Demon Deacons to Open ACC Tournament Play at SMU

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Looking to become the first team to win back-to-back ACC Championships since it did so in 2016-2017, the Wake Forest men's soccer team will begin its title defense Wednesday night as it travels to Dallas to battle No. 7-seeded SMU in the first round at Washburne Stadium.

The match against the Mustangs is slated for 7 p.m. eastern time and will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra with live stats available here.

ACC Championship History

Wake Forest will be competing in its 70th ACC Tournament match all-time on Wednesday evening, as the Demon Deacons are 27-29-13 in the tournament dating back to 1987.
In the 11 seasons under head coach Bobby Muuss, the Demon Deacons are 13-7-2 in ACC Tournament matches with titles in 2016, 2017 and 2024.
This will be just the fourth ACC Tournament first round match for the Demon Deacons, as they previously earned a 4-0 victory over Boston College on Nov. 8, 2005, a 3-0 win against Virginia on Nov. 3, 2021 and finally a 2-1 decision over Syracuse last year.
The Demon Deacons remain the most recent ACC program to win back-to-back ACC Tournament championships as it will look to accomplish the feat again.
This is the second-consecutive season the Demon Deacons will play a tournament match in Dallas, following its thrilling come-from-behind victory in the second round last year.

Full ACC First Round Matchups

Bye: (1) Virginia
(9) North Carolina at (8) Notre Dame
(10) Wake Forest at (7) SMU
(11) Virginia Tech at (6) Syracuse
(12) Cal at (5) Duke
(13) Pitt at (6) Clemson
(14) Louisville at (3) NC State
(15) Boston College at (2) Stanford

Quick Notes

With a goal and an assist against Notre Dame, Cooper Flax now has 55 career points, tied for the eighth-most out of all active ACC players and 28th in NCAA DI.
- This season, he ranks third in the conference in points (21), seventh in goals (7) and sixth in assist (6).
The recent 3-0 home victory over Notre Dame saw Wake Forest jump to 44th in RPI as it continues to build its postseason resume.
Since 2015, Muuss has led the Deacs to a stellar 71-26-20 overall record against conference opponents (including postseason).
- Also under Muuss, Wake Forest is 111-19-14 against unranked opponents.
14 separate Demon Deacons have contributed to the 35 goals scored so far this season, with Cooper Flax leading the way with seven followed by Tate Lorentz with six.
- Lorentz and Flax form one of the most productive duos in the ACC, combining for 13 goals and 39 points, which accounts for over one-third of Wake's total scoring output.
- Wake Forest's 35 goals this year ranks tied for 13th in the country and tied for third in the conference.
- The Deacs are also tied for fifth in the ACC in assists (31) and fourth in total points (101).
The Demon Deacons currently hold a plus-13 goal-differential in 2025, the fifth-best in the ACC entering the postseason.
Wake Forest recently recorded its first clean sheet since Sept. 22 against Liberty and its sixth of the season (second in ACC play ) in a dominant 3-0 fashion over Notre Dame.
- Mednard finished with three saves to bring his total to 49 on the year, good for fifth in the ACC.
The Deacs have gone with a starting backline of Amoni Thomas, Daniel Krueger, Travis Smith, Jr, and Cristian Escribano over the last seven games.
- Smith (1,312) and Thomas (1,163) have the most minutes played out of all outfield players for the Deacs this season.
Jose Perez has been a crucial piece for the Deacs this season at the six, scoring three goals this season and ranking third on the team in minutes with 1,158.
Mednard, Perez, Smith, Thomas, Flax are the only Wake Forest players to have started all 16 matches this season.

Series History

This will mark just the third all-time meeting between the two schools, all in Dallas, with the previous two coming last season.
In the regular season match, the Mustangs secured a 2-0 victory on Oct. 25, but Wake Forest returned two weeks later in the second round of the ACC Tournament and advanced on penalty kicks after a thrilling 2-2 draw.
- After trailing 2-0 with 13 minutes remaining, Wake Forest responded in the 78th minute, when Flax perfectly struck a free kick from 25-yards out.
- Just three minutes later, Ryan Belal leveled the match with a volley following a dangerous ball in from defender Nicolas Mancilla.
- In penalties, Wake Forest converted on its first four attempts (Flax, Belal, Umar and Perez), but was then forced into sudden death.
- In the sixth round, freshman Mason Sullivan connected on a powerful shot down the middle and gave Wake Forest the edge. SMU then missed its sixth attempt wide left as the Demon Deacons advanced to the semifinals.

Scouting the Mustangs

SMU enters the ACC Tournament at 7-4-4 overall and 3-2-3 in league play.
- Recent results include a 0-1 home loss to Virginia (Oct. 31) following a 0-0 draw at Stanford (Oct. 26) and a 3-2 home win over Boston College (Oct. 18).
- The team currently holds a 5-2-2 mark in Dallas this season.
The Mustangs average 1.47 goals per match (22 total) on 13.8 shots per game and are 5-for-5 on penalties.
Five different players have scored, led by Stephan Soghomonian with nine, who recorded hat tricks vs. Cal (Oct. 3) and Boston College (Oct. 18) as well as a brace against Central Arkansas Oct. 14), all within the span of four games.
Milton Lopez (six goals, two assists) and Mukisa Emmanuel (five goals, one assist) headline the rest of the goal scoring, while Daniel Escorcia paces the side with six assists.
Defensively, SMU has allowed 14 goals (0.93 per match) with five shutouts.
- Goalkeeper Martin Dominguez owns a 0.78 GAA and .720 save percentage with four clean sheets across nine starts, while Soren Russell has added six starts (1.17 GAA).

