ITHACA, N.Y. – After long offseason of hard work and preparation that started nearly six months ago, the 2014 regular season is finally upon us. Men's soccer is set to kick off its 106^th season on Friday, as the team travels for a two-game Midwest road swing to open the season. Cornell will take on #2 Louisville in the first leg of the trip at 8:30PM on Friday, while the team concludes the trip at 1PM on Sunday against Xavier. The Big Red returns 18 players from last season, while it welcomes nine talented newcomers into the fold in 2014. The team will look to translate the momentum generated from three consecutive winning seasons into a solid start on the road against tough non-conference opposition.
 
Cornell Big Red (0-0-0; 0-0-0 Ivy League) at #2 Louisville Cardinals (1-0-0; 0-0-0 ACC)
Friday, September 5, 2014 | 8:30PM | Lynn Stadium – Louisville, Ky.
All-Time Series: 0-0
Live Stats | Streaming Video ($)
 
Cornell Big Red (0-0-0; 0-0-0 Ivy League) at Xavier Musketeers (0-2-0; 0-0-0 Big East)
Sunday, September 7, 2014 | 1:00PM | XU Soccer Complex – Cincinnati, Ohio
All-Time Series: 0-0
Live Stats
 
SCOUTING CORNELL
 
About the Big Red
Cornell men's soccer has turned the corner in recent seasons, maintaining a consistent high level of play. The team enters 2014 coming off three consecutive winning seasons, which is the longest such streak since a three season stretch from 1995-97. With an interesting mix of experienced upperclassmen and dynamic new additions the Big Red will look to turn heads this season in its quest to capture a second Ivy League title in the last three seasons.
 
About Head Coach Jaro Zawislan
Zawislan enters his 6^th season at Cornell having established himself as one of the top coaches in the Ivy League during his short tenure. In his first five seasons on East Hill his teams have posted at least .500 winning percentages four times, while he has led Cornell to three consecutive winning seasons. He also directed the Big Red to its first Ivy League title since 1995 and first outright title since 1977 in 2012. His coaching record currently sits at 41-23-9 and his current .623 winning percentage is the 2^nd best mark in program history.
 
Zawislan is a graduate of Clemson University '93, while he was a four-year starting goalkeeper on the varsity soccer team. Upon his graduation he played professionally both in the United States and his native Poland, before pursuing a career in coaching. He made assistant coaching stops at Stanford, Creighton and Syracuse, before being named Cornell's 11^th head coach in 2009.
 
Dynamic Defense
Cornell has made a name for itself as one of the top defensive teams in Division I over the last two seasons. The Big Red posted a new program record defensively a season ago, finishing 5^th in the nation in goals against average, allowing just 11 goals and a miniscule 0.60 GAA per game. The defense will see some turnover in 2014, as the team graduated three starting defensemen from a season ago, including Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Slogic. Despite the losses, the Big Red still boast a stout backline. Peter Chodas returns for his final season on the backend, while Devin Morgan transitions to the center back position after playing forward a season ago. This senior experience should help settle things in the back, helping underclassmen players' transition smoothly into expanded roles.
 
Parsimonious Paws in Net
Another boon to a defense that must break in some new starters is an experienced voice in net. The Big Red returns a boatload of experience in net in Zach Zagorski, Ian Panzica, Evan King and Mitchell Meyer. Zagorski figures to lead this group after turning in a fantastic junior season in 2013. He made 11 starts a season ago, allowing just seven goals on the season, while posting five clean sheets. He currently sits 15^th in program history in save percentage (.804), tied for 13^th in shutouts (5), and 4^th in goals against average (0.78).
 
Conor is Clutch
Senior Conor Goepel will be a major key for the Big Red as it looks to ramp things up in the attacking third this season. Goepel has shown a proclivity for performing in the clutch over the course of his first three seasons on East Hill. Of his 12 career goals, six have been game-winners, including all three of his tallies in 2013. He currently is tied for 6^th in program history in career game-winners and has a legitimate chance to reach as high as 2^nd by season's end. He needs just three more markers to crack the top-15 in career goals.
 
Captain Quartet
With the addition of senior center back Devin Morgan, the Big Red will roll into 2014 with four senior captains. Fellow seniors Peter Chodas, Conor Goepel and Zach Zagorski join Morgan to form large and vocal leadership. It also ensures that no matter where the ball is on the field, a captain will not be far away.
 
(Un)Familiar Foes
The Big Red has never faced Louisville or Xavier in men's soccer. This marks the second time during head coach Jaro Zawislan's tenure that he has scheduled two brand new opponents to open a season. The other occurrence came in 2012 when the Big Red opened with first ever meetings with Cal State Fullerton and Loyola Marymount.
 
Tough Test on Opening Night
Cornell opens the season at #2 ranked Louisville on Friday. The Cardinals were ranked as high as 9^th in preseason polls; however, the NSCAA elevated Louisville to #2 after dispatching the previously 2^nd ranked Maryland Terrapins last Friday in both teams season opener. This will be the highest ranked team the Big Red has ever played since the NSCAA began posting weekly rankings.
 
