Great Bend, KS – The No. 12 nationally ranked Indian Hills Men's Soccer team is set for the Barton Classic in Great Bend, KS this weekend. The Warriors will take on a pair of opponents in the weekend event hosted by Barton Community College (KS).

DETAILS: 2023 Barton Classic

Friday, September 1 – Sunday, September 3

Great Bend, KS | Barton Community College

Friday: vs. No. 11 Barton (1-0-1) | 1:30 PM | Live Stats

Sunday: vs. Otero (3-0-0)

PITCH NOTES

The Warriors (3-0-1) make the seven-hour trek to Great Bend, KS for the Barton Classic as the No. 12 ranked team in the nation.

• Indian Hills is off to its best start since the 2019 season, which is tied for the best four-game start to a year in program history.
• The Warriors climbed five spots in the national rankings this week for its highest national ranking since 2018.
• Sophomores Gustavo Marques and Kaz Kromwijk swept the weekly ICCAC Athlete of the Week awards after their strong starts to the season.
• Marques leads the Warriors with four goals and seven points while Lucas Bauer and Fernando Pirri have each tallied two goals on the year. Alex Rodriguez's three assists lead the Warriors.
• Along with Indian Hills, Barton, and Otero, Jefferson College (MO) will complete the four-team weekend classic.

SCOUTING THE COUGARS

Ranked No. 11 in the latest national rankings, Barton serves as one of the premiere NJCAA DI programs, having made five national tournament appearances, including a trip in 2021 while winning seven NJCAA Region VI championships.

• Barton opened its season with a 1-1 draw against No. 5 nationally ranked Iowa Western Community College on August 26.
• The Cougars earned its first win of the year, a 2-1 victory over Coffeyville on August 30.
• Barton is coming off a 14-5-1 record from a year ago.
• Dennis Bottcher has served as the Cougars' top goalie this year, working all 180:00 of action while allowing just one goal with four saves thus far.
• Indian Hills matched up with Barton last season where the Cougars took a 4-2 victory in Council Bluffs, IA.
• Last season's meeting is the lone matchup in the series history between Indian Hills and Barton.

SCOUTING THE RATTLERS

The Rattlers are coming off a trip to the NJCAA DI Men's Soccer National Tournament, just the second appearance in program history for the team out of La Junta, CO. Otero captured the NJCAA Plains District Title before bowing out in Pool Play with a 1-2-0 record.

• The Rattlers are off to their best start (3-0-0) since 2020 when the program also went 3-0-0 to start the year.
• Otero has secured shutout victories over Gateway Community College (AZ) and Paradise Valley Community College (AZ) while defeating Eastern Arizona College 3-2.
• The Rattlers have outscored their opponents 9-2 this season while Gabe Selby and Keito Takehara have each pitched a shutout in net.
• Freshman Deanroy Phillip leads the program with five goals in the team's first three games while Breno Andreucci has tallied a team-high four assists.
• Sunday's matchup will be the first all-time meeting between the two programs.

WHAT'S NEXT

The Warriors return home to take on Iowa Lakes Community College September 9 at 3:30 PM. The Lakers, a perennial national contender, has switched to the NJCAA Division II ranks this season.

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