RICHARDSON, Texas – After making a run to the Lone Star Conference Tournament championship match last season, the Lubbock Christian men’s soccer team was voted to finish fourth according to the LSC Preseason poll released on Thursday, Aug. 18.
The preseason poll reflects the opinions of LSC head coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives throughout the region.
The Chaps earned 162 total points and one first-place vote, their first top vote in the LSC poll since joining the conference prior to the 2019 season. The last time LCU men’s soccer earned a first-place vote in a preseason conference poll was in the 2014 Heartland Conference preseason selections. The 2014 team earned four first-place votes and was predicted to finish second in the conference. The 2014 Chap squad finished the season 9-6-1 overall and 6-2 in the Heartland to finish second.
Last season, Lubbock Christian was predicted to finish seventh in the LSC. The Chaps proved the prognosticators wrong in the 2021 fall season, finishing 10-6-2, their first ten-win season since the 2013 campaign. The Chaps went 6-1-1 in their final eight games, recording three straight shutouts to close the season in the Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament before falling in penalty kicks to top-seeded Midwestern State in the finals.
Additionally, three Chaps were named Lone Star Conference Players to Watch. Twenty-two players – seven offensive, eight defensive, and seven goalkeepers – were selected for the first LSC men’s soccer preseason players to watch list. The student-athletes were nominated by their member institutions for recognition.
Pablo Gailetero Diez earned LSC Offensive Player to Watch honors for LCU. The senior out of Madrid, Spain scored four goals and tallied 10 total points last season, tied for third-most on the team. In the first round of the LSC Conference Tournament, Galietero Diez scored a goal and recorded an assist, giving the Chaps their 100th win all-time as a program in the 6-0 shellacking of Texas Permian Basin.
On the defensive side, Jasper Reese earned the LSC Defensive Player to Watch honor for Lubbock Christian. The senior from Rodenberg, Germany played in 13 contests and started nine for the Chaps. Reese recorded six total games in which he played all 90 minutes of the match, including a 100-minute performance on Sept. 12 against CSU-Pueblo. From Sept. 10-Oct. 13, he spent a total of 543 straight minutes on the pitch before being subbed out against Oklahoma Christian with seven minutes left. Reese was part of an LCU defense that recorded 10 shutouts during the 2021 season.
Rounding out the honors for the Chaps is the West Texas A&M transfer Tom Miles, who earns the LSC Goalkeeper to Watch distinction for Lubbock Christian. Last season with the Buffs, Miles saw action in 19 games with 17 starts. He recorded a season high of 13 saves against Cal Poly Pomona on Dec. 2. while also logging a season high of 110 minutes against the Mustangs. For his efforts, Miles was selected to the Third Team All-Conference squad.
Midwestern State was voted to repeat as Lone Star Conference Champions, earning 15 first-place votes and 245 points. Not far behind them is West Texas A&M, as the Buffs earned seven first-place votes and 230 points. St. Mary’s sits ahead of LCU in third place, earning three first-place votes and 199 points.
MSU’s Mere Escobar and Marc-Antoine Huzen were named Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year, while Dallas Baptist’s Payton Franklin earned Preseason Defensive Player of the Year honors.
The 10 teams in the Lone Star Conference will compete in a nine-game single-round robin schedule. The LSC Men’s Soccer Championship will include the top six teams based on conference points. The tournament will begin with quarterfinal matches on Tuesday, November 1, followed by the semifinal and championship matches at the No. 1 seed on Friday, November 4 and Sunday, November 6.
The 2022 Lubbock Christian men’s soccer season begins in exactly one week, as the Chaps will host Adams State on Thursday, Aug. 25 at the LCU Soccer and Track & Field Complex. Kickoff is set for 7 pm For more information on the LCU men’s soccer team, fans can find their way to lcuchaps.com.
2022 LSC Men’s Soccer Preseason Poll
| Rank | School | 1 st | Total |
| 1 | Midwestern State | 15 | 245 |
| 2 | West Texas A&M | 7 | 230 |
| 3 | St. Mary’s | 3 | 199 |
| 4 | Lubbock Christian | 1 | 162 |
| 5 | UT Tyler | 153 | |
| 6 | Texas A&M International | 128 | |
| 7 | UT Permian Basin | 100 | |
| 8 | Oklahoma Christian | 83 | |
| 9 | DBU | 78 | |
| 10 | Eastern New Mexico | 52 |
LSC Men’s Soccer Offensive Players to Watch
| Name | School | Class | Pos. | Major | Hometown/High School |
| Liam Miranda | Eastern New Mexico | JR | F | Art | Paris, France |
| Pablo Galietero Diez | Lubbock Christian | SR | F | Sports Management | Madrid, Spain/IES Gabriela Mistral |
| Mere Escobar | Midwestern State | JR | F | Business Management | Austin, Texas/Anderson HS |
| Andrick Ferrer | St. Mary’s | SO | MF/D | Management | San Antonio, Texas/Cornerstone Christian |
| Tajani Fairclough | Texas A&M International | JR | F | Communications | Toronto, Ontario/Downsview HS |
| Rodrigo Rogatto | UT Permian Basin | SR | F | Computer Sciences | Santos, Brazil/Onis |
| Denise Herrera | West Texas A&M | SR | F | General Studies | Tegucigalpa, Honduras/Richmond (Ind.) HS |
LSC Men’s Soccer Defensive Players to Watch
| Name | School | Class | Pos. | Major | Hometown/High School |
| Payton Franklin | DBU | SR | DEF | Biology | Greenville, Texas/Greenville HS |
| Ludwig Scherer | Eastern New Mexico | SO | DEF | Math | Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany/Werdenfels |
| Jasper Reese | Lubbock Christian | SR | DEF | Economics | Rodenburg, Germany/Gymnasium Bad Nenndorf |
| Colby Parton | Midwestern State | SR | DEF | Exercise Physiology | Euless, Texas/Trinity HS |
| Lewis Wilson | St. Mary’s | SR | DEF | Comm. Studies | Aberdeen, Scotland/Kenmay Academy |
| Tahja Reynolds | Texas A&M International | SR | DEF | Business Admin. | Manchester, Jamaica/Spalding Clarendon |
| Alejandro Pinzon | UT Permian Basin | SR | DEF | Engineering | Tulua, Colombia/Salesiano |
| Kenny Brown | West Texas A&M | SR | MF | Civil Engineering | Liverpool, England/St. Edmund Arrowsmith Academy |
LSC Men’s Soccer Goalkeepers to Watch
| Name | School | Class | Pos. | Major | Hometown/High School |
| Miguel Pedroza | Eastern New Mexico | JR | GK | Criminal Justice | Albuquerque, NM/Atrisco Heritage |
| Tom Miles | Lubbock Christian | FR | GK | Psychology | Epsom, England/Glynn School |
| Marc-Antoine Huzen | Midwestern State | SR | GK | Marketing | Paris, France/Lycee Voltaire |
| Andre Schlaefli | St. Mary’s | JR | GK | Accounting | Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes HS |
| Robin Verhoeven | Texas A&M International | JR | GK | Kinesiology | Deurne, Netherlands/SV Duerne |
| Christian Hovind | UT Permian Basin | SR | GK | Business | Raelingen, Norway/Raelingen VGS |
| Alfonso Aragon | West Texas A&M | SR | GK | Finance and Economics | Huesca, Spain/Santa Rosa-Altoaragon |