This Week: The University of Mary Men's Soccer team kicks off the 2015 season with a trip to Des Moines, Iowa, for matches against Maryville University and the University of Illinois Springfield.

Coverage: Live stats will be available at goumary.com/coverage

MARYVILLE: The Saints had a bit of a roller coaster year as they finished the year 5-9-4 overall with a 4-9-2 record in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The highlight of the season came in the form of a double-overtime 2-2 tie against #13 Lindenwood University on September 10. Maryville will trot out new faces in 2015 compared to their 2014 roster as they lost four of their top five scorers, the only returner being Luke Gilsinger, who scored three goals, with two assists, for eight points. The Saints will also have a new look in goal as CJ Hendricks will fill the void left from Eddie Starr as Hendricks made an appearance in eight games with five starts, compiled 558 minutes played, allowed 10 goals while making 26 saves for a .722 save percetange. The Marauders will have the advantage of returning their top three scorers and will need to keep the pressure on the offensive end of the pitch to come away with the victory.

ILLINOIS-SPRINGFIELD: The Prairie Stars finished the 2014 season with a 6-12 overall record with a 4-11 mark in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Prairie Star struggled near the end of the season but ended the year on a high note with two home victories, one against the University of Southern Indiana and the other against McKendree University. Top goal scorer Dylan Stockman returns for his junior year after leading the team with four goals on 28 shots for eight points, including two game winners during the course of the season. The Praire Stars will have a new face in the net as they lost Kyle Hamilton from last year who appeared in 14 games with 13 starts, compiled 1201 minutes, allowed 23 goals with 63 saves for a .733 save percentage and a 5-8 record. U-Mary will have to leverage their top returners with extensive playing time in order to secure the win.

Next Week: The Marauders will have two more neutral site matches in Billings, Mont., where they will take on former GNAC opponent South Dakota School of Mines on September 11, before competing against Caroll College (Mont.) on September 13.

Last Year: U-Mary started off the year with a good showing against #23 Fort Hays State University in a 1-1 tie before defeating Southwest Baptist University and South Dakota School of Mines to open up the conference schedule. Unfortunately the competition ramped up quickly as they dropped their next six games to Seattle Pacific University, Saint Martin's University, Montana State University-Billings, Northwest Nazarene University, Western Washington University and Simon Fraser University before snapping the skid with a 1-1 tie at home against Northwest Nazarene, a 2-1 win over MSU-Billings, and a 4-1 win over Saint Martins before dropping the next three games. U-Mary ended the season on a high note with a 6-1 rout of South Dakota School of Mines to close out the seasons and send their seniors riding off into the sunset.

For more information check out the full PDF release.

#marauders#