TicketsAug. 10, 2011
CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati men's soccer team reported to campus on Wednesday in preparation for the 2011 season.
The team will go through a series of orientations and meetings on Wednesday before hitting the pitch for the first training session on Thursday morning.
The 2011 Cincinnati squad will look to continue last fall's success. The Bearcats enjoyed an accomplished conference season in which they compiled a 5-1-3 record and advanced to the BIG EAST Championship semifinals for the first time in school history. Gone are six seniors from last year's squad, including all-BIG EAST goalkeeper Matt Williams and three-year starters Mark Konitsch, Branden Stelmak, and Nick Weightman.
Cincinnati returns 11 letterwinners from last season, highlighted by second-team all-BIG EAST and first-team all-Ohio senior Matt Bahner (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West). The Bearcat's defense will continue to be a force with junior Roger Thompson (Brampton, Ontario/St. Thomas Aquinas), who appeared with the Canadian U-20 national team in this spring's CONCACAF U-20 championship. Bahner led last year's team with seven goals, seven assists, and 21 points while Thompson anchored the Bearcat's defense, which posted a school-record 0.68 goals against average, ranking ninth in the nation.
The No. 28-ranked recruiting class in the nation will bolster the Bearcats in 2011, as Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year and NSCAA High School All-American Cole DeNormandie (Lincoln, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) and CollegeSoccerNews.com Top 150 recruits Emmanuel Appiah (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central) and Chris Davis (Gahanna, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln) highlight 14 newcomers.
Exhibition play begins on Aug. 15 at Gettler Stadium against Bowling Green, followed by a trip to Western Michigan on Aug. 27 to kick-off the regular season. Road trips continue in September with a trip to Blacksburg, Virginia to take part in the Hilton Garden Inn Invitational before returning to Cincinnati for the home opener at Gettler Stadium on Sept. 9 against Central Arkansas.