Utica, NY – The Utica College men's soccer team will get the 2018 season underway this weekend with back-to-back home matches this weekend. The Pioneers will host their cross-town rivals from SUNY Poly on Friday at 7 p.m. and then face off against D'Youville at 5 p.m. on Saturday.
 
Recap of Last Season: UC concluded the 2017 season with an overall mark of 8-9-2 and held a 1-4-2 record in Empire 8 competition. The team won three of its first four games before hitting a lull as conference play began. Although the Pioneers did not qualify for the E8 Tournament, they finished the year with four straight games without a loss. Playing four overtime matches, five of the squad's nine losses were by one goal. Utica wrapped up the 2017 schedule with wins over Hobart College and Stevens Institute of Technology, both of which participated in the NCAA tournament.
 
2018 Team Captains: During the week leading up to opening weekend, the members of the team voiced their opinions by voting for the team captains for the 2018 season. This year's captain squad consists of seniors Andrew Ruyack (Chester, NY/Monroe Woodbury) and Luke Tantillo (Clinton, NY/Clinton), junior Tucker Marvin (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa), and sophomore Daniel Varsames (Gansevoort, NY/Saratoga Springs). These players have demonstrated to their peers throughout the preseason that they have the proper leadership tendencies on and off the field that will push the program in the right direction.
 
Key Returners: UC is returning multiple players that made heavy contributions in 2017, including the team's three top scorers. Julian Fonseca (Rocky Hill, CT/Bridgton) led the blue and orange with 18 points last year on four goals and 10 assists. Fonseca led the Empire 8 in assists and was recognized with an All-Conference Honorable Mention. Junior Thomas Muller (Camillus, NY/Bishop Ludden) returns for another year after leading the Pioneers with five goals as a sophomore. Muller even turned in a hat trick last season, netting three goals to lead UC to a 4-1 victory over SUNY ESF. Alex Purcell (Lansing, NY/Lansing) looks to improve on his production from his junior season in 2017, where he scored four goals and tallied two assists. Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem) turned in three goals and two assists as a freshman last year and will have the opportunity to make plays once again as a sophomore. Jonathan Side (Plattsburgh, NY/Plattsburgh) will be the starting goalkeeper for Utica again in 2018, after accumulating 88 saves and five shutouts in 14 starts last season.
 
Welcome to UC: Seven new players make up the 2018 freshman class for this year's roster and will look to contribute to the team's success this fall. The group of freshman includes Nick Spooner (Lisbon, NY/Lisbon), Jahren James (River Vale, NJ/Pascack Valley), Sandi Sabanagic (Utica, NY/Proctor), Jama Joseph (New York, NY/Clarkstown North), Colin McCarthy (Vestal, NY/Vestal), LJ Nuzzo (Peru, NY/Peru Central), and Josh Schwaeber (Easton, CT/Bridgton Academy). James earned 1^st Team All-Big North National recognition his senior year at Pascack Valley. Sabanagic led Proctor High School in goals as a senior and is a two-time New York State East Cup Champion. Joseph was a two-time 1^st Team All-League selection in high school and a member of the U18 Haiti National Team. McCarthy finished high school as a two-time Section IV, STAC, and State Cup Champion. Nuzzo was selected to be a 2^nd Team Section VII All-Star twice during his high school career.  UC is also welcoming junior transfer Ethan Thomas (Ballston Spa, NY/Ballston Spa) to the team for the upcoming season, after he gained valuable playing experience at Hudson Valley Community College.
 
Senior Class: The Pioneers are lucky to have a solid core of veterans back for one last season, as the 2018 roster features nine seniors. Alex Purcell (Lansing, NY/Lansing), Julian Fonseca (Rocky Hill, CT/Bridgton), Nicolas Diaz (Commack, NY/Commack), Andrew Ruyack (Chester, NY/Monroe Woodbury), Paul Mitchell (Belfast, Ireland/CBS), Calvin Mends (Accra, Ghana/Tema International), Luke Tantillo (Clinton, NY/Clinton), Enock Bunyon (Accra, Ghana/Adisadel), and Jordan Smith (Tolland, CT/Tolland) are all heading into their final year here at UC.
 
Opening Weekend Matchups: In the first game of the season, Utica will play host to the SUNY Poly Wildcats on Friday at 7 p.m. Last year the Wildcats ended up with an overall record of 11-9 and went 7-3 in conference play. The team qualified for the NEAC Tournament and fell to Penn St. Abington in the NEAC Championship, 1-0. UC matches up against D'Youville on Saturday at 5 p.m. D'Youville finished the 2017 season 4-11-2 overall and 3-5-1 in the AMCC. The Spartans were bounced out of the conference tournament in the first round by Medaille, losing 1-0 in overtime.
 
Looking Ahead: After hosting two games on opening weekend, the Pioneers will head out on the road Wednesday, September 5^th, for their first away game of 2018. The team will travel to face Clarkson University at 6 p.m.