Four schools ranked in the College Soccer News preseason top 30, as well as two home matches against Pac-10 schools and a slate of games in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF), await the Seattle University men’s soccer program as fourth-year head coach Brad Agoos announced the 2009 schedule Wednesday.
Seattle University will open the season by hosting crosstown rival Washington at Championship Field Tuesday, Sept. 1, beginning at 4 p.m. These two teams have not faced each other in the regular season since 2001, a 3-0 Husky victory. SeattleU and Washington opened the 1996 season against each other at Championship Field (then called the East Sports Field), with SeattleU coming out on top, 1-0.
The Redhawks then embark on a challenging road swing over the next two weekends. The tough four-match stretch begins Friday, Sept. 4, at the Hurricane Classic against #12 Tulsa, followed by a contest against #27 SMU in Tulsa, Okla., on Sunday, Sept. 6. The following weekend, SeattleU participates in the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament in South Bend, Ind., taking on #16 Notre Dame and #7 Indiana.
The team will return home and welcome Oregon State to Championship Field Saturday, Sept. 19, starting at 12:30 p.m. SeattleU will join the Beavers in Corvallis for a tournament the next weekend, facing Marist and Northern Illinois on back-to-back days (Sept. 25-26). On Oct. 3, Simon Fraser makes the trek across the border to take on SeattleU at Championship Field starting at 2:30 p.m.
SeattleU opens its first season in the MPSF with a road swing through Albuquerque, N.M., and Las Vegas, Nev., facing New Mexico on Oct. 16 and UNLV on Oct. 18. The first home MPSF matches take place the following weekend, as Sacramento State comes to town for a match on Oct. 23, followed by a visit from San Jose State on Oct. 25.
Defending MPSF champion Denver hosts the Redhawks Friday, Oct. 30, with SeattleU returning home to face Air Force Sunday, Nov. 1, at Championship Field beginning at 1:00 p.m. The final conference match of the year finds SeattleU welcoming Cal State Bakersfield to Championship Field on Sunday, Oct. 8. With SeattleU not eligible to participate in the MPSF Tournament, the Redhawks will conclude the season by traveling to Portland Thursday, Nov. 12, to face the Pilots, a team they defeated last season, 1-0.
Seattle University returns 11 players from the 2008 squad that finished 11-3-1, including victories over 2009 opponents Simon Fraser, Cal State Bakersfield, and Portland. As one of the designated “fast-track” sports, the men’s soccer program is scheduled to be eligible for the NCAA Tournament beginning in the 2010 season.