ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Oakland men's soccer team concludes a four-game road swing with a pair of matches at Western Illinois on Friday, Sept. 6 at 5 p.m. ET followed by Bradley on Sun., Sept. 8 at 2 p.m. ET. The match at WIU will be broadcast live from John Mackenzie Field on the Fighting Leatherneck All-Access Network free of charge while the showdown against the Braves with be broadcast live from Shea Stadium on ESPN+ for paid subscriptions only.
 
Notes:
-Oakland holds a 4-3-3 overall mark against Western Illinois and 0-0-1 record against Bradley 0-0-1. Last season, the Golden Grizzlies played both teams to a 1-1 draw at the Oakland Soccer Field.
 
-In the season opener, Oakland rolled to a 5-1 win at Robert Morris as five players each scored a goal led by Dylan Borczak with a goal and two assists recording four points. Cameron Wilde and Mikey Ketteman each scored their first career goals while transfer Charlie Braithwaite notched his first goal in a Golden Grizzlies' uniform. Dawsun Schrum also rounded out the scoring with a second half tally.
 
- Braithwaite, Wilde, Noah Jensen, Frank Jones and Carson Debison-Larabie also accounted for five of the Golden Grizzlies' seven total assists.
 
- Sullivan Lauderdale made four saves and only allowed a goal off a penalty kick in the 86th minute against RMU. Over two games, Lauderdale has held opponents scoreless in 156.03 of his 180 total minutes played.
 
-Despite outshooting Duquesne 24-12 and holding a 12-4 advantage in corner kicks, the Golden Grizzlies suffered a 1-0 setback to the Dukes in the second game of the season.
 
-The 2019 season marks the 47th year of the men's soccer program
 
-Head Coach Eric Pogue is entering his 11th season and 18th overall with the program
 
-Associate Head Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Andy Wagstaff and Assistant Coach Demir Muftari return to the coaching staff. Both helped Oakland to the program's first Horizon League regular season and tournament championships in 2014. The team went on to defeat Kentucky in the opening round of the NCAA Championships marking the second time the Golden Grizzlies advanced to the second round of the College Cup
 
- Oakland was picked to finish fourth in the 2019 Horizon League Preseason Poll
 
- The Golden Grizzlies have 13 returners including Horizon League All-Freshman Team selections Luke Morrell who finished second on the team in goals (4) and points (8) and Napoleon Outlaw III who also finished second in points (8) scoring three goals with two assists
 
-Seniors Spencer Nolff and Elliott Bentley along with junior Noah Jensen were named team captains
 
-For the second straight season, Oakland welcomes a diverse group of 11 newcomers who will look to make an immediate impact.
The group includes 10 freshmen Carson Debison-Larabie (Ajax, Ont., Canada), Frank Jones (Rochdale, England), Mikey Ketteman (Portage, Mich.), Auston Kranick (Murrysville, Penn.), Adam McAleenan (Crossgar, Northern Ireland), Mitch Meldrum (Chesterfield, Mich.), Marco Navarro (Fort Wayne, Ind.), Alexis Puga (Lawrenceville, Ga.), Micah Sonnenberg (Brooklyn, Mich.), Reid Sproat (Auburn, Ind.) and Georgia Military College transfer Charlie Braithwaite (Doncaster, England) to round out the class.
 
-The 2019 roster also includes 10 international players: Canada (5-Jensen, Evan Sawula, Debison-Larabie, Adam Giorgio, Liam McQueenie), England (3-Braithwaite, Bentley, Jones), France (1-Corentin Diverres), Ireland (1-McAleenan).



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