HAMILTON – Colgate Men's Soccer kicks off its 2022 season with a non-conference matchup in Rhode Island Thursday, Aug. 25, at Providence College.
Colgate's first match on the road is just the start to its 17-game season that has the Raiders traveling throughout the northeast region.
After a midweek affair against Providence,the Raiders return to Beyer-Small '76 Field for a Monday, August 29, matchup against Marist with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
John W. Beyer Head Men's Soccer Coach
Erik Ronning enters his 18th season at the helm, as the Raiders return some key pieces that played in a majority of the matches last season. The return of shut-down defender
Toby Goldner will prove beneficial on an experienced squad. Goldner suited up in 17 matches, finding the first team sheet 16 times.
"Last semester, our players and staff worked incredibly hard to reignite our positive culture, change the collective mentality of the team, raise our standards, while focusing on the process of being a great team," Ronning said, eager to start the season.
"This preseason has been a continuation of the journey we started in January, and I am pleased with what we have seen thus far. Our team arrived on campus physically prepared with a great mentality, brought a positive mindset, and a strong belief in eachother and what we are doing. We could not be more excited for the start of the season and will be ready for difficult challenges that lie ahead, starting with Providence on Thursday."
Sophomore forward
Alejandro Coury returns to Colgate after hearing his name called 16 times last season, playing in 600 minutes. Senior midfielder
Max Edelstein looks to help lead the Raiders to success this year, being one of the top scorers on last year's squad.
The Raiders welcomed 10 new players to the squad: five midfielders, two forwards, two defenders, and one goalkeeper. The new class represents five different states, including Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Florida.
Ronning and Assistant Coach
Ricky Brown announced the hiring of Assistant Coach
Scott Bratt in February 2022. Bratt comes to Colgate after spending the last two seasons in the United Kingdom working for Southampton FC for the club's charitable organization Saints Foundation. No stranger to the NCAA ranks, Bratt was a part of the Cornell men's soccer team's coaching staff for the 2018-19 season and served as an assistant coach for SUNY Cortland in 2017.
The Raiders hit the road briefly for a two-game stint against intrastate rival Binghamton (9/2) and finish with Fairfield (9/7) before returning home for the 9/11 Alumni Weekend to remember fallen teammates Todd Pelino '89, David Retik '90, and Scott Coleman '94 game against Pennsylvania
Colgate finishes up its brief homestand against Boston University (9/16) to officially kick off league play. Syracuse (9/20) comes to town for a non-conference game and the Raiders finish up September and early October with league play before hosting Cornell (10/11).
The Raiders wrap up the season with a handful of league games and one non-conference game against the UAlbany (10/18). Colgate's last home game is scheduled against Army (10/29).
Looking ahead to the season, Ronning said, "The potential of this group is very high.We know we will grow every time we step on the field. I can assure you we will have a group that will never get outworked, will always fight for each other, handle difficult moments well, play in a way that maximizes our potential, and positively reflects the core values of the program. We have come a long way, but have a long way to go."
