The Fort Hays State men's soccer team hosts a pair of non-conference home matches this weekend, starting with Oklahoma Baptist on Thursday (Sept. 28) before the Crimson Storm of Southern Nazarene face the Tigers on Saturday (Sept. 30). Thursday evening's match is set to begin at 7:30 p.m., while Saturday afternoon's contest will kick off at 1:30 p.m.
 
Two other matches will be going on at FHSU Soccer Stadium, with the University of Mary facing off against the same two opponents. The Marauders will play Southern Nazarene Thursday at 5 p.m. and take on Oklahoma Baptist at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
 
The Tigers are coming off of an impressive 2-0 conference start with a nine goal week as they defeated Southwest Baptist 7-0 on Friday (Sept. 22) and escaped Sunday (Sept. 24) with a 2-1 golden goal victory over Northeastern State. The Tigers were struggling to find an offensive outburst before their rout over the Bearcats as they had only found the back of the net five times prior to the match.
 
As a team, FHSU leads the MIAA in goals scored (14), assists (11), total points (39) and shots (104) on the year. The Tigers have also created the most scoring chances in the conference as they enter the weekend with 38 corner kicks.
 
Senior Derick Gonzalez leads the Tiger offense with five goals on the season, already halfway to his total from last year. Gonzalez also leads the team in assists (four), points (14), shots (19) and shots on goal (nine) so far this season. He ranks first in the conference in every offensive category. Raul Fierro has added three goals to the mix, all of which were in the match with the Bearcats, recording the fourth hat trick in team history. Abdoulaye Cisse has chipped in with two goals and one assist to his credit. Four other Tigers (Mauricio Etcheverry, Caesar Jones, Sergio Villalba and Christopher Johnson) have scored one goal each.
 
Oklahoma Baptist makes their way to Hays with an overall record of 2-4-1 and a GAC record of 1-1. Thiago Dos Santos poses the biggest threat for the Bison, accounting for three goals and one assist on the season. He is tied for third in the conference in goals including netting the game-winning goal against Oklahoma Christian early in the year.
 
Southern Nazarene enters the weekend with an overall record of 0-7-1. Pedro Garcia brings the offense for the Crimson Storm as he has found the back of the net twice this season, leading his team in goals, assists and points.