Last year's season ended on a penalty kick with the Virginia men's soccer team being stunned by William & Mary in the second round of the NCAA tournament. This season it's a whole new squad taking the field at Kløckner Stadium Friday night.
The Cavaliers will face Seton Hall University Friday and St. Louis Sunday in the U.Va. Soccer Classic. Virginia is 42-14-3 all-time in home openers and very dominant anytime it's on its home field.
Virginia opened last season with the Classic also, but against different opponents. There is one other significant change. Virginia has 14 new additions to a team that lost a great deal of talent and depth through graduation and the Major League Soccer draft from last season. Team chemistry and experience could be a problem for the Cavaliers early in the season.
"Our goal is to come together as quickly as possible, since we are a young team," senior defender Matt Oliver said. "We're improving every practice and every game."
The loss of Jonathan Cole in the back, Jacob LeBlanc in the midfield and Alecko Eskandarian up front hurts Virginia at every position. A class of young guns and returning players will help to keep the Cavaliers from missing a step on the field.
"Matt Oliver, Hunter [Freeman], Kirk [Dinnall], Phil Long, Paul Johnson --we're counting on these guys," Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said.
A host of transfers to the Virginia program also will be of great service, especially Mike Littlefield. The sophomore forward played his freshman season at Coastal Carolina where he finished second on the team in goals and points.
"Littlefied did well. He's still getting used to the team and the players," Gelnovatch said. "He's a proven goal-scorer and we're counting on him to score goals."
Littlefield will look to make an immediate impact on the field for Virginia but still has a lot to learn at the D-1 college level.
"The bottom line is I'm thrilled to be here and I'm grateful for the guidance George has provided," Littlefield said.
Littlefield will be playing alongside Dinnall, Long and junior Chris Megaloudis on the front line, looking to bolster a traditionally potent offense.
This season will mark the season and home opener for the Cavaliers, who face two solid teams especially St. Louis which is ranked No. 11 in preseason polls. The rest of the year does not get any easier for Virginia as the team faces off against the likes of Wake Forest, UCLA and Clemson.
"Five of our first six [games] are against top-20 teams," Gelnovatch said. "It's a very tough schedule, as it always is, but that makes us better in the end."
Leadership is one aspect that must be accounted for on a squad with 10 freshmen and three transfers, especially with strong leader Cole's departure.
"We're looking to guys like Matt [Oliver] and Paul [Johnson] who are clearly our leaders," Littlefield said.
The Cavaliers will look to improve on their 15-7 record of a year ago with the weekend's tournament as a spring board into the regular season. Whether or not the spring board catapults them into a pool of success or struggle rests on the players' ability to get acquainted and carry that chemistry onto the field.
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