Owls Open Season against Army Thursday Night

PHILADELPHIA- It's the start of a new season of men's soccer as the Owls open its season on Thursday, Aug. 22 against Army. The match is set for 6:00 p.m. at the Temple Sports Complex and will be broadcast live on ESPN+. This is the first part of a three-game homestand for the Owls as Temple will next host Villanova later this week on Sunday, Aug. 25 at 7:00 p.m.

Scouting Temple

Flannan Riley and Andrew Kempe split goalkeeping duties last season, logging 26 and 30 saves respectively.
Sophomore Juan Zepeda scored three goals and two assists in 14 starts for the Owls last season. He scored Temple's lone goal against USF in a 1-1 draw on 10/14. He took 20 shots with eight on goal last season.
Junior Rocco Haeufgloeckner started all 15 games, clocking in 1,094 minutes last season. He took 11 shots with four on goal.
Junior transfer Paolo Kampula started nine games last season for La Salle. He logged 771 minutes including one goal scored in the Explorer's match against Manhattan.
Head coach Bryan Green, is starting his second season wearing the Cherry and White. The highlight of his debut year with the Owls was a victory against No. 10 Syracuse 2-1 on the road.

Scouting Army

The Black Knights posted a 3-9-4 last season, placing ninth in the Patriot League table.
Sophomore forward Gage Lyons led the Black Knights in scoring last season, scoring four goals in last year's campaign including a three-game scoring streak.
The Black Knights have 22 underclassmen on their roster, making them the youngest team in the Patriot League.
Head coach Brian Plotkin is entering his fourth year as head coach of the Black Knights. In 2022, Plotkin won Patriot League Coach of the Year as Army finished the season with a 5-1-3 conference record, clinching the number one seed in the conference tournament.

Series History versus Army
The Owls have a 5-6-2 overall record against Army. Their last matchup was 35 years ago during the 1989 season.

Scouting Villanova

The Wildcats recorded a 1-8-7 record last season.
Senior forward Balthi Saunders led the Wildcats in points last season with 16. He took 72 shots with 31 on goal.
Freshman Alex Yagudayev and Sophomore Sebastian Cutler-Dejesus are the two goalkeepers for the Wildcats. Cutler-DeJesus started three games for the Charlotte 49ers last season logging two saves.
Graduate Student Branden Johns, started in all 16 games for the 'Cats last season. He clocked in 1,285 total minutes on the pitch, scoring one goal on one assist.
Head Coach Mark Fetrow is beginning his first season leading the Villanova Wildcats. Previously, Fetrow was the head coach at Drexel, where he guided the Dragons to a 9-2-5 record and a .719 winning percentage, the Dragon's highest mark since 1990.

Series History against Villanova
The Owls have a 24-12-4 head-to-head record against the Wildcats. Their last matchup was in the 2021 season.