Alex Stout, the Cougars’ senior goalkeeper from Pataskala, Ohio, earned a spot in the magazine’s "Faces in the Crowd” section for his performance so far this season. The column mentions the fact that he set a school record earlier this year with seven straight shutouts that have increased his career total to an MVNU-record 34 shutouts. The former Watkins Memorial High School standout’s school-record 14 shutouts that he posted last season as the Cougars advanced all the way to the NAIA National Championship semifinals is listed as well.

This season, Stout has posted an NAIA-leading eight shutouts in 11 matches and has allowed just six goals in 945 minutes for a microscopic 0.57 goals against average that ranks tenth nationally. He also registered his second career assist on one of his trademark long punts in a victory over Daemen (N.Y.) College.

Stout becomes the tenth MVNU player or coach to be featured in Sports Illustrated’s "Faces in the Crowd” and the first since women’s soccer player Kristy Brandolini was in the December 17th, 2007 issue. Stout is the first men’s soccer player to be honored for the Cougars.

MVNU is currently 8-3 overall and ranked No. 23 in the latest NAIA poll. The Cougars, who are 2-0 in the American Mideast Conference, will host Houghton (N.Y.) College on Friday at 2:00 p.m. and then Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) College on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. in a pair of key conference matches.