Men’s soccer squares off with Texas Wesleyan, Dallas Christian College this week

The Texas A&M University-Victoria men's soccer team is looking to build off its last performance.

The Jaguars beat NCAA Division III foe McMurry University, 1-0, on the road on Sunday for the program's first win of the season.

Now they'll test themselves with home games against Texas Wesleyan, on Thursday, and Dallas Christian College, on Saturday. Both games are scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at The Cage.

"We made a few changes in the lineup to make some adjustments and see if it worked better," said first-year head coach Vince Martinez. "It seemed to work better and a six-hour bus ride is a lot nicer when you get a win. I was happy for the guys to get their first win of the season. We've still got a lot of improvement to do, but I'm glad the guys were able to pull that one out."

Senior Baillie O'Reilly dispatched a penalty kick in the 69^th minute to give A&M-Victoria (1-2) the win on Sunday. That snapped a four-game losing streak which dated back to last season.

It was the Burbage, England, native's fourth goal with the Jaguars and first this season.

"The last game against Nelson, I thought he was one of our best players," Martinez said. "He's a definite threat to any opponent. He's streaky. Him and I talked, and he feels if he gets one or two more, he thinks this season will be one of his best years. So, getting him on the scoresheet is very nice to get him rolling."

A&M-Victoria picked up its first goal of the year on a header from Josh Loveridge from a Murray Brieley corner kick in the 81^st minute of a 3-1 loss to Nelson University on Friday. The goal at the time made it 2-1 and put the Jaguars in position to make a comeback.

Being able to capitalize on set pieces is one area Martinez feels is important for the team's success.

"It's very promising when you can score on set pieces, whether it's corners, free kicks or indirect kicks," Martinez said. "The tail end of the (McMurry) game, we had a few more opportunities that didn't go in that were very dangerous. So, I was very happy with the way we were able to be a little better in attacking set pieces."

Goalkeepers Tyler Kaeppeli and Eric Thust combined for the clean sheet on Sunday. It was the Jaguars' first 1-0 win since Oct. 7, 2023, at Paul Quinn.

Thust got the winning decision after making three saves in the second half. Kaeppeli made two in the first half, moving him two saves away from setting a new career saves record which was set by Brian Redmond with 140 between the 2014 and 2016 seasons.

"Our goalkeepers, both of them, are very capable," Martinez said. "They're both very capable of being All-Conference-type players. But I was happy with the back line. I was impressed with how we defended as a whole. From the forwards to the midfielders, I think it was a huge thing for us."

Thursday will be the seventh meeting all-time with the Rams (3-2) and the Jaguars own a 3-2-1 edge in the series. The last time the two teams met, they battled to a 2-2 draw at The Cage in 2023.

It's the second meeting with Dallas Christian (1-1-2). The Jaguars won the first meeting last year, 4-0.

Saturday's game is also Youth Soccer Appreciation Day presented by Crossroads Bank. All youth soccer players get in free if they're wearing their youth soccer team's jersey.