Conway – After a nonconference slate that saw them get off to their best start in three seasons, the Central Arkansas men's soccer team is set to open the Missouri Valley Conference portion of its schedule on Saturday. The Bears will take on the Evansville Purple Aces on the road at 2:00 PM.

The Bears (2-3-1) are coming off a 2-1, overtime loss to Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas last week. Freshman Niklas Brodacki gave the Bears an early lead, making a long run through the Cardinal back line to put UCA up 1-0 in the 14^th minute. That lead would hold until the 86^th minute, when UIW found a late equalizer. The Cardinals found the golden goal in the 94^th minute.

On the season, Central Arkansas has found the net 13 times in six matches, ranking second in the Valley with an average of 2.17 goals per game. On the flip side, UCA has allowed eight goals, sitting at fourth in the MVC with an average of 1.33 goals allowed per game.

Brodacki is off to one of the best starts to a career in UCA history, leading the Valley with six goals and 12 points. The Norrkoping, Sweden native currently sits at 11^th in the nation in goals and ranks first among freshmen nationally. The Central Arkansas offense is bolstered by the defending MVC scoring champ, senior Wes Carson, who has scored three goals this season, and sophomore Chris Holmes, who has matched that total.

"When you've got one guy that teams can key in on, it makes it simple for them," said UCA head coach Ross Duncan. "Last season, teams weren't able to stop Wes, but it simplified their preparation that he was our main scoring threat. And when you're preparing for a match, you want to keep things as simple as possible and focus on your own team. So having multiple threats, especially with a guy that's ranked as highly as Niklas is, makes it a nightmare to prepare for. You can't just defend his side, because you've got our leading scorer for the last three years coming right up the middle. We've got midfielders that have scored multiple goals, we're scoring off of set pieces, we're scoring off of combination plays, so it's a nice thing to have as part of our system."

On the back line, the Bears have seen consistency at both center back spots and at right back, as sophomore Daltyn Knutson, junior Blake Stricker, and senior Jordan Bates have all started at least four matches for a UCA defense that has allowed just over four shots on goal per game. Junior Dango Kumwenda and sophomore Niklas Sandquist have split time at the left back spot for the Bears, with each starting three games and Kumwenda playing just four more minutes.

"Our back line is a huge focus for us," said Duncan. "We feel like we've been able to address and pull some very simple, but very important tactical pieces out of it.  The goal for every game is to pitch a shutout, and I feel like we're in a position to do that."

Holmes has been a key component of the midfield for the Bears, and has been joined by junior Pepe San Roman, who has one assists and has generated numerous scoring chances while starting five matches for the Bears.

"The midfield is probably our most effective phase of our system right now," said Duncan. "Their ability to dominate games is a big part of why we've been in the positions that we've been in. The fact that Pepe isn't on the scoresheet yet is crazy, because he's done everything except that. And it's not just Chris and Pepe, we've also had some guys that have rotated through, in Harris Partain, William Woody, and Christian Ilia, and they've all made significant impacts."

In goal the Bears have leaned heavily on freshman Marc Olsen, who has played every minute in net. He ranks fourth in the Valley in goals against average (1.28), saves (20), and shutouts (2).

"Marc is a guy that we have a lot of confidence in, and that's a thing that's a huge part of goalkeeping," said Duncan of his first-year net-minder. "You're never going to be perfect; the other night he saved a penalty kick, and then we got scored on later in the match, so he did the work but didn't get the result. But I know that the staff and, most importantly, the back line has the confidence in the guy behind him. And that's how you get shutouts, when everybody is on the same page, they believe in each other, and you have a guy that can make the saves."

Evansville (4-3-1, 1-0-0 MVC) is coming off of a 3-1 loss to #10 Butler on Tuesday evening. The Bulldogs built a 3-0 lead before junior Ian McGrath got the Aces on the board in the 81^st minute. The Aces picked up a 2-0 win over Bradley in their conference opener on Saturday.

On the year, the Aces have scored 14 goals for an average of 1.75 goals per game, and allowed 13 for an average of 1.63 per game. UE ranks third in the league in goals per game, while surrendering the sixth-most goals per game in the Valley. McGrath and senior Jared Robinson lead the Aces and are tied for second in the Valley in points, with four goals and an assist each. In goal for Evansville, freshman Frederik Reimer has started six matches, allowing 10 goals for an average of 1.67 per match and making 19 saves. Evansville leads the all-time series with the Bears by a mark of 6-1, though Central Arkansas won last year's meeting in Conway by a 3-0 score.

"Both of our programs did significant work in the offseason," said Duncan. "We both had areas that we needed to address. I know that we did, and watching the film, it looks like Evansville did as well' they're a much improved team. For us to expect to go to Evansville and get the same result as last year is insane. They're going to be prepared for us, we're going to be prepared for them, so my expectation is that it's going to be a very competitive match, and the sharper team on the day will get the win."