FHSU Athletics
RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. - After a 2-0 start to conference play over the weekend, the 14th-ranked Fort Hays State men's soccer team had a pair of student-athletes earn weekly recognition from the Great American Conference. Juan Linares was named the latest Offensive Player of the Week while Payton Roehrich collected his second goalkeeper award of the season, announced Tuesday by the league office.
Linares scored against both 12th-ranked Rogers State and Northeastern State, collecting the game-winning goal in each match. He buried a free kick from 25 yards out to open the scoring against the Hillcats before netting FHSU's second goal against the RiverHawks. A sophomore midfielder from Spain, Linares is tied for the league lead with teammate Len Valkema with eight points this season, totaling three goals and two assists in seven matches. This is Linares' third-career weekly honor after earning the same award twice last season.
Roehrich earned his second shutout of the season against the 12th-ranked team in the country, collecting three saves in the 2-0 victory over RSU, before adding three more saves in the 2-1 win over NSU. The sophomore leads the GAC and ranks 11th in Division II with a miniscule goals against average of .577 while leading the league with a save percentage of 82.6 percent. A native of Chandler, Ariz., this is Roehrich's second weekly honor of the season and the fifth of his career.
Alongside Francisco Degiorgi's offensive honor following week one, the Tigers have now claimed four of the 12 weekly honors given out by the GAC this season which is tied with Rogers State for the most in the league.
Southern Nazarene's Tiago Moreira claimed Defensive Player of the Week honor this week.
The Tigers open a three-game road trip this weekend with a pair of matches in Arkansas. The trip begins against Harding on Thursday (Sept. 24, 7 p.m.) before concluding Saturday at Ouachita Baptist (Sept. 26, 11 a.m.).