WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State can clinch the No. 2 seed in the Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament and get a critical win within the region as it hosts No. 11-ranked St. Mary's on Wednesday afternoon at Stang Park. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.

The Mustangs are coming off a 2-1 victory at Eastern New Mexico. Max Gonzales and Liam Kervick scored goals for Midwestern State, which fell behind when Ben Sauerländer scored in the 40th minute for the Greyhounds.

Midwestern State improved to 11-2-3 overall and 6-2-1 in Lone Star Conference action after the win.

MSU claimed its 11th win of the season and has won at least 10 games in each of the last 25 years —excluding the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

Escobar scored his 14th goal of the season and the 58th of his career against Lubbock Christian in the last home match, which ties the MSU school record for career goals. The senior forward has matched the career output of Alvin Alexander from 1975-78 and Kris Henderson from 1987-90. The native of Austin, Texas, scored two or more goals in a game for the 13th time in his career and for the fifth time this season.

Escobar is the leading goal scorer in the conference and is the sixth-leading goal scorer among NCAA Division II players. Escobar also has seven assists for 35 total points, which is also leads the league and is fifth most in the nation.

Head coach Michael Meachum is closing in on 100 career victories. In his seventh season at the helm, Meachum is 99-21-12.

Cooper Tea and Tristian Adams scored in a 2-0 win over St. Mary's at Sigma Beta Chi Field in San Antonio in late September as the two schools clashed in a non-conference affair.

Midwestern State has won the last three meetings and has outscored the Rattlers in that span, 6-1, with two shutouts. The Mustangs lead the all-time series, 37-5-0 and have won 19 of the 20 matchups in Wichita Falls.

St. Mary's is 8-0-1 in the LSC with a 12-2-3 record overall and has outscored its opponents, 29-9. Plus-20 is the best goal differential in the LSC. The Rattlers are coming off a 1-1 draw with West Texas A&M. St. Mary's is 5-1-1 on the road this and has won all four of its away matches in conference play.

Gael Gallegos leads St. Mary's with eight goals and four assists this season. The sophomore from Laredo, Texas, is second in the conference with 20 points. Gallegos has two goals in three matches this season.

St. Mary's goalkeeper Johnny Thurbin has a 0.53 goals-against average with a 12-2-3 record in 17 matches. Thurbin has conceded nine goals and made 49 saves for a save percentage of .845, which is the best in the LSC and fourth-best in the country among Division II goalkeepers. Thurbin has posted nine clean sheets. The Rattlers shutout four straight opponents before WT scored in the 22nd minute on Saturday night.

Johnny Clifford is in his seventh season as the head coach at St. Mary's and has a record of 74-27-21. This is the Rattlers fourth season with at least 12 wins under the direction of Clifford.

The LSC Postseason Tournament begins with quarterfinal matches on Saturday.