No. 24 Saint John's soccer ends its regular-season schedule with a 3:30 p.m. game at St. Scholastica on Saturday, Oct. 31, in Duluth. – Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (14-2-2, 6-2-1 MIAC) scored once in each half to defeat Carleton 2-1 last Saturday (Oct. 24) in Collegeville. Two SJU freshmen converted for the Johnnies, who moved into sole possession of third in the MIAC, a win ahead of the Knights.  

Freshman forward Soren Benson (Brainerd, Minn./Lake Region Christian) put SJU ahead first, scoring 18:02 into play. Fellow freshman Grady Monette (Andover, Minn.) delivered a corner kick into the box that sophomore midfielder Taylor Petrich (Woodbury, Minn./Hill-Murray) touched to Benson for the score.  

Carleton evened it at one apiece in the 33rd minute after a yellow card resulted in a penalty kick for the Knights.  

The two teams played tied for over 33 minutes until freshman forward Ethan Brown (Lakeville, Minn./Rosemount) scored the game-winner at 64:07. Freshman Jacob Oliver (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral) made the pass to Brown in the box who raced passed the defender to seal the game.  

The assist brought Oliver to 20 points in his rookie year, while the victory snapped a five-game winless streak (0-4-1) vs. the Knights – the last win a 3-0 victory in Collegeville on Nov. 2, 2019.  

SJU led in shots (20-10) and shots on goal (9-6). Sophomore goalkeepers Austin Ertel (Brownsburg, Ind./Lawrence Central) and Alex Keekley (St. Louis Park, Minn./Minnetonka) split the game, with Keekley making five saves in goal. Ertel's only shot on goal faced in the first half was the penalty kick. Keekley earned the win, his 10th of the season.  

HOME ON TUESDAY: The Johnnies have clinched their 15th appearance in the MIAC Playoffs, which were established in 2003, and 12th in the last 14 seasons. SJU opens the six-team playoffs by hosting a quarterfinal – as either the third or fourth seed – at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, in Collegeville. The opponent, however, is yet to be determined.

NCAA STATS: The Johnnies currently (through Oct. 29) lead all divisions of NCAA soccer in assists (70), corner kicks per game (9.22), goal differential (+56) and penalty-kick percentage (1.000/7-for-7). The Johnnies are second in Division III in scoring offense (3.56 gpg.) and shutout percentage (0.722), third in goals (64) and shots on goal per game (10.94), and fourth in shots per game (21.50).

Individually, sophomore midfielder Eli Ryan (Victoria, Minn./Minnetonka) is second in Division III in assists (11), while sophomore goalkeeper Alex Keekley (St. Louis Park, Minn./Minnetonka) is sixth in both GAA (0.464) and save percentage (0.882), and 11th in shutouts (8).

14 WINS: This fall's 14 wins are the most for SJU since 2005 – head coach Tudor Flintham's senior season – when the Johnnies reached the NCAA Division III playoffs thanks to the MIAC playoff championship and finished with a 14-3-3 (7-2-1 MIAC) record.

The 14 victories are the most for the program during the regular season.

NEW RANKINGS: SJU slipped two spots to No. 24 in Tuesday's (Oct. 27) United Soccer Coaches' (USC) top 25 poll. The Johnnies are No. 29 in the latest NCAA Division III National Power Index (NPI, through Oct. 29) and stayed at No. 2 in the USC Region IX poll.

SJU is currently No. 17 nationally in the Massey ratings.

United Soccer Coaches Region IX Rankings
1. St. Olaf (No. 2 nationally)
2. SJU (No. 24 nationally)
3. Luther, Iowa
4. Gustavus Adolphus
5. Wisconsin-Platteville
6. Wisconsin-Superior
7. Wartburg, Iowa
8. Wisconsin-Eau Claire

A LOOK AT THE SAINTS: St. Scholastica (7-10-1, 4-4-1 MIAC) saw its winless streak extend to five games (0-4-1 record) with a 6-0 loss at Wisconsin-Platteville on Tuesday (Oct. 27). Senior midfielder Parker Chastey leads the team in goals (7), game-winning goals (2) and points (18), while sophomore midfielder Vasco Carneiro is next with 10 points (3g/4a). Sophomore goalkeeper Afonso Silva is 5-7-1 with a 2.00 GAA and a .699 save percentage (58). 

