Despite seeing their 13-match unbeaten streak broken on Wednesday, no. 10 Ottawa is still in great position to earn the no. 2 seed in the KCAC postseason tournament on Saturday. OU hosts Sterling College in a 3:30 p.m. kickoff at the Dick Peters Sports Complex.

The Matchup

Ottawa is currently on a five-match winning streak against Sterling, with four straight shutouts on the bounce. The Braves hold a 29-23-3 record in the series dating back to 1986.

Over the past few meetings, OU has found its offensive stride, scoring 24 goals over five matches, highlighted by a 10-0 home win in 2024.

Last Time Out

The Braves were unable to find an offensive rhythm on Wednesday night at Friends, falling 2-0 to the Falcons. It took Ottawa until the 49th minute to generate its first shot on goal, then despite solid chances from Lorenzo Lamola in the 54th minute and Sam Hatswell in the 67th, the Falcons managed to double their lead in the 75th minute.

About Sterling College

Sterling comes into Saturday's match with a 2-15 (1-11 KCAC) record on the year. Michael Kyalo leads the Warriors with five goals and an assist on the year, with Jose Pacheco (3 g, 2 a) and Jack Nickson (2 g, 3 a) also on the scoresheet.

Cassidy Kelly has seen the bulk of time in goal for Sterling, posting a 3.72 goals-against average across 1329:41 with a save percentage of .691 in 15 appearances - all starts. Thomas Mason has started a pair of matches and seen four total appearances in a backup role, with a save percentage of .429 and goals-against of 7.19 over 200:19 on the year.

Playoff Picture

Although Friends clinched the no. 1 seed on Wednesday, Ottawa is still in the driver's seat to earn the no. 2 seed as the Braves hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against Oklahoma Wesleyan. York has quietly snuck into contention to play spoiler, as the Panthers sit just three points behind the Braves and Eagles. A win in the regular-season finale at OKWU could create a three-way tie for second.

Five teams have been officially eliminated from postseason action, as Bethel and Evangel joined Avila, Bethany and Sterling as teams on the outside looking in. Tabor still has a mathematical chance at qualifying for the postseason, but needs a win and either a loss or draw for Kansas Wesleyan at Avila to earn a spot in the KCAC tournament.

In The Polls

In the final edition of the 2026 STADIONIC NAIA Men's Soccer Poll, Ottawa moved up two spots to no. 10 among members of the National Selection Committee.

Following an outstanding finish to the 2025 season, Ottawa debuted at no. 16 in the NAIA Men's Soccer Preseason Top 25 for 2026. The Braves were one of two KCAC squads in the top 25, joining no. 9-ranked Oklahoma Wesleyan. Despite a 1-0 upset over no. 3 MidAmerica Nazarene, Ottawa slid two spots in the first regular-season edition of the poll, landing tied for 18th. The Braves were joined in the no. 18 spot by free-falling LSU-Shreveport, which dropped 6 spots despite a 2-1 record then followed it up with a 4-4 draw against Oklahoma Wesleyan. Back-to-back wins returned Ottawa to the no. 16 spot in the final version of the poll taken from voting by the coaches, before a monstrous upset of then no. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan helped the Braves (no. 9) leapfrog the Eagles (no. 12) in the first edition of the poll produced by the National Selection Committee. 

2026 STADIONIC NAIA Men's Soccer Poll
Preseason - No. 16 (Coaches - Aug. 19)
Week 1 - No. 18-tie (Coaches - Sept. 2)
Week 2 - No. 16 (Coaches - Sept. 16)
Week 3 - No. 9 (NSC - Oct. 1)
Week 4 - No. 12 (NSC - Oct. 14)
Week 5 - No. 10 (NSC - Oct. 28)

NAIA Players of the Week

For the first time since 2022, Ottawa saw a familiar name among the cascade of Tuesday emails from the national office, as Alex Neri was recognized as the NAIA Defensive Player of the Week for week 1. Neri was rock solid for the Black and Gold in Ottawa's 1-0 upset over no. 3 MidAmerica Nazarene, securing five saves including a game-changer in the 89th minute.

And in unsurprising news following the duo's outstanding performances, Neri was joined by Cale Scott in a first-ever for Ottawa, as the duo swept the national honors for Week 5. 

Scott was simply dominant in both contests on the week, scoring three goals and adding three assists. His first goal of the week proved to be the gamewinner - his fourth of the year - for Ottawa against Oklahoma Wesleyan, a 20th-minute penalty kick sent top shelf. He added a pair of assists in the second half as well for Ottawa to close out the win. Against Tabor, he again opened the scoring for the Braves before assisting Slobodan Novicevic on the gamewinner, adding a second-half goal, again from the penalty spot. The redshirt junior sits just three goals shy of his career best with 10 on the season, and he also sits atop the scoring sheet alongside Simon Kindt and Antonio Natalucci for Ottawa with four assists.

