LIVE STATS | UE GAME NOTES

MACON, Ga. – The University of Evansville men's soccer team (1-0-0) is on the road for the first time this preseason as they visit the Mercer Bears (0-0-0) on Thursday, August 20. The match will be held at Bear Field in Macon, Ga. and begin at 3:00 p.m. CDT.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT
UE won 2-1 at home against Bellarmine (0-1-0) on Monday, August 17. The Aces utilized an opening goal from senior forward Nate Opperman and a game winning goal by sophomore midfielder Ian McGrath in a 2-1 exhibition win.
 
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
"It was a positive step forward for our group," said Evansville head men's soccer coach Marshall Ray on his team's win over Bellarmine. "We were able to get all of our incoming guys minutes and see them compete in a college match as well as experiment with a couple different formations. We have a long way to go, but we are moving in the right direction."
 
21
Coach Ray and his staff were able to incorporate many of their student-athletes into their formations against Bellarmine. 21 of the 24 players on the Purple Aces roster saw time in the match including six of the eight newcomers.
 
THE OPPONENT
Mercer's first exhibition match of the season will be against the Purple Aces. The Bears ended last year 14-7-0 including a first place finish of 8-2-0 in the Southern Conference regular season.  Mercer returns 13 letterwinners including eight starters from the 2014 championship team. The Bears also have seven newcomers.
 
THE COACHES
The Aces have a new head coach this season, Marshall Ray. A former player (1995-'99) at UE, Ray graduated from UE in 2000 and has served on the staff for nine years with the last six as Associate Head Coach.
 
Mercer is led by their eight year head coach Brad Ruzzo. Previously, Ruzzo was an Associate Head Coach for Bradley University (2000-07) in the Missouri Valley Conference prior to joining Mercer in 2008.
 
HISTORY
Evansville is 3-0 in the all-time series against Mercer. UE won the last meeting 3-1 in the ProRehab Aces Classic at Arad McCutchan Stadium on Sept. 19, 2014. The Aces also won the other two meetings, a 3-1 victory vs. Mercer on Sept. 21, 2007 and a 1-0 win on Sept. 18, 1999.
 
CALL FROM THE HALL
UE men's soccer player (1985-'87) Mick Lyon was announced as a 2016 Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Famer in August. He was the 1987 Midwestern Collegiate Conference Player of the Year and a Second Team All-American. Lyon was also the women's soccer head coach (1993-2001), winning nine MVC Championships.
 
HELPING HAND
The Purple Aces finished last season 41st in the nation with 1.50 assists per game, second in the MVC.
 
42
This marks the 42nd season of the UE men's soccer program.
 
UP FOR THE CHALLENGE
Evansville's schedule features three NCAA Tournament teams from last year (Indiana, Kentucky, St. Louis). The Aces will take on two teams that finished in the final RPI top 25 last season (Indiana 16, St. Louis 22) and seven in the top 100 (Bowling Green 64, Butler 68, Missouri St. 76, Mercer 86, and Lipscomb 97).
 
For all of the latest information on University of Evansville men's soccer, log on to the sport page on GoPurpleAces.com or follow the program on Twitter via @UEAthleticsMSOC.  For information on giving to UE Athletics or its individual athletics programs, visit the DONATE tab on the top of GoPurpleAces.com.  To purchase tickets for University of Evansville athletics events, log on to GoPurpleAces.com and click on the TICKETS tab on top of the page.