Fort Hays State Men's Soccer enters Great American Conference play this week, hosting two contests at FHSU Soccer Stadium. The No. 22 ranked Tigers will host No. 12 ranked Rogers State on Thursday (Sept. 17) at 7 p.m. to open conference play, then take on Northeastern State on Saturday (Sept. 19) at 1 p.m. The Tigers enter conference play at 2-1-2 overall.
 
How to Watch
Both contests this week are on The MIAA Network. Subscription rates apply.
 
Tigers Sweep Hillcats in 2025
Fort Hays State and Rogers State tangled four times last year and FHSU won all four meetings. The Tigers took the regular season meetings by scores of 4-0 and 1-0 before taking the GAC Tournament championship match 2-1 and the NCAA Super Regional final match 4-0. Both teams were ranked in the Top 20 of the national poll in all four meetings. FHSU now holds an 8-6-7 advantage in the very competitive all-time series.
 
Tigers Sweep RiverHawks in 2025
Fort Hays State won all three meetings with Northeastern State in 2025. The Tigers won both regular season meetings in conference play before taking the conference tournament semifinal match between the teams. FHSU scored at least three goals in all three contests. FHSU is 10-0-2 in its last 12 matches with NSU, with the last loss during the short 2020-21 spring season when the usual fall season was canceled due to COVID-19. The Tigers hold a 21-9-7 advantage in the all-time series.
 
Tiger Trip to Texas
Fort Hays State is coming off a road swing to Texas that netted just one draw for the time being. Fort Hays State played at West Texas A&M last Thursday, but the scoreless match was suspended just over 50 minutes into the contest due to inclement weather in the area. The match could not be resumed that evening, so a make-up date to finish the match is still pending. Two days later, the Tigers played to a 1-1 draw with Lubbock Christian.
 
No. 22 in the Latest Poll
Fort Hays State moved up three spots to No. 22 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Tigers have been in the Top 25 of every poll so far this season, which includes the preseason and three regular season polls.
 
Players of the Week
FHSU has claimed two GAC Player of the Week honors so far this season. Francisco Degiorgi was the Offensive Player of the Week after the first week of play, and Payton Roehrich claimed Goalkeeper of the Week after the second week of play. For Roehrich, it was the third time he earned the honor in his career at FHSU.
 
Valkema Leads in Goals
Forward Len Valkema is the team leader in goals this season with three. Five Tigers are next in line, all with one so far this season.
 
Multiple Assists
Francisco Degiorgi and Juan Linares lead the Tigers in assists this season, each with two. Scott Dillon has the only other helper on Tiger goals so far this season.
 
Strong Between the Pipes
Payton Roehrich continues to produce strong numbers in goal. He holds a 0.61 goals against average for the season and an .813 save percentage. Both are among the top 35 nationally in both categories.
 
Nichols Guiding the Tigers
Alex Nichols is in his third season leading FHSU. He holds an overall record of 197-44-24, now in his 13th season as a head coach at the collegiate level.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Rogers State
-The Hillcats enter this week ranked No. 12 in the nation. They took their first loss last week to St. Mary's (Texas) and hold a 4-1-1 record overall.
-The Hillcats have four players leading the team in goals, all with two this season. That group includes Harkaran Sahota, Jamie Kennedy, Alex Laing, and Brandon O'Rourke.
-Goalkeeper Tristan Miller holds a 1.00 goals against average and .806 save percentage for the season.
-Jake Simpson is in his second season leading RSU. He holds an overall record of 18-5-6.
 
Northeastern State
-The RiverHawks hold an overall record of 1-4 on the season, but have not yielded more than two goals in a game so far this season.
-Carter Adams leads NSU in goals with 2 for the season.
-Victor Jaunay leads NSU in goalkeeping with a 1.2 goals against average and .750 save percentage.
-Rob Czlonka is in his 16^th season leading the RiverHawks and holds an overall record of 151-94-31.