Men’s soccer opens up season against Longwood Sunday

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville Men's Soccer team will open up its spring 2021 season on Sunday, welcoming Longwood to Greenwood Field for a 1 p.m. kickoff.

"Our staff and the team are all buzzing with energy right now. It feels like Christmas having been off from games for so long," said UNC Asheville Head Coach Mick Giordano. "It has been 472 days since this program has played a counting competition. Through that time though, the team has been diligently working to get better, compete, and improve their game both individually and collectively."

Asheville has not played an official game since November 6, 2019 when it ended the season with a 2-1 victory over Presbyterian at home. The Bulldogs posted a record of 4-12-1 in 2019, going 3-5-0 in Big South play. Asheville will only play Big South competition this season, with eight regular season games leading up to the Big South Tournament which is scheduled to begin on April 14.

Returners Taylor Durall and Ben Katts will serve as the team captains this season. In 2019, Durall started five of 15 games played at forward, totaling 13 shots. Katts would start seven of 12 games played in the midfield, registering two shots on goal. Nate Evnas is the top returning scorer for the Bulldogs, finding the back of the net twice and dishing out an assist during the 2019 campaign.

"The staff is excited to have this opportunity to compete at the highest level with our team, Giordano said. "We are just happy that the student-athletes from both programs have been granted this moment to compete as it does truly mean so much to them."

The contest will be broadcasted on ESPN+ and you can follow the live stats here.