LEXINGTON, Va. – VMI Men's Soccer hosts East Tennessee State in the final 2025 regular season match on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The Keydets (2-11-3, 0-4-0) will battle the Buccaneers (2-7-4, 2-2-0) for the regular season finale. VMI is guaranteed to be the sixth seed in the upcoming Southern Conference Championship. Still, last year's semifinalist and host is fighting for that all-important third seed, which would end up being the Keydets' first round opponent.
Keys to the Keydets
Keydets Clipped by Bears. In its final road match of the regular season, VMI fell 2-0 to SoCon-leading Mercer.
Need a Save? Despite the result,
Zack Murphy was locked in, corralling a season-high nine saves against the Bears after facing 27 shots. It's the second-straight conference match in which Murphy has had eight or more saves.
It's All Here. The 2025 SoCon Men's Soccer Championship will start on November 7. VMI will be the sixth seed and travel to either Macon, Georgia (Mercer), or Greenville, South Carolina (Furman), to face the third seed ETSU/UNCG, depending on Saturday's results.
On the Bright Side. VMI has conceded the fewest goals (9) in its first four league matches since 2012. It's also the fewest goals conceded in the SoCon since 2002.
No Days Off. Four Keydets have played in all 16 matches this season:
Thimson Duolo,
Jack Yough,
Timofey Dovgalyuk, and
Jordan Savage. Dovgalyuk is the only Keydet to have started in all matches.
Racking Minutes. Zack Murphy has played 1,305 goalie minutes this year, ranking 54th nationally, which brings his career total to 4,362, which ranks third all-time at VMI.
Record Book Riser. Zack Murphy has been rising in the record books all season. Along with his minutes played total reaching third, his career saves mark of 224 and 2.27 goals against average rank in the top five all-time.
Household Name. Making his mark in his first collegiate season is
Thimson Duolo, who leads the Keydets with three goals, while boasting two assists.
Yough Gotta Believe It. Jack Yough has been a consistent defender for the Keydets, playing in over 1,300 minutes as a freshman. His minutes total mark ranks fifth in the conference by non-goalies.
Shot Taker. Thimson Duolo ranks in the top 10 in the SoCon with 25 shots and third with 14 shots on goal.
Top 50. VMI ranks 17th nationally with nearly five saves per game.
Leading the League. VMI leads the SoCon with 78 saves and 4.88 saves per game.
Life Saver. Zack Murphy ranks eighth among D-I goalies with 72 saves, the most in the SoCon, and 20th with 4.8 saves per game, the second-best in the league.
Scouting the Buccaneers
- ETSU has a 2-7-4 overall record, while being 2-2-0 in league play.
- Last season, the Buccaneers had a share of the regular-season title.
- ETSU's only victories have been against SoCon opponents, with wins over Wofford and nationally-ranked UNCG.
- The Bucs' two conference losses came similarly, both 3-2 finals to Furman and Mercer, who are the top two teams in the league standings.
- ETSU has scored 16 goals with 13 assists off 125 shots with 56 on goal.
- The Bucs' goalies have earned nearly five saves per match, good enough for top 20 in the country.
- Emil Holmberg ranks in the top 20 with 63 saves and 4.85 saves per game.
- ETSU ranks sixth nationally with three red cards.
- Jaime Carrillo is in the top 10 in the league with 11 points and five goals.
- Berkay Duman leads the team with four assists.
- The Bucs' 16 goals are the second-fewest in the league; however, 10 of those goals have been in conference play, which stands as the second-most.
- Head Coach Allen Vital is in his second season at the helm after earning SoCon Coach of the Year honors last season.
Series History
- VMI is 0-17 against ETSU.
- First official meeting was in 2008, but VMI defeated the ETSU Men's Soccer Club Team in 1980, 5-2.
- Last season's matchup ended in a 2-0 win for the Bucs.
- This will be the eighth match played in Lexington.
For more information, visit VMIKeydets.com or follow us on social media at VMI Athletics.
