SEGUIN, Texas -- Announced by the league office on Monday, sophomore goalkeeper Ernesto Avila (Houston/Humble) has been named the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Defensive Player of the Week.

Avila helped guide the Bulldogs to a 1-1 week, including a 5-1 victory over 2025 American Southwest Conference Champion, Hardin-Simmons.

Avila recorded 17 saves and an .895 save percentage across the week's contest, allowing just two goals on the week. He recorded seven saves against Hardin-Simmons and ten saves against Mary Hardin-Baylor. The ten saves are his second career double-digit save effort.

The Houston native currently leads the SCAC and ranks third nationally with 45 saves so far this season, averaging 6.43 saves per game. Avila's save percentage of .804 ranks third in the SCAC.

Next up, TLU travels to San Antonio again to face UC Santa Cruz in a neutral site match hosted by Trinity at Paul McGinlay Field on Sunday, Sept. 27. Kickoff is set for 12 PM and will be streamed on Trinity's Tiger Network on YouTube. All streaming and live stats links will be available on tlubulldogs.com.

For all updates on Texas Lutheran Soccer, follow @tlusoccer on X (Twitter) and Instagram and as always you can find updates on all Texas Lutheran athletics on tlubulldogs.com and all official TLU social media channels (@tluathletics on X (Twitter), @tlu_athletics on Instagram and TikTok, and @tlubulldogs on Facebook).