For Neri, his second nod of the season comes as he recorded four saves and demonstrated outstanding control in the defensive third against the Eagles, extending his shutout streak to 366:16 against Tabor before a fluke goal against the run of play. He immediately reestablished his shutout string, recording a pair of saves over the next 52:21 before yielding to Luca Fofonka for the final 17:40 of the contest. On the season, he has posted a 7-0 1 record with a goals-against average of 0.82 spread across 657:20. The graduate student also boasts four shutouts on the season with a save percentage of .778.

2026 NAIA Players of the Week
Week 1 - Alex Neri (Defensive)
Week 5 - Alex Neri (Defensive)
Week 5 - Cale Scott (Offensive)

KCAC Players of the Week

Earlier this season, Cale Scott made Ottawa history by claiming his third consecutive KCAC Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week nod, helping the Braves to a 3-0 upset of no. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan and a 5-1 win at Tabor College.

Also, for the first time since 2020, Ottawa swept the league honors, as Scott was joined by Alex Neri in claiming the top spot on the ballots. The previous sweep also involved the Scott family, as elder brother (and current assistant coach) Cain Scott was joined by Gage Powers in earning offensive and defensive honors, respectively.

2026 KCAC Players of the Week
Week 1 - Alex Neri (Defensive)
Week 3 - Cale Scott (Offensive)
Week 4 - Cale Scott (Offensive)
Week 5 - Alex Neri (Defensive)
Week 5 - Cale Scott (Offensive)

Send It Like Scott

Throughout the season, Ottawa has found solid offensive production throughout the front line, averaging better than two goals per game. And although much of the production has been through the run of play, Cale Scott has proven to be exceptionally dangerous on the free kick.

Twice this season, the redshirt freshman has drawn game-winning blood from free kicks in dangerous positions. Against then no. 3 MidAmerica Nazarene, Ottawa earned a free kick 20 yards from goal on the left corner of the 18-yard box. Scott delivered an inch-perfect curling ball inside the far post and out of the reach of MNU's goalkeeper.

Then against (RV) Baker, the Black-and-Gold earned a free kick on the right side of the 18-yard box, just inside 25 yards out. Scott was again inch-perfect, this time dialing top corner up and around a five-man wall for the Wildcats.

On The Leaderboard

As Ottawa has settled into a solid run of form this year, a number of players have found their way to the top of the national leaderboards. Biggest among the leaders is Cale Scott, who is fifth with 20 goals on the year. Antonio Natalucci also moved up the leaderboard and is currently tied for fourth with 11 assists on the season. Scott's five gamewinners put him in the middle of a big deadlock in 7th nationally, while his four penalty kick makes are seventh-best in the association.

Defensively, Alex Neri's goals-against average of 0.94 is good for 37th nationwide, although a number of players ahead of him in the standings have played in fewer than half the team's matches on the season. He is also in a group of 19 keepers tied for 22nd with five clean sheets on the season.

In The Recordbook

Ottawa's 17-0 win marked a new school record for goals scored and margin of victory, breaking a six-decades-old record from a 16-0 win over Wentworth Military Academy.

Cale Scott has surged into the top ten single-season scorer's list for Ottawa, with his 20 goals passing Dan Gray's 2003 total and now level with Mirko Grgas's 1970 season total. Antonio Natalucci wrestled his way into the top 10 on the assists list with 11, with both nearly certain to rise over the final match of the regular season plus postseason action.

Scott (21; t-6th) and Natalucci (14; t-9th) are both firmly settled in the top-10 for career assists, with Slobodan Novicevic now tied with Bence Molnar for fourth with 24. The trio is also well-established on the goal-scoring side, with Novicevic leapfrogging Kyler Grimes with 41 tallies on his career, but still ranks fifth as Scott edges out the Serbian for fourth with 42 goals for his career. Natalucci officially edged someone out of the top-10 career list, claiming sole possession of ninth from Lewis Verdouw with 21 goals.

Defensively, Alex Neri has dropped to second on the single-season leaderboard with a 0.94 goals-against average and is part of a five-man deadlock with five shutouts on the year.

Wednesday's loss at Friends dropped the 2026 squad to fifth overall with a winning percentage of 0.794 on the season. The Braves are still on pace, however, to challenge the best-ever winning percentage, set by the 1971 team's 0.868 (16-2-1) mark.

Welcome (Back) Home

After playing the past several seasons at AdventHealth Field, Ottawa returns to the Dick Peters Sports Complex for the 2026 season.

"We are excited to be returning home to Dick Peters Sports Complex," said head coach James Cottage. "Playing on a soccer specific field, a field that is longer and wider, it will really match what we're trying to achieve. We want to play with fast wingers that can get into one on one opportunities, but this field will help defenders as well."

In addition to the benefits for the team, the fan experience is also expected to be improved with the move to Peters.

"With the move, fans can be closer to the field and really get up close and be that extra bit of support for our team," added Cottage. "I want to make it feel like a home, a place where teams look at it and go 'Oh, we've got to go to Ottawa. We have to play on that big field and it's going to be a mess.' That's what we're looking for."

Season-long fans may have spotted an additional upgrade at the complex, as the scoreboard in the northwest corner of the field has been refurbished in anticipation of hosting an NAIA National Championship Opening Round in the near future.