🆚 University of the Incarnate Word
📆 Friday, September 26, 2025
⏰ 7 pm CT
🏟️ Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium – San Antonio, Texas
📈 LIVE STATS  
📺 ESPN+       

Houston Christian University hits the midway point of its season-long five-match road stretch on Friday night when it travels to the Alamo City to take on longtime rival University of the Incarnate Word. It will be the Ohio Valley Conference opener for both teams with kick-off at Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium slated for 7 pm.
 
HCU has been idle for nine days, having not played since Ryan Okerayi's 88^th minute penalty gave the Huskies a thrilling 1-0 victory over UTRGV in Edinburg on September 17. It marked the second straight season that HCU has bested the Vaqueros by one-nil on a late score from Okerayi.
 
With just under three minutes remaining, the Huskies got a steal near midfield from Ian Belong, who then quickly played the ball ahead, slicing it into open space through a pair of defenders. Okerayi collected the ball off a missed tackle from the final defender and then drew out the UTRGV keeper. A poke to the left inside was the box was met by a takedown just as Okerayi was preparing to shoot. The penalty was awarded and was calmly placed into the lower right corner with 2:27 left on the board.
 
Okerayi had three shots, all on goal, and collected his team-best fifth goal of the season and 17th of his career. The game-winner comes one day shy of one full year removed of his clincher last season against the Vaqueros, a steal and smash in the 78th minute that provided the same outcome, a one-nil result at Sorrels Field.
 
Alex Aitken posted his fourth clean sheet of the season, collecting four saves while facing nine shots. For his efforts he was named the OVC goalkeeper of the week, his third honor of the season, while Hans Leza picked up his first OVC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
 
Okerayi leads the club with 10 points coming on a team-high five goals, having put 11 of his 17 total shots on goal thus far for a .647 SOG%. He is second in the OVC in points and is tied for the league lead in goals scored.
 
With his game-winner against UTRGV, Okerayi now has two this season, both coming after 80 minutes of play and both via penalty. Earlier this season, the junior from Houston scored in the 80th minute vs. Gonzaga on August 31 for a 1-0 HCU win before the 88th minute clincher against UTRGV. He now sits in a tie for sixth-place all-time with five career game-winners with three of those coming in the 75^th minute or later.
 
HCU has 3 players in the top 10 for shots per game in Ryan Okerayi, D'Alessandro Herrera and Joby Reid, all at two or more. Reid is also tied for fourth in the OVC in assists and Nico Kross and Ben Thirkill sit tied in eighth with two apiece.
 
Aitken has four clean sheets and is tied for second in the league. He is also second in the league in goals allowed average at 0.57, one of four goalkeepers in the OVC sitting at a sub-one GAA. The senior from Great Barford, England continues to climb the career leaderboards at HCU, with the victory over UTRGV tying him for first all-time in victories at 21 with Christopher Dodd. He is part of a trio of keepers with over 20 wins, and is also one of just three to amass over 200 saves as he is now the all-time leader with 255.
 
The match with UIW is the third match of five straight away from Sorrels Field, the midway point of a month-long excursion away from home that will also mark the official start to OVC play, as the other six league members hit the pitch on Saturday.
 
The Huskies and Cardinals have met 21 times dating back to 1986, the second most-played series in program history. The two schools spent nine seasons together as members of the WAC before both joined the Ohio Valley Conference in 2023. The two teams met twice in 2024, with HCU getting a 2-1 home victory in the conference opener and the two teams playing to a scoreless stalemate in San Antonio.
 
UIW is led by Kiki Lara, who is now in his sixth season at the helm of his alma mater. The Cardinals are currently 4-2-2 on the campaign but have not played in 11 days since a scoreless draw at No. 21 Pittsburgh. It was the second match of the season for the Cards against a Top 25 club, having defeated then No. 18 SMU 2-1 on September 8. UIW is currently on a five-match unbeaten streak, going 3-0-2 over that span.
 
The Cardinals are paced by Diego Robles and Noe Robles, each with two goals apiece. Giovanni Padilla has three assists to pace the offensive attack.  The pipes are manned by grad Alejandro De La Torre, who has made 39 saves and is tied for second in the league with four shutouts, leading a stingy UIW defense that has allowed just eight goals in five outings.
 
The road stretch concludes next week with a pair of OVC matches at Southern Indiana and Liberty. HCU will return to Fondren Road on October 9 when it hosts Eastern Illinois University at 7 pm.
 
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