Men’s soccer shuts out Northwestern 6-0

Forward Tyler Oliver takes the ball at Tuesday’s home game against Northwestern-St. Paul. The Tommies won 6-0 with the help of the Tyler Oliver and his twin brother Justin. (Photo courtesy of Tommie Sports)

Tyler Oliver contributed two assists, and twin brother and fellow forward Justin Oliver scored two goals to lead the third-ranked St. Thomas men’s soccer team’s 6-0 victory over Northwestern-St. Paul on Tuesday at home.

The ball was on the Northwestern (1-1-1 overall) end for the vast majority of the match as St. Thomas (3-0-0 overall) controlled the pace of play. The Tommies played fast and pushed the ball past the opposing defense to their forwards.

Scoring started as soon as Tyler Oliver entered the game near the 30th minute. He split the defense with a pass to midfielder Alex Schnobrich, who didn’t put his opportunity to waste and put the Tommies ahead 1-0.

The Tommies continued to a 6-0 shutout.

Justin Oliver, a senior transfer from Division I Eastern Illinois University, is in his first year at St. Thomas, while twin brother Tyler Oliver played the 2016 season with the Tommies.

“A big reason for me coming here, obviously, was to play with Tyler,” Justin Oliver said.

Justin Oliver has had no problem adjusting to his new team, as he is leading the squad with four goals in just three games. A Twin Cities product, he said familiarity with the team has definitely helped him.

“I played with Shae (Bottum) for a long time, I played against Pierce (Erickson) for a long time, so it was pretty easy to step right in and feel like an important member of the group,” he said.

‘Oliver to Oliver’ is something St. Thomas fans can expect to hear a lot of this year.

“Whenever I get the ball, out of pure habit, my first look is for Tyler,” Justin Oliver said. “If I hear Tyler call for the ball, sometimes I don’t even pick my head up; I just trust his voice.”

Jack Dodd can be reached at Dodd0013@stthomas.edu.