Pitt Opens Season with No. 25 Colgate, Delaware

PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh men's soccer team will host No. 25 Colgate for its season opener Friday, Aug. 24 at 8 p.m. at Ambrose Urbanic Field in the Petersen Sports Complex. The Panthers will then travel to Newark, Del., for a matchup with the Blue Hens Monday, Aug. 27 at 7 p.m. at Stuart & Suzanne Grant Stadium.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Friday's game will be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra and may be viewed on WatchESPN/WatchESPN app by clicking here.
Live stats for Friday can be found here.
Monday's game will be broadcast on Delaware's YouTube channel and may be viewed by clicking here.
Live stats for Monday can be found here.
Fans can also follow each game with live updates on Twitter.

GAMEDAY PROMOTIONS

Block Party On The Hill:
- First 200 students in attendance will receive Pitt soccer scarf vouchers.
Win Pitt Prizes:
- Enter to win a Pitt Yeti cooler for students and Pitt cornhole set for all fans.

LAST TIME OUT

Pitt earned a 1-0 victory over Penn State in an exhibition road matchup Saturday, Aug. 18 to finish preseason play with a perfect 2-0 record.
Redshirt senior Robby Dambrot netted the lone goal of the game in the 68^th minute to secure the win for the Panthers.

2017 SEASON IN REVIEW

Pitt amassed an 8-10 overall record while collecting multiple marquee wins.
The Panthers earned the program's first wins over ranked opponents since 2008 after producing victories against No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 13 Columbia and No. 21 Syracuse.
Pitt's wins over the Orange and Fighting Irish were also its first conference victories since joining the ACC in 2013.
The Panthers also defeated longtime rivals West Virginia and Penn State during the season, including a dominant 7-0 victory over the Mountaineers.
Pitt's seven goals marked the 28^th time in program history that the team had achieved the feat and the first time since 1998.

SYNOPSIS OF THE SQUAD

Pitt returns 13 players from a year ago, including senior Javi Perez, who earned All-ACC Second Team honors, as well as sophomores Alexander Dexter and Edward Kizza, who were both named to the ACC All-Freshman Team.
The Panthers also welcome 12 new players into the fold, with a mix of freshmen and transfers.
Senior Peter Prescott, a transfer from Creighton, and redshirt senior Shane Wiedt, a transfer from Akron, both have experience making deep NCAA College Cup runs with their former teams.

PITT'S PRESEASON ACCOLADES

The Panthers earned multiple preseason honors, both as a team and individually, heading into the 2018 slate.
Pitt received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll released Tuesday, Aug. 7 earning nine total points.
The team's incoming freshman class was also rated sixth in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer.
Individually, senior Javi Perez and sophomore Edward Kizza landed in Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Top 100 Players list, with Perez coming in at No. 26 and Kizza coming in at No. 99.
Two Panthers also earned recognition in Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Best XI, with Perez being named to the Second Team and freshman Chandler Vaughn collecting Freshman Team honors.

VIDOVICH'S COACHING CAREER

Head coach Jay Vidovich enters his third year with the program heading into the 2018 season.
Following a rebuilding year in 2016, Vidovich led the Panthers to an 8-10 record in a 2017 season that included multiple marque wins against ranked opponents.
Prior to Pitt, Vidovich spent 21 years as the head coach at Wake Forest, where he led the Demon Deacons to a 2007 National Championship, made four College Cup appearances and claimed five ACC regular season titles.
The two-time NSCAA Coach of the Year has produced 36 professional players, 21 All-Americans and five ACC Player of the Year honorees while compiling a 282-144-53 (.644) career record.

THE SERIES – COLGATE

This will be the first meeting between Pitt and Colgate in program history.

SCOUTING THE RAIDERS

Colgate finished the 2017 season with a 12-11-1 overall record, including a 4-4-1 mark against Patriot League competition.
After winning the Patriot League Championship and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA College Cup, the Raiders earned wins over UMass and Michigan before falling to Louisville in the third round of the tournament.
Colgate is coached by Erik Ronning, who enters his 14^th season with the program. Ronning owns a 115-99-43 (.531) career record with the team.
On the field, the Raiders will be led by senior Aram Ouligian, who scored a team-high eight goals and ranked second on the team with 19 points in the 2017 season.

THE SERIES – DELAWARE

Pitt owns a 1-0 all-time record against Delaware.
The Panthers' lone matchup with the Blue Hens came in 2012, with Pitt taking a 1-0 home victory.

SCOUTING THE BLUE HENS

Delaware closed out the 2017 season with a 5-7-4 overall record while sporting a 2-4-2 record against CAA foes.
The Blue Hens are led by Ian Hennessy, who enters his 13^th year at the helm. In his 12 seasons at Delaware, Hennessy has compiled a 96-105-29 (.480) overall record.
Delaware returns 14 players from last season's roster while welcoming 12 newcomers to the team.

TICKETS NOW ON SALE

Flex season ticket packages, as well single game and group tickets, are now on sale for the 2018 men's soccer season. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling the Panthers Ticket Office at 800-643-7488.

UP NEXT

Following Pitt's matchup at Delaware, the Panthers will travel to Akron, Ohio to face the Zips Saturday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m.

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Pitt Opens Season with No. 25 Colgate, Delaware

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Robby Dambrot

Alexander Dexter

Edward Kizza

Javi Perez

Peter Prescott

Chandler Vaughn

Shane Wiedt

Pitt Opens Season with No. 25 Colgate, Delaware

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Robby Dambrot

Alexander Dexter

Edward Kizza

Javi Perez

Peter Prescott

Chandler Vaughn

Shane Wiedt

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