No. 1 Seed Texas Lutheran (12-3-2) vs. No. 4 Seed Concordia (TX) (6-8-4)
Date: Friday, Nov. 7, 2025 – 12 p.m. CT 
Location: Round Rock Multipurpose Complex, Round Rock, Texas
Broadcast: FloCollege
Live Stats: athletics.concordia.edu

TLU BEGINS SCAC TOURNAMENT PLAY FRIDAY
No. 1 seed TLU (12-3-2) enters the SCAC Tournament as the number one seed for the first-time ever, facing No. 4 seed Concordia (TX) in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 7 at 12 pm CT at the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex and the match will be streamed live on FloCollege. Concordia (TX) advanced to the semifinals after beating Austin College in Thursday's opening round.

SCAC TOURNAMENT FORMAT
This year's championship, the first as a top-six team qualification event since 2019 (all teams played in the 2020-21 championship during COVID), is scheduled to open on Thursday, November 6 at Noon CT. The winners of the two opening round games will face the Top 2 seeds, No. 1 TLU and No. 2 McMurry in the semifinals Nov. 7 and the final on Nov. 9.

SCOUTING THE TORNADOS
Concordia (TX) is 6-8-4 overall and finished fourth in the SCAC with a 5-3-2 conference record. Karis Hickey, Maddie Oberholtzer, and Avery Walker lead the Tornados with six points each. Goalkeeper Avery Wright has a 0.95 goals against average, with four shutouts.  

THE SERIES WITH CONCORDIA (TX)
TLU leads the series against Concordia 8-7-1 dating back to 2005. Texas Lutheran won their matchup last week in Round Rock, 1-0. The Bulldogs outshot the Tornados, 13-4, in that contest with the game-winning goal from Lilly Noblett (San Antonio/Warren) coming just two minutes into the match.

TLU VS. SCAC
The Bulldogs are now 84-43-15 (.644) against SCAC opponents since joining the conference in 2013. The Bulldogs own a 9-11-2 (.455) overall record in the SCAC tournament with five SCAC Championship appearances (2014, 2015, 2017, 2022, 2024).

LAST TIME OUT
Texas Lutheran defeated Concordia (TX) in their regular season finale, 1-0, at Round Rock Multipurpose Complex in Round Rock, the host site of next week's SCAC Championship Tournament. The victory ensured an unbeaten conference record for the SCAC Champion Bulldogs, yet another first in program history, who finished the regular season with a 12-3-2 overall and 9-0-1 SCAC record. Texas Lutheran ends the regular season on a twelve-game unbeaten streak - the longest in program history. LIlly Noblett (San Antonio/Warren) scored the game winner in the second minute via an assist from Klarissa Martinez (Houston/Incarnate Word Academy). The shutout was TLU's ninth of the season, the most in a single-season since 2006.

JOHNSON NAMED SCAC COACH OF YEAR
Fourth-year head coach Kerwin Johnson earned his first career SCAC Coach of the Year honor after guiding TLU to the conference title with an unbeaten 9-0-1 SCAC record. Johnson's Bulldogs, who are currently on a 12-game unbeaten streak - the longest in program history - and compiled a 12-3-2 regular season record. TLU ranks first in the SCAC in goals scored (44), shutouts (9), shots (296) and shots on goal (161). This is the second SCAC Coach of the Year honor bestowed upon a TLU coach and third ever in program history, joining Mike Alderson (2006) and Larry Schaffer (2020-21).

AJEL AWARDED SCAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR 
Sophomore defender Noelani Ajel (Cibolo/Steele) became TLU's first-ever conference Defensive Player of the Year. Ajel started and played in 17 games, leading a TLU defense that has allowed just 10 goals in 17 games. She helped the Bulldogs defense secure nine shutouts, including four of their final five games of the regular season. Thanks to her play defensively, TLU is tied for the SCAC lead in shutouts (9) and is second in goals against average (0.59).

MARTINEZ SECURES TLU'S FOURTH STRAIGHT SCAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
Senior Klarissa Martinez earns TLU's fourth straight SCAC Offensive Player of the Year award, earning the honor for the first time in her career. The senior from Houston also earns her fourth all-conference nod, having been named to the first team for the second time in her career. She was a second team selection as a freshman and junior while earning first team honors as a sophomore. This season, Martinez leads the Bulldogs and the SCAC with a program record 11 assists and 23 points while ranking in a tie for fifth with six goals. Martinez currently sits at 23 career assists, a new program record and she is one more assist away from setting a new single-season record for assists. Martinez is just the sixth Bulldog in program history to eclipse 70 points in their career.

ELEVEN BULLDOGS EARN SCAC POSTSEASON HONORS 
TLU placed ten players on the All-SCAC teams and had one on the All-Freshman team in 2025. Receiving first-team All-SCAC honors were forward Klarissa Martinez, midfielder Noelani Ajel, forward Callie Brame (San Antonio/Churchill), midfielder Aliyah Fonseca (Harlingen/Harlingen), defender Jessica Robinson (Cibolo/Steele), and senior defender Ashlyn Suarez (Schertz/Clemens). Second-team honorees were midfielder Natalia Cortez (Edinburg/Robert Vela), goalkeeper Alysa Marquez (Miami, FL/Dr. Michael Krop), and forward Lilly Noblett. Caitlin Roach (Houston/Manvel) was named All-SCAC honorable mention. Midfielder Madison Herrera (San Antonio/Madison) received SCAC All-Freshman honors. Martinez and Robinson have earned first-team all-conference honors two times in her career. Brame, Marquez, Roach, and Suarez  are three-time honorees. Cortez is a two-time all-conference player, and Fonseca and Noblett are first-time honorees.     

ASSISTS QUEEN
Senior midfielder/forward Klarissa Martinez enters Friday's game just one assist shy of breaking TLU's single-season record for assists. She currently has 11 assists, tying Katie Buehler's (2007) single-season record. Martinez, who led the Bulldogs with ten assists last season, broke TLU's career assists record with her assist in last Friday's match against Concordia (TX). She also totaled two assists as a sophomore in 2023. This season, Martinez leads the SCAC in scoring with 23 points (six goals, 11 assists). Martinez is a three-time All-SCAC honoree and earned United Soccer Coaches All-Region honors in 2023.

WELCOME BACK 
TLU returned nine starters from last season's team and eight all-conference players in Jessica Robinson, Klarissa Martinez, Natalia Cortez, and Noelani Ajel, Ashlyn Suarez, Callie Brame, Caitlin Roach, and Alysa Marquez. Additionally, Ajel, Lilly Noblett, and Emma Alvarado (Buda/Johnson), who missed the 2025 season due to injury, earned all-freshman honors a year ago. 

The Bulldogs' senior class has been prolific. Robinson, Martinez, and Suarez, entered together in 2022 and have led the Bulldogs to the most successful four-year stretch in program history. They have combined for nine all-conference honors and have scored 94 points (34 goals and 26 assists) collectively while posting an overall record of 45-22-9. Brame, who transferred in as a redshirt freshman from St. Mary's, has been accomplished in her three seasons as a Bulldog as she has 14 goals and 22 assists in her career.