Chance to Make History
Louisville opened its brand new soccer facility, Lynn Stadium, with a 1-0 victory over Maryland last Friday. In the matchup this Friday, the Big Red will have a chance to break the ice and deal the Cardinals several firsts at the new facility, including first goal conceded and first loss. Here's to making history!
 
SCOUTING LOUISVILLE
 
About the Cardinals
Louisville has established itself as one of the top men's soccer programs in the nation over the last decade. The Cardinals have made the NCAA Tournament seven consecutive seasons heading into 2014 and have won the Big East/American Athletic Conference regular season title in four of the last five seasons. The Cardinals enter their first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference and should continue to thrive amongst its new conference peers. The Cardinals return seven starters and 12 letter winners from the 2013 team, which went 11-5-4.
 
About Head Coach Ken Lolla
Lolla has been successful wherever his career has taken him. He is quite familiar with the Atlantic Coast Conference, as he earned All-Conference honors three times and All-America honors twice during his playing career at Duke University. He began his collegiate coaching career at NAIA Belmont Abbey, leading the Crusaders to three consecutive Carolinas Conference Championships. His first Division I position came at Akron, where he quickly turned the Zips into a presence on the national stage. He posted a 160-68-25 mark over 13 seasons at Akron, before taking the position at Louisville. Upon arriving at Louisville, Lolla immediately revived a program with little history, leading the Cardinals to seven straight NCAA Tournaments, including one national runner-up finish and two other Elite Eight finishes. He enters his 9^th season at the helm of the Cardinals in 2014.
 
Century Mark
With Louisville's 1-0 victory over Maryland last Friday, Lolla earned his 100^th victory while at Louisville. He has a 100-47-23 (.656) record as head coach of the Cardinals. His .656 win percentage and 100 career wins are both top marks in program history.
 
Home Sweet Home
The Cardinals opened the newly constructed Lynn Stadium with a huge 1-0 shutout of the then #2 ranked Maryland, making the team 1-0 in the brand new state of the art facility. The stadium officially holds 5,000 patrons; however, 7,047 raucous fans packed their way into Lynn for the season opener, making it the second largest home crowd to ever witness a Louisville soccer match. Friday figures to have another boisterous crowd and will be an imposing test for a Cornell squad making its season debut.
 
Scoring in the Cards
Louisville returns three of its top five scorers from last season, including both top scorers Ricardo Velazco and Andrew Brody. Both players factored into the lone goal in the season opener, as Brody netted a goal with Velazco pocketing an assist on the marker. The Cardinals filled the net 30 times last season and averaged 1.50 goals per contest. The potent attack will provide a strong test for Cornell's always stalwart backline.
 
Cardinal Ties
Although the Big Red has never met the Cardinals on the soccer pitch, Friday's matchup will have the feel of a sibling rivalry for at least one member of Cornell's squad. Senior midfielder Atticus DeProspo has a sister, Chatham, who is a freshman midfielder on the Louisville women's soccer team.
 
SCOUTING XAVIER
 
About the Musketeers
Xavier has been a program on the rise over recent years, as it continues its evolution during the programs second year in the new-look Big East Conference. All three of the program's NCAA Tournament appearances have come within the last five years. The Musketeers made three straight NCAA appearances from 2010-12 and will look to return to the tournament after having the streak snapped a season ago. The team returns seven starters and 11 letter winners from last season's 10-7-2 squad.
 
About Head Coach Andy Fleming
Fleming enters his fifth season at the helm at the Musketeers having brought unprecedented success to the program as a first time head coach. A four-year letter winner at Marist, Fleming made prior assistant coaching stops at both Boston University and Northwestern, before taking the head job at Xavier in 2010. He has posted a 46-22-15 (.645) record over his first four years in Cincinnati and has led the program to all three of its NCAA Tournament appearances. He boasts the top winning percentage in program history and led the team to two consecutive Atlantic 10 championships in 2011 and 2012.
 
Musketeers Return Plenty of Firepower
Xavier returns a veteran squad this season, which includes three of the team's top five scorers from last season. One of those top scorers was Jalen Brown, who has already collected a goal and an assist thus far this season. Like the Cardinals, the Musketeers averaged over a goal per game last season and likewise will be nice test for the Cornell defense.
 
Busy Beginnings
When the Musketeers welcome the Big Red to the XU Soccer Complex, it will already be the fourth match for the Musketeers on the young season.
 
Cold Corners
In its two games to start the season, Xavier has forced nine corner kicks in the 1^st halves compared to just one in the 2^nd halves of games. Surprisingly, both Xavier marks have come in the second half of games. The Musketeers will look to get their corner delivery back on track after a rough start in that area.
 
Keeping it Local
Head coach Andy Fleming likes to keep it local when it comes to recruiting. Over half of the players on Xavier's roster, 16 of 27, come from the Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana tri-state area.
 
UP NEXT
After Cornell's two-game road swing, the team will return home for its 2014 home opener. The Big Red will welcome Lafayette to Charles F. Berman Field on Wednesday, September 10, for a 7PM matchup with the Leopards.