GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Davenport University men's soccer is set to kick off their season with a two-game road trip against two nationally-ranked opponents in No. 8 Maryville University and No. 15 University of Illinois Springfield.

With the team ranked No. 3 in the GLIAC preseason poll, graduate midfielder Eoin Broughan will look to be a top veteran leader for DU as the team's second leading scorer (five goals, five assists, 15 points), an All-GLIAC First Team, D2CCA All-Region Second Team, and United soccer Coaches All-Midwest Region Third Team honoree last season. 

Joined by Broughan is redshirt junior midfielder George Deveau (four goals, five assists, 13 points) as the player that saw the most action with 1,655 minutes logged, senior midfielder Faheem Patel (one goal, two assists), sophomore forward Andrew Dykstra (two goals, five points), and redshirt senior midfielder Ben Godden who started in 10 of the 19 games and was 11th in minutes played (1,086) in 2022.

The Panthers welcome a large list of newcomers, including redshirt senior goalkeeper Bobby Curran, junior defender Matt Beaton, sophomore forward Vitalis Takawira Jr., and graduate defender Nic Baigrie, all of which should see a large amount of playing time this year.

Maryville Series

Aug. 31 will see DU going up against No. 1 ranked Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Maryville for the fourth time in program history, with DU looking to get their first-ever victory against the Saints (0-2-1) after their last meeting ended in a loss at home, 1-0.

Maryville is coming off a solid season that consisted of a 12-5-5 overall record (clinched first in GLVC; 8-1-3), their third GLVC Tournament title in five seasons, and a 2022 NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals berth.

The Saints welcome back top returners Alberto Di Pierri (defender) who was GLVC Third Team All-Conference, midfielder Tim Smith who started in all 22 games and tallied six goals, goalkeeper Nick Hemann who posted six shutouts and a 0.84 goals against average in 15 starts, and also forward Sebastian Weitlaner who recorded five goals (two game winners) and 14 points total.

UIS Series

Saturday, Sept. 2 will be played at Kiwanis Stadium in Springfield, Illinois with the series matchup bragging rights on the line as DU and No. 3 GLVC ranked UIS have bested each other one apiece in just two meetings in program history. Last time out, the Panthers took advantage of their home turf with a forceful 3-0 shutout led by former redshirt senior forward Matt Whelan (two goals) and Broughan (one goal).

Illinois Springfield fell short of the 2022 NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals after losing in a thriller against Lake Erie in the Third Round that went down to penalty kicks - the NCAA Third Round berth marking their second-straight (2021-22) as they finished 2022 with a 7-4-8 record. 

UIS welcomes back two GLVC All-Conference selections in defender Drew Keller and forward Max Tweddle this season among a large list of new graduate players.

Live Coverage

Thursday, Aug. 31 at Maryville (6 PM) - Live Video (FloSports) - Live Stats
Saturday, Sept. 2 at UIS (1 PM) - Live Video (FloSports) - Live Stats