Men's Soccer Heads Down the Boulevard for 26th Battle of the Boulevard Tuesday Night

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Riding a three-match win streak, the Belmont University men's soccer team returns to action on the pitch Tuesday night for the 26th edition of the Battle of the Boulevard at nearby rival Lipscomb University. Kickoff from the Lipscomb Soccer Complex in Nashville is set for 7 p.m.
 
The non-conference match will be broadcast on ESPN+ with RJ Taylor providing play-by-play commentary. Live stats of the contest can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
A Belmont tailgate will proceed the rivalry matchup in the Lipscomb Soccer Complex parking lot from 5-7 p.m.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins (6-3-2) won their third straight over the weekend at Bradley, earning their first Missouri Valley Conference road victory of the season with a dominant 3-1 result Friday night. The win was Belmont's first-ever at the Braves' Shea Stadium in Peoria, Illinois.
• The Bruins' three-match win streak is Belmont's first since winning four in a row Sept. 10-24 last year.
• Graduate midfielder Jansen Wilson recorded his first career brace in Friday night's triumph, scoring in the 23rd and 54th minutes. It was the first brace by a Bruin since graduate forward Case Cox earned a hat trick on Oct. 1 of 2022 in a 3-3 home draw with the University of Illinois Chicago. Picking up his third and fourth goals of the season, Wilson is now tied for the team lead. He leads Belmont in both assists (5) and points (13) this season.
• Five different Bruins notched an assist Friday at Bradley, marking the first time Belmont tallied five or more assists in a match since Oct. 2, 2021, in a 5-0 road win at Virginia Military Institute.
• The Bruins have scored three or more goals on three occasions this season, including two of their last three outings. In addition to Belmont's 3-1 win against the Braves, the Bruins defeated Presbyterian College 3-1 on the road on Sept. 26 and routed Southern Indiana 4-0 in the Hoosier State on Sept. 12.
• Sophomore defender Dylan Steely has had plenty of offensive production as of late, registering at least a point in each of the last three matches. He scored in Belmont's win over the Blue Hose two weeks ago and had the late equalizing goal in the Bruins' 2-1 comeback win against Drake on Oct. 1. On Friday, Steely assisted on junior defender Alex Clayton's opening goal. The 2022 MVC All-Freshman Team and MVC All-Tournament Team performer was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week last week and has both the third-most goals (3) and points (8) on the team.
• Sophomore forward Brock Kiper is tied with Wilson for the most goals this fall (4), scoring in four different matches. His trio of game-winning goals are 12th-most nationally.
• Seven of Belmont's last nine matches have been away from Nashville and eight of the Bruins' first 12 games of the season are either on the road or at a neutral site.
• In the third NCAA RPI (Rating Percentage Index) of the season, which was released Monday morning, Belmont is one of five MVC teams in the top 100. The Bruins have risen 20 spots to No. 79 while Missouri State leads the Valley with the 30th-best RPI in the nation.
• Lipscomb enters Tuesday just nine spots ahead of Belmont in the RPI, checking in at No. 70.
• Junior goalkeeper Grant Calvert ranks among the top 35 keepers in the nation in three key statistical categories. He is 18th nationally in saves (44), 26th in save percentage (.800) and 32nd in saves per match (4.0).
• The Bruins are second nationally in shot accuracy with 68 of their 121 shots being placed on target (.562).
• Belmont has scored the first goal in seven of its 11 matches this season, including the Bruins' first six contests.

 
Versus Lipscomb

• Tuesday night will be the 26th meeting between Belmont and Lipscomb with the Bisons holding a slight 11-10-4 lead in the Music City rivalry.
• Both of the last two matchups have resulted in draws.
• Last September at E.S. Rose Park, the two programs played to a scoreless draw. Lipscomb was ranked 17th in the nation at the time and it was the Bruins' second draw against a top-25 opponent.
• Belmont played the Bisons to a 1-1 draw in its last visit to the opposite end of Belmont Boulevard on Sept. 14, 2021. Lipscomb was ranked 22nd nationally in that year's meeting and Niccolo Dagnoni put the Bruins up 1-0 in the 37th minute on a penalty kick. The Bisons responded in the 61st minute.
• During the unique 2020 season, which was played in the spring of 2021 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, Belmont outlasted Lipscomb 2-1 in double overtime at Rose Park. Liam O'Brien scored both goals for the Bruins, including the game winner in the 105th minute.
• Fifth-year program leader David Costa is 1-0-2 versus the Bisons.
• Lipscomb has not defeated Belmont in the rivalry match since 2018, a 2-0 affair at the Lipscomb Soccer Complex to open each's regular season.

 
About the Bisons

• Reaching the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship each of the last two seasons, the Bisons are the fourth of seven teams on the Bruins' schedule who made at least one of the last two national tournaments – Georgia State (Aug. 24), Memphis (Sept. 8), Missouri State (Sept. 22), Lipscomb (Oct. 10), Bowling Green (Oct. 14), Northern Illinois (Oct. 22) and Western Michigan (Oct. 27).
• Lipscomb is the two-time defending Atlantic Sun Conference regular season and tournament champion. The Bisons were picked to repeat as conference champions in the ASUN's preseason poll and received seven first-place votes.
• On a six-match unbeaten streak, Lipscomb (5-2-3) has not lost since Sept. 8 at then 19th-ranked Kentucky (3-2). The Bisons began their 2023 campaign with a 6-4 home loss to Florida Atlantic (Aug. 24). On Aug. 29, Lipscomb picked up a 2-1 home win over then 15th-ranked Saint Louis.
• The Bisons earned draws at UNC Charlotte (2-2), versus Memphis (1-1) and at Georgia State (3-3) and are off to a 4-0 start in ASUN play.
• Lipscomb is 3-1-1 at the Lipscomb Soccer Complex this year.
• With one of the top offenses in the country, the Bisons rank second nationally in goals per match (2.9). Lipscomb's 29 goals on the season and 89 total points are both second-most in Division I soccer.
• The Bisons are coming off a 2-1 conference win at North Florida this past Saturday night.
• Like Cox, Lipscomb redshirt junior forward Tyrese Spicer was named to the 2023 Hermann Trophy Watch List. He is one of five Bisons who were tabbed preseason All-ASUN, joining graduate midfielder/forward Hayes Wood, sophomore forward Malachi Jones, senior midfielder Luca Naumann and redshirt sophomore defender Nick Dang.
• Spicer leads the nation with 11 goals in only nine matches.
• Senior forward Javanne Smith has tallied five goals, while Jones has accounted for four.
• Senior forward Ploutarchos Alonefti leads the nation with nine assists and Jones is third nationally with eight assists.

 
Up Next
Belmont returns to Valley play Saturday when the Bruins host Bowling Green for senior night at Rose Park. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the MVC match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
Follow Belmont men's soccer on social media – @BelmontMSoccer on Twitter, @belmontmsoccer on Instagram and Belmont University Men's Soccer on Facebook – for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.