Hornets have five-or-more points through Lynchburg's eight games: Chris Bovo (four goals), Carlos Andres Romero (three goals, two assists), Evan Pask (three goals, one assist), William Casey (three goals), and Matthew Viscuso (one goal, three assists). Additionally, Casey is the reigning ODAC Defensive Player of the Week. 

Following tomorrow's midweek matchup, the Hornets will take on Averett at home on Saturday, Oct. 4 at 4 p.m.

Visit Lynchburg athletics' home online, LynchburgSports.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news on all Hornets sports and coverage from the Lynchburg Hornets Sports Network.

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