Soccer Game Preview: Jacksonville vs. Tyler

The Jacksonville Fightin' Indians are taking a road trip to square off against the Tyler Lions at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Jacksonville will be coming into the match with an undefeated record on the line.

Last Monday, Jacksonville narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past Nacogdoches 3-2. Given the Fightin' Indians' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas soccer rankings (they are ranked 21st, while the Dragons are ranked 110th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, after low-scoring totals in their previous three contests, Tyler brought some dynamite into their most recent game. They put the hurt on Marshall with a sharp 8-1 win on Tuesday. The high-scoring performance was a welcome turnaround for the Lions' offense, which had struggled in the games prior.

Tyler's victory was their first in the district, bumping their district record up to 1-1-1 and their overall record up to 2-3-1. As for Jacksonville, they pushed their record up to 7-0-1 with the win, which was their third straight at home.

Jacksonville took their victory against Tyler in their previous matchup back in March of 2024 by a conclusive 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for Jacksonville since the squad won't have the home-pitch advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.