LEBANON, Ill. - McKendree University men's soccer sets off to begin its season with four road matches, the first being on September 3 against Ashland in Columbus at Noon Central Time. The pair of matches over the weekend are both hosted by Ohio Dominican. 

The first match of the season against Ashland will be a tough contest as the Bearcats will be taking on the defending Great Lakes Intercollegaite Athletic Conference (GLIAC) champions. Ashland ended the season 6-4 with three of six victories coming in the GLIAC Tournament, which featured the Eagles winning 3-1 over Purdue Northwest, 1-0 over Saginaw Valley, and 3-1 over Davenport for the title. The Eagles return their top three goal and point-scorers with Paterson, Davidson, and Kimura. 

McKendree will look to build upon its GLVC tournament appearance from last season where they entered the tournament as the seven seed with a 6-6-2 record. The home turf is where the Bearcats made their presence felt as they went 5-1 at Leemon Field last season. They dropped the first match of the tournament to the eventual champion, Maryville, who earned the number two slot in the GLVC preseason ranks. 

The Bearcats enter the season with a number of key returners, including All-GLVC team members Raul Arteaga and Eddie Davis. The senior forward Atreaga was the points and goals leader for the Bearcats with six goals and 12 points. Davis, a midfielder from Arundel, England, dropped in two goals and assisted on two others last season while playing a pivotal role in the midfield. Holding down the midfield with Davis is Karson Huels, the Davis and Huels combination has held with both starting all 35 games over the last two seasons. James Stone, a senior forward, is back for the Bearcats with an important offensive role, scoring twice last season while dishing out an assist on three more goals. 

The opening slate for the McKendree Bearcats is a four-game road trip, first to Ohio Dominican. While in Columbus, they will take on Ashland (September 3) and then Ohio Dominican on September 5. In the GLVC, the Bearcats begin their conference play on September 12th against Southern Indiana in Evansville. The first home match for the Bearcats will feature a matchup with the GLVC-favorite and nationally-ranked UIndy on September 19 at 2:30 PM.

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