SIUE Cougars (0-1-0) at Air Force Falcons (0-2-0)
Thu., Aug. 28, 2025
Cadet Soccer Stadium, USAFA, Colorado

TONIGHT: SIUE men's soccer goes on the road for the first time in the 2025 regular season to face Air Force and Denver in Colorado.

LAST TIME: SIUE fell behind 2-0 and dropped its opening night contest 2-1 to Florida Gulf Coast last Thursday at home. Carles Zomeño scored the Cougars' lone goal.

HOME COOKING: SIUE has successfully defended its home turf in recent seasons. Including Thursday's loss, the Cougars are 17-2-2 at Korte Stadium since the start of the 2023 season.

OWNING THE OVC: In two seasons since the OVC began men's soccer, the Cougars have just one loss to Conference opponents and sport a 17-1-2 record in regular season games and a 4-0 mark in the OVC Tournament.

THE SERIES: SIUE and Air Force have faced each other 11 previous times in men's soccer. The Cougars own a 9-0-2 advantage in the all-time series. The most recent meeting came in 2021 when the Cougars defeated the Falcons 3-2 at Korte Stadium. The last time the two teams met in Colorado was the 1989 season- a 2-0 win for SIUE..

AT THE HELM: Two-time OVC Coach of the Year Cale Wassermann is in his seventh season in charge of the Cougars, and his 12th overall as a head coach. He has a record of 52-36-15 (.584) in six full seasons at SIUE. He is third all-time in wins at SIUE. 

SCORING: SIUE lost its seven top scorers and eight of the top 10. The Cougars open the season with just four goal scorers from a season ago representing six of 30 goals (20 percent) scored a season ago. Returners account for just 18 percent (15 of 85) of total points scored in 2024.

FRESH FACES: In all, the Cougars have 11 newcomers on the roster in 2025. Seven of the newcomers saw time in Thursday's opener.