PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Providence College men's soccer team hosts UMass Lowell in its home opener to kick off the 2019 season. The game is set scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on August 30 at Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium. The Friars will take on New Hampshire in their second game of the season on Monday, September 2
nd at 7:00 p.m.
Series History vs. UMass Lowell
All-Time Series: 0-0-0
Series History vs. New Hampshire
Last Meeting: 2002 - New Hampshire – 4, Providence – 3 (2OT)
All-Time Series: 9-7-2
Scouting the River Hawks
UMass Lowell enters the season tied for third in the America East Preseason Poll voted by the conference's coaches. This places them in the same spot they finished in the 2018 season. In 2018, the River Hawks finished with a 10-6-2 overall record and 4-3 in America East play. Lowell's two top scorers are Stanley Alves and Roko Prsa. Alves, a red-shirt senior forward, racked up 12 points last season with five goals and two assists. Prsa, a senior midfielder, tallied 11 points with four goals and three assists.
Scouting New Hampshire
University of New Hampshire was selected first in the America East preseason poll, receiving five first place votes. In 2018, they finished with a 12-4-2 overall record and 4-2-1 mark in America East play. The Wildcats top four scorers are all set to return. Antonio Colacci scored five goals, the most goals for New Hampshire in the 2018 season. He also added three assists for 13 points. Linus Fallberg gathered 11 points with four goals and three assists. Josh Bauer got 10 points with four goals and two assists. Jack Doherty matched his teammate with 10 points. He scored three goals and four assists in the 2018 season.
Scouting the Friars
The Friars concluded the 2018 season with a 10-7-2 overall record and a 6-2-1 mark in BIG EAST play. The top six returning scorers are all returning for the Friars. The team's top returning scores are
Tiago Mendonca (Faro, Portugal),
Gil Santos (Parede, Portugal) and
Matt DePerro (Baldwinsville, N.Y.). Mendonca gathered 10 points last season with five goals. Santos had three goals and one assist for seven points, while DePerro tallied six points and three goals. Last season, Providence finished tied for second in the BIG EAST Conference final standings and advanced to the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament. The Friars have advanced to the semifinals in five of the last seven seasons, including two appearances in the championship game. PC won the BIG EAST Tournament Title in 2014, and claimed the regular-season crown in 2016.
Preseason Poll and Awards
Tiago Mendonca was voted to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team entering the 2019 season. In the coaches poll, the Friars were picked to finish third in the conference standings. Georgetown, the reigning tournament champion, was selected to finish first with nine first place votes (81 points). Creighton, who finished first in regular season play last season, was picked second (68 points). Providence (65 points), Marquette (59 points) and Xavier (44 points) round out the top half of the poll. Butler (40 points), St. John's (33 points), Seton Hall (28 points), DePaul (21 points) and Villanova (11 points) finish out the standings.
The Friars' Newcomers
The Friars' roster welcomes nine newcomers for the 2019 season.
Esben Wolf (Copenhagen, Denmark),
Gage Raftery (Seattle, Wash.),
Cameron Revels(Clover, S.C.),
Lukas Rodwald (Wiesbaden, Germany),
Ryan Sledjeski (Bedford, N.H.) and
Jaren Suttles (Springfield, Mass.) make up the group of incoming freshman.
Austin Aviza(Medway, Mass.),
Trevor Davock (Medway, Mass.), and
Davis Smith (Amherst, Mass.) are incoming transfers.
Up Next
The Friars' take on Albany at Varsity Field in Albany, N.Y. Kick off is set for 7:00 p.m. on Friday, September 6th.
2019 Providence College Award Winners
Tiago Mendonca
-Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
For more updates on the Providence men's soccer program, follow the team on Twitter
@PCFriarsMSoccer.
-GO FRIARS!-