LAKELAND, Fla.—This weekend, the Fire men's soccer team will travel to Hardeeville, South Carolina to open their 2017 campaign with the SCAD Invitational.
To start their regular season, Southeastern will take on Tennessee Wesleyan University on Friday. The Bulldogs, who posted an 11-4-4 (6-2-1 AAC) record as a member of the Appalachian Athletic Conference in 2016, will look to improve on their performance with first-time head coach and recent TWU graduate, Luke Winter, at the helm. Nick Croucher, junior goalkeeper, was the leading shot-blocker for the Bulldogs and will be the primary candidate for the position this season. In 2016, Croucher gave up a mere 18 goals while coming up with 33 saves in 15 games played.
The Fire will then face St. Andrews College on Saturday. The Knights, who also compete in the Appalachian Athletic Conference, went a meager 8-10 (2-8 AAC) in 2016. Valentino Parini, who ranked 22
nd in the country with 93 saves last season, will likely be the starting goalkeeper. St. Andrews returns a plethora of talent, including leading goal-scorer Julio Rico, who netted nine goals and tallied three assists on the year.
Southeastern finished the 2016 season at 9-9 (6-3 TSC). With leading offensive and defensive players back in the lineup in 2017, the Fire should have high expectations.
Jake Van Der Luit and Tuaun Salgado scored nine and seven goals last season, respectively, which were the top two totals on the team. Salgado also tied for the most assists by a Southeastern player in 2016 with four helpers.
Jorge Navarrete, the Fire's starting goalie from a season ago, returns as a junior. The Plant City, Florida native surrendered only 21 goals in 16 competitions with 40 saves and five clean sheets.
The match against Tennessee Wesleyan is scheduled for 3pm, while the fixture versus St. Andrews is set to begin at 2pm.
