SAN ANTONIO – The University of the Incarnate Word men's soccer team made the 2023 season one to remember, making the postseason for the first time in Division I program history during year one in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC).
 
The Cardinals kicked the season off with big non-conference wins. The team won their first game of the season taking down University of Nebraska at Omaha (2-1). A few weeks later they closed out non-conference play with a tie against the nationally ranked Trinity Tigers 1-1 and a victory over Gonzaga 4-2, marking the first time UIW scored four goals in a game since 2016. Hugo Constant won the first individual award for the Cardinals, as he was named the OVC Goalkeeper of the week for his efforts, playing a full 180 minutes and making five saves while facing 16 shots.
 
The Cardinals continued to roll into their first season in the Ohio Valley Conference. UIW had a battle with a familiar face in Houston Christian University, which resulted in a 3-3 tie, and followed this up with a 3-2 win over Chicago State.
 
After scoring at least three goals in three straight games the Cardinals were on fire and earned a 4-2 victory over Eastern Illinois and a 4-0 shutout over University of Southern Indiana, vaulting them into first place in the OVC. During this week, Sello Diphoko was awarded OVC Offensive Player of the Week for his three goals and two assists through two games. At this point in the season Sello had four game winning goals (two coming from this week's games) and was ranked third in the nation. Miles Merritt also took home an award and was name OVC Defensive Player of the Week after scoring against Eastern Illinois and helping the Cards post their first shutout of the season against Southern Indiana.
 
The team hit some bumps in the road down the stretch and needed to come up big in their final games of the season. The Cards, and more specifically senior goalkeeper Hugo Constant, did just that, posting their second and third shutouts of the season in a 0-0 draw and against Chicago State and a 2-0 win over Liberty. With these results UIW was in the postseason for the first time in Division I program history and had secured the second seed, giving them a first-round bye. Along with this Hugo was once again named OVC Goalkeeper of the Week.
 
The Cardinal's magical season continued as Sello Diphoko scored another game winning goal helping UIW defeat Eastern Illinois and land a spot in the inaugural OVC men's soccer championship game.
 
Unfortunately, UIW came up short in the final game. However, the Cardinals had many student-athletes earn postseason awards. Luis Zuniga, Will Ansah, and Dylan Navarijo all were a part of the OVC All-Tournament team. Navarijo and Miles Merritt were named to the All-OVC Newcomer team, Merritt and Hugo earned sports on the All-OVC second team, and Sello Diphoko earned All-OVC first team status.
 
Head Coach Kiki Laura said, "I am extremely proud of our guys and how the team fought through our first season in the OVC to have this historic season. I'm thankful for our seniors who have helped pave the way and am excited for the young guys and the future of our program."
 
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