University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Men's Soccer Opens 2015 Friday Night at USC Upstate
08.28.2015 | Men's Soccer
THE MATCHUP
Teams: Asheville (0-0, 0-0 BSC)
USC Upstate (0-0, 0-0 ASun)
Location: County University Soccer Stadium/Spartanburg, S.C.
Time: 7:00 p.m.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville men's soccer program begins a new era on Friday night as head coach Mathes Mennell will officially notch is first game. Mennell was hired in January to take over the Bulldog program, and has guided the team through its spring training season and an exhibition match this fall. Asheville won its lone exhibition contest, 1-0, at Wofford last weekend.
USC Upstate also opens the season tonight, coming into the match following a 2-0-1 preseason record in 2015.
NOTABLES
-The Bulldogs enter the 2015 campaign with 12 new faces on the 26-man roster, with seven freshmen signees coming to Asheville along with five transfers.
-Tonight's match is one of just six home contests Asheville has on their 20-game schedule. The Bulldogs will play six of their first seven games on the road and have just one non-conference home match - Sunday against LIU Brooklyn.
-UNC Asheville is 1-4-1 all-time against USC Upstate. The two teams battled to a 3-3 double overtime tie in Asheville to open last season. The Bulldogs' lone win came in a 2-1 victory in Spartanburg in 2013. The teams have now met in each of the last four seasons (2012-2015) and also played in 2009 and 2010. The schools waited 20 years to play in 2009 after their first meeting in 1989 when then-USC Spartanburg defeated the Bulldogs 2-1.
-Tonight's contest marks the match as a head coach for Mathes Mennell. The Bristol, TN native has logged time as an assistant coach for 19 years, including the last 12 seasons at LMU.
QUOTABLES
“USC Upstate is a good team and we know that they will bring a great attacking mentality and spirit to tonight's match. In terms of where we are, I thought we had some really nice moments against Wofford, but we also had some moments to remind us that we still have a lot to work on. The exciting thing for our staff is that the team has been fantastic in the way they have approached training and they are really eager to play tonight. It should be a great opportunity for this team to continue growing and learning as a group.” - Head Coach Mathes Mennell
UP NEXT
- Following tonight's game at USC Upstate, Asheville returns home for the lone non-conference home match when they host LIU Brooklyn on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. at Greenwood Field.
