UAH (0-0) at Trevecca Nazarene (0-0)
2013 Season Opener
Trevecca Soccer Complex - Nashville, Tenn. - 7 p.m.
Live Stats: tnutrojans.com
About the Chargers
-UAH is opening the new campaign on Thursday, and it will be the first with the reigning Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year Matt Watts at the helm as he came to Huntsville from Delta State in January. Watts completely turned the Statesmen program around, taking DSU to the championship game of the GSC tournament a season ago.
-The Chargers return six starters from last year's squad including junior Kyle Simmons who has led the Blue and White in scoring during his first two seasons.
-With Kel Markert graduating in May, UAH will look to a new face in goal for the first time since the start of the 2011 season. Sophomore Michael Winstone did earn valuable minutes last season, appearing in four contests while also starting a pair of matches, and freshman Will Carpenter has been strong in the preseason to give him a shot at seeing time right away.
About the Opponent
-Thursday's contest also marks the first of the year for the host Trojans. TNU was predicted to finish third in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, and returns all but one starter from a season ago.
-Trevecca Nazarene finished last season at 9-9 including a 4-0 loss to a familiar UAH opponent Lincoln Memorial. The Trojans did light up the scoreboard on several occasions, including scoring a season-best 11 goals against Hiwassee on Sept. 7. The team also scored eight times in the season-opener against Concord and blanked Brescia 7-0 in October.
-Among those returning for the Trojans are the team's top two scorers from last year as Jonathan Baskin notched 10 scores a season ago while Richie Reichenberger scored eight times.
Series History
-The two teams have only met twice on the pitch with both sides having a win in the series. UAH took the first meeting by a 4-1 score in 2004, while TNU was a 1-0 winner in the last meeting which came during the 2006 season.
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