Men’s Soccer Set to Kickoff 2023 Campaign

The St. Bonaventure University men’s soccer team is set to begin the 2023 season with a pair of matchups in the Lonestar State Thursday and Sunday. The Bonnies get their Texas trip underway with a matchup against Houston Christian Thursday, Aug. 24 at 8:00 p.m. and wrap up the opening week against Incarnate Word in San Antonio Sunday, Aug. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

SEASON OUTLOOK

Bonnies head coach Kwame Oduro returns 20 members from last year's roster, including one graduate student, six seniors, five juniors and eight sophomores.

Senior Rafael Pereira returns as the Bonnies top point scorer last season, netting one goal and assisting on three scores for five points. Also returning for the Bonnies is junior forward Umechi Akuazaoku who scored a pair of goals last season and has five career goals in the Brown and White.

In net, senior Jules Dechert and sophomore Nic Pucci both are back between the pipes after splitting time last season. Dechert made 10 starts in net in 2022, stopping 51 shots with a 1.94 goals against average. Pucci made six starts in his first season with the program, making 18 saves. 

Coach Oduro welcomes 12 newcomers to the 2023 roster, bringing in a mix of experience and true freshmen to the program. Among the newcomers are three graduate students, three juniors and six freshmen. 

Bo Drath, Mo Tall, Marius Dahl, Kenzo Brito, Andres Javitt, Rashid Aroza, Luc Finelli, Alessandro Ferrin, Daniel Helle, Callum Shillington, Tyler Kohl and Alex Ohmart all join the squad for the 2023 campaign.

THEY'VE BEEN AROUND THE BLOCK

Coach Oduro’s 2023 roster features a wealth of collegiate playing experience among upperclassmen. Graduate students Haji Shee, Mo Tall and Marius Dahl as well as seniors Clay Smith, David Cubillos, Rafael Pereira, Jules Dechert and Mitch Wambach have combined to play in 250 collegiate soccer games during their careers. 

Among the returners, Pereira has played in 42 games over three seasons between St. Bonaventure and Ashland. Cubillos is a four-year member of the Bonnies and has appeared in 37 career games. 

Dahl joins the Bonnies after three seasons of competition at Division II Wilmington where he saw action in 52 games. Tall comes to Bona’s from Bucknell, appearing in 36 games and leading the team in scoring in 2022. 

BONNIES FROM NEAR AND FAR

The 2023 Bonnies are represented by 12 countries, including France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Brazil, Canada, Burkina Faso, Venezuela, Norway, Denmark, Ghana and United States. 

TEXAS TRIP

The Bonnies head to Texas for the first time since 2017 when they participated in the UTRGV Invitational. SBU went 0-1-1 in two contests, earning a draw against UTRGV but fell to Houston Christian, 2-1, in double overtime.

Bona’s will look to get revenge on Houston Christian in the season opener Aug. 24 in Houston. The Huskies enter their first season in the Ohio Valley Conference after being an associate member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) for the past 10 seasons. Houston Christian finished last season 5-8-6 overall and 1-5-3 in WAC play. 

In the second matchup of the trip, the Bonnies travel to San Antonio for a contest against Incarnate Word Aug. 27. The Cardinals will also be competing in the OVC for the first time in 2023. Incarnate Word finished 2022 with a 2-13-1 record. The Bonnies and Cardinals last met in 2013 when the Bonnies came out on top, 2-1, at the Duquesne Invitational.