LAST FALL: SJU went 2-0 against CSS last fall.

at Saint John's 4, St. Scholastica 1 (Sept. 22, 2025)
Sophomore forward Axel Martin (Lakeville, Minn./Rosemount) scored a hat trick as the Johnnies collected their first conference victory of the season, 4-1. 

Martin scored twice in the first half, five minutes apart from each other, to give SJU a 2-0 lead at the break. His first tally, the second of his career, came off the foot of a corner kick from defender Noah Hermanson '26 in the 28th minute. Hermanson set up Martin with a high ball that he headed over the St. Scholastica goalkeeper. 

The rookie's second of the game off a balanced offensive attack and a series of connected passes between fellow classmates Eli Ryan (Victoria, Minn./Minnetonka) and Ike Deuel (Maple Grove, Minn.) in the 33rd minute. After a pair of passes between the midfielders, Deuel dished Martin a pass on the outside of the box, which he tapped into the left corner.

Defender Foster Conlin '26 scored his second goal of the season – and the second of his career – to extend the Johnnies' lead to three after the break. Conlin headed in another well-placed corner kick from Hermanson in the 66th minute. 

Martin completed his hat trick a minute later, taking a lateral feed from freshman defender Gabe Franzman (Bettendorf, Iowa) to tap in SJU's fourth and final goal Monday afternoon. O'Connor collected the second assist to extend his point streak to all eight games this fall (10g/4a).

CSS broke the shutout at minute 76, beating sophomore goalkeeper Cole Hanson (Urbandale, Iowa) 1-on-1 for the team's fourth goal of the season. 

Ertel made the start and stopped both shots on goal in the first 73:18 to earn the victory and improve to 5-1-1 on the year. The Saints posted a 19-11 advantage in shots, though the home team garnered a 5-4 edge on goal and a 5-1 margin in corner kicks.

Saint John's 2, at St. Scholastica 1 (Oct. 7, 2025)
The Johnnies claimed a 2-1 non-conference victory in Duluth. SJU scored two first-half goals and held off St. Scholastica for 77 minutes of shutout soccer before allowing a late goal to cut the lead in half. CSS made a number of late attempts but couldn't find the back of the net in the game's final 13. 

After consistent St. Scholastica pressure, sophomore forward Lisle Cherwien (Mound, Minn./Orono) settled the Saints with the Johnnies' first goal in the 27th minute. Junior forward Ronan O'Connor (Woodbury, Minn./Hill-Murray) took a feed from sophomore Olin Franzwa (St. Paul, Minn./Woodbury), went up the left side and sent a long cross to a hard-charging Cherwien at the far post for his fourth goal of the season, and his second against the Saints. 

Sophomore midfielder Carter Gellner (Chaska, Minn./Chanhassen) capped the first half with the second tally for SJU, scoring his first collegiate goal 39 seconds before halftime. Matt Holmes headed a goal kick at midfield that squirted up the turf to Gellner for a pseudo breakaway, which he buried past the CSS keeper for a 2-0 Saint John's lead.  

Ted Barker broke the Johnnies' shutout in half in the 77th minute, scoring off a low throw in that bounced off a defender in the box. The Saints managed four late shots and a corner kick after the goal, but each attempt was met with an SJU block. 

Both teams played two keepers, with Hanson earning his second win of the season with four of SJU's five saves. Ertel allowed the CSS goal and made a save in 27 minutes between the pipes.  

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 19-3 all-time against the Saints, including a 7-2 record in Duluth.