Men's Soccer Preview
The four schools of PACWEST men's soccer kicks off this weekend
This coming weekend the PACWEST men’s soccer schedule kicks off and all four schools will be on the pitch. The defending national champion Douglas Royals will visit the Capilano Blues on Saturday and the VIU Mariners host the Langara Falcons.
Douglas Royals
For the first time since the 2006 season the Douglas Royals enter a campaign as the defending CCAA national champions after a magical season last year.
2023 Result: 7-3-2 during the regular season en route to punching their ticket to the Conference gold medal game which they won as well. Oddly enough they lost their regular season finale last year, then didn’t lose another game capturing the national title.
Key Returning Players: The Royals are returning a number of their core players from last year’s championship including nationals MVP Ben Beaulieu (5th season), CCAA All-Star Matteo Falcone (4th season) and defender Filip Capek (4th season).
Keepers: Matt Miller is returning this year after he helped his club win last season. He started the PACWEST final last year but after a red card in that game he didn't play at CCAA Nationals. He will be contending with first-year standout Jakob Frank for the starting job.
VIU Mariners
Last season the Mariners joined the Douglas Royals at the CCAA national championship tournament and came home without a medal. This season they have a lot of new faces and will need to take some time to gel, however with a short season, they can’t take too long. They get their first PACWEST test this weekend.
2023 Results: 4-7-1 during the regular season and upset the Langara Falcons in the semi-final to advance to the PACWEST gold game and ultimately the nationals.
Key Returning Players: With so many new faces on the rosters, veterans like Michael Heppelle (5th season) and Mattehw Coburn (5th season) are a welcome site for head coach Kevin Lindo. They will be relied on heavily, particularly in the early going to settle the new players into their collegiate career.
Keepers: They will have a new keeper this season with three players fighting for the starting role.
Langara Falcons
They are looking for some revenge this season after missing out on an opportunity to play for a national crown last year getting upset in the Conference semifinals. They won four of their six games last season with a clean sheet but will have a new keeper in net this upcoming season.
2023 Results: 6-4-2 during the regular season. All three of their wins in the month of October were courtesy of a shutout.
Key Returning Players: They are going to be a young team this season, however they have an incredible international flavor to their roster with five different countries represented. Henrique Claros is the lone fourth year player and will need to have an impact along with third year midfielder Taynour Bashghareh.
Keepers: Three young keepers will be fighting to be named the starter in 2024. Ziyan Clark-Ismail is in his second season while rookies Adriel Agcaoili and Nick McQuillan are each vying for an opening day start.
Capilano Blues
The Blues haven’t tasted the PACWEST postseason since 2019 and are thirsty to make a return this season. They are once again a relatively young squad with just two players in their fourth year or beyond.
2023 Results: 3-6-3 during the regular season and missed the championship tournament. One of those three wins was in their regular season finale, something to perhaps build upon as the new season opens on Saturday.
Key Returning Players: Forward Jeremy Monn-Djasngar is the lone fifth year player and will be relied on to produce offensively. Both Tommy Millar and Adam Majuerae are also back as they enter their third season.
Keepers: Brandon Lecce will be the main man in net this season entering his sophomore campaign. He will be tested once again this season with young defenders in front of him.