West Liberty, W.Va. – The West Liberty University men's soccer team will play their final non-conference match of the season on Wednesday evening as they travel to face Salem. The Hilltoppers and Tigers are set for an 8 p.m. kickoff at The Bridge Sports Complex in Bridgeport, West Virginia. What was supposed to be WLU's final non-conference game on Sunday afternoon at D'Youville has been canceled.

GAME DETAILS

• Location: Bridgeport, W.Va. (The Bridge Sports Complex)
• Kickoff: 8 P.M.

WEST LIBERTY STORYLINES

• West Liberty enters Wednesday's match with a record of 5-2-2 (4-2-1 MEC) on the season and is currently third in the Mountain East Conference standings with 13 points through seven matches.
• The Black & Gold held steady at No. 8 in this week's United Soccer Coaches Atlantic Region rankings.
• In their last game, WLU took sole possession of third place in the conference standings after defeating West Virginia Wesleyan 2-1 at the West Family Athletic Complex. It marked the second time this season that they have trailed at halftime or later in the match and gone on to win.
• Mark Donnelly leads West Liberty and is tied for sixth in the MEC with three goals on the year. Vitor Otsuka, Jan Goebel, and Zachary Forehand have each found the back of the net twice this season.
• Otsuka is one of six players on the team with an assist and has notched a team-high of five, which remains tied for the lead in the conference. Goebel, Rhys Lewis, Tim Stickland, Shimon Ichimiya, and Jasper Newton each have one.
• Otsuka (2 goals, 5 assists) leads the team with nine points while Donnelly (3 goals) is second on the team with six points. Otsuka is tied for fourth among the MEC leaders.
• In goal, Noah Underwood has played 720 minutes thus far this season. He has made 34 saves for a .850 save percentage on 84 shots faced, while posting a 0.75 goals-against average. He has notched three shutouts this season in wins over No. 12 Davis & Elkins, California (PA), and Wheeling. Underwood holds the best save percentage in the conference while also ranking third in goals-against average, total saves, and saves per game (4.25).
• Through nine matches, West Liberty holds the advantage over their opponents in goals (16-7), assists (10-3), shots (106-92), shots-on-goal (50-45), corner kicks (58-44), and saves (37-32).
• Sean Regan is in his fifth season as the head coach at West Liberty with a record of 21-43-7 with the Hilltoppers. Overall, he is in his 15th season as a head coach in collegiate men's soccer after spending ten previous seasons at nearby Bethany, he holds a career record of 82-161-19 during his time with the Bison and Hilltoppers.

SALEM STORYLINES

• Salem enters Wednesday's match with a record of 1-6-2 on the season following a 1-1 draw on the road at Davis & Elkins a week ago.
• Mauricio Aguilar Renovales is the lone player to score multiple goals this season with two on the year, leading the team with four points.
• Ricardo Gallego Curto, Diego Losada, and David Teruel Nuno have each found the back of the net once this season.
• Valentin Fritz has recorded the lone assist of the year for the Tigers.
• Bryant Sheffield has started six matches while playing in seven for Salem, totaling 514 minutes in goal while making 30 saves with a 0.667 save percentage on 92 shots faced. He holds a 2.62 goals against average to go along with one shutout this season.
• Through nine matches Salem's opponents have held the advantage in goals (24-5), assists (18-1), shots (131-65), shots-on-goal (65-33), and corner kicks (54-25), while the Tigers hold the edge in saves (40-28).
• Florin Marton is in his second stint as the head coach at Salem and holds a career record of 131-160-28 as the Tigers' all-time wins leader in 21 seasons at the helm.

SERIES HISTORY

• With three meetings in the series since 2017, the overall series record is 1-1-1 between West Liberty and Salem.
• The Hilltoppers and Tigers met at the West Family Athletic Complex on September 17 earlier this season, playing to a 1-1 draw. Mark Donnelly scored the lone goal for WLU off an assist from Shimon Ichimiya.