Men's Soccer

MVC Men's Soccer Weekly Notebook (Oct. 7)

ST. LOUIS -- The Missouri Valley Conference named its men's soccer weekly award winners on Tuesday. The MVC Player of the Week is Northern Illinois' Vance Sheffield while Evansville's Michal Mroz has been tabbed the MVC Defensive Player of the Week. 

Conference News & Notes
  • The Missouri Valley Conference has a nation-leading three of the 14 unbeaten teams remaining in Division I men’s soccer in Belmont (6-0-4), Drake (5-0-5) and UIC (7-0-3).
  • With a 2-0 victory over Western Michigan, Evansville moved to 2-0 in Conference play to lead the Valley standings. The Purple Aces are currently riding a six-match unbeaten streak - their longest in a single season since 2009. 
  • Northern Illinois earned its first Valley victory of the season with a come-from-behind win against Bradley. Freshman Vance Sheffield provided an assist before notching the game-winner.
  • Belmont’s 12-match unbeaten streak, dating back to last season, is the third-longest in the nation behind Vermont (21) and Portland (20).
  • UIC leads The Valley and ranks in the top 10 nationally in total assists (29), goals (25) and points (79). The Flames also rank second in shots on goal per match (9.10) ahead of Northern Illinois, who sits at 7.30 - the 10th best mark in Division I. 
  • Defensively, Belmont ranks 14th nationally in team goals against average (.600) with Drake joining the Bruins inside the Top 20 at .700.
  • Bowling Green’s Enzo Gil leads the MVC and ranks seventh in Division I in total saves (50), whil
  • Bradley’s Drew Berry follows closely behind with 47 stops on the year. Both are averging over 4.50 saves per match, ranking in the Top 20 nationally in the category.
  • UIC’s Edouard Nys is one of the most prolific scorers in Division I, ranking third in total points (23) and fourth in goals scored (9).
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PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Vance Sheffield, Northern Illinois, Fr., Forward - West Linn, Ore. (La Salle Catholic College Prep)
Northern Illinois’ Vance Sheffield tallied a goal and an assist as the Huskies came from behind with two goals in the final four minutes to top Bradley, 2-1. Trailing 1-0, Sheffield provided the assist for Martin Montoya’s match-tying goal in the 87th minute. Two mintues later, Sheffield netted the game-winner, heading home a Montoya free kick to give NIU the victory. Sheffield’s goal was his fifth of the season, which is tied for fourth nationally among freshmen, and it is the most goals scored by a Huskie rookie since 2018.
 
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Michal Mroz, Evansville, So., Goalkeeper - Elk Grove, Ill. (Elk Grove HS)
Evansville’s Michal Mroz posted his second-consecutive clean sheet in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Western Michigan to help the Purple Aces improve to 2-0 in MVC play. Mroz made five saves, tying his season-best mark, with all five stops coming in the final 20 minutes of action. He has allowed just one goal over the last five matches and has helped the Aces to a three-match winning streak and six-match unbeaten streak - their longest in a single season since 2009.