Viral Deacs

Wake Forest men's soccer went viral last weekend as the video of Jonah Mednard's incredible triple save following a Pitt penalty broke multiple Wake Forest athletics social media records.
On Instagram, the video has already reached over 55 million views and 1.5 million likes, the most in Demon Deacon history.
The Wake Forest Men's Soccer Instagram account has also gained over 2,000 followers during that span.
Additionally, the play earned the No. 1 spot on Friday night's Sportscenter Top 10 plays.

Second Half Surge Continues for the Captain

Team captain Cooper Flax has turned in a stellar stretch of form this fall, powering Wake Forest's attack with a series of record-worthy performances.
Flax ignited his hot streak on Sept. 22 against Liberty, delivering his first career hat trick and adding an assist for a seven-point outing, the first by a Demon Deacon since Roald Mitchell's performance against Winthrop in 2022.
- His finishes included two early penalties—both earned by freshman Chandler Young—before he capped the hat trick with a curling free kick from outside the box in the 68th minute
The senior midfielder followed that up with another commanding display against Clemson (Sept. 26), converting a 13th-minute penalty before recording his first career multi-assist game, including helpers on both of Wake's subsequent goals
Flax stayed decisive on the road, netting his fifth goal of the season—again from the spot—in the 86th minute at California to secure a 2–1 victory
He then found the back of the net once more in the 80th minute against Wofford, salvaging a 2–2 draw to close non-conference play unbeaten.
Last time on the road against Pitt, he once again showcased his incredible ability on set pieces, as he assisted the late equalizer from a corner and now has at least one goal contribution in five of the last seven matches.
Finally, in the last regular season match of the season, a 3-0 home win over Notre Dame, he finished with a beautiful goal and an assist in what could have been his last match at Spry Stadium.
Now sitting on seven goals and seven assists for a team-high 21 points with a goal and an assist tonight, Flax leads the team in the big three statistical categories and continues to rank among the ACC's elite in total points and goal contributions.
The 2024 All-American has now totaled 19 career goals, moving into 20th on Wake Forest's all-time scoring list.
He is also one of just two ACC players this season with at least seven goals and seven assists, along with Ransford Gyan (Clemson), underscoring his all-around impact as both scorer and creator.

The Hometown Kid

Winston-Salem native Tate Lorentz has enjoyed a breakout campaign since transferring to Wake Forest ahead of the 2025 season. The redshirt sophomore sits second on the team in goals (6) assists (5) and points (16) — numbers that also place him among the ACC's best in all categories.
Lorentz has been one of the most clinical finishers in the conference, converting six of just 17 total shots for an incredibly efficient .353 shot percentage, the best mark on the roster.
His season was highlighted by a five-point performance (2 G, 1 A) against UNCW on Sept. 16, his first-career brace and the highest single-match point total by any Deac this season outside of Cooper Flax's Liberty hat trick.
The former North Carolina Tar Heel has proven his knack for showing up in big moments and has been an incredible addition to the squad.

Last Time Out (vs. Notre Dame)

On a night that saw the program recognize four incredible seniors, the Wake Forest men's soccer team (7-3-6, 2-3-3 ACC) won its regular season finale with a 3-0 decision over Notre Dame (8-5-4, 3-3-2 ACC) at Spry Stadium Friday evening.
On his senior night, Vlad Walent had the opener as he converted from the spot in the 38th minute and put the Demon Deacons in front before the break. It marked Walent's first goal of the season and his first since Nov. 19, 2023 against Indiana. He also reached 20 career points (six goals, eight assists).
- Freshman Chandler Young won the penalty for the third-time this year, with clever work in the box.
Senior Cooper Flax doubled the lead in the 60th minute with a beautiful shot from distance after great play from Walent and Umar to set him up.
The third and final goal of the night came on a perfectly executed build-up from the back as Flax drove forward with the ball before finding Tate Lorentz in the box, who played a perfect ball across the face of goal for a tap-in for Jeffrey White.
- It marked the third goal of the year for White and fourth of his career while Lorentz picked up his fifth assist.

National Leader In Wins

Named the fourth head coach in program history prior to the start of the 2015 season, Bobby Muuss' Demon Deacon squads have built on the longstanding and rich 45-year history of the program.
Since 2015, Wake Forest's 159 total wins ranks No. 1 nationally, three more than any program and 10 more than any other ACC program.
- During that span, Wake Forest is also joined only by Indiana as the only Division I programs to have won at least 10 matches every season.
Additionally, Wake Forest and Indiana are the only two programs of the 211 programs nationally to hold double-digit NCAA Tournament appearance streaks.
Wake Forest also leads the nation in wins over the last quarter-century (364), five more than second-most Maryland (359).

Total Wins Since 2015

Rank	Team	Total Wins Since '15
1.	Wake Forest	159
2.	Indiana	156
3.	Clemson	149
4.	Georgetown	143
5.	Stanford	138

Looking Ahead

With a win on Wednesday, the Demon Deacons would advance to take on either Stanford on the road or Boston College at home on Sunday, Nov. 9.
Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and the Wake Forest Men's Soccer social accounts for updates throughout the week.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ryan Belal

Cristian Escribano

Cooper Flax

Daniel Krueger

Tate Lorentz

Nicolas Mancilla

Jonah Mednard

Roald Mitchell

Jose Perez

Mason Sullivan

Amoni Thomas

Vlad Walent

Jeffrey White

Chandler Young

Wake Forest Athletics