DAYTON - The University of Dayton men's soccer team will open up the 2019 season this weekend at the Ohio State Tournament in Columbus. The Flyers begin with Illinois Chicago Friday at 4 p.m. and end the event Sunday with Cal St. Northridge at 12 p.m.

"We challenge our guys during a four year period to gain a championship." said head coach Dennis Currier. "We have been knocking on the door each year and just have fallen short. That is the ultimate goal. It's every year. When they come in as freshmen it is hard to do, but now they have gained the leadership and experience through all the trials and tribulations they go through in a four-year period. That's our next hump, getting past the semifinals and getting to that final."

The Flyers were 9-6-4 last season and 4-3-1 in Atlantic 10 play, finishing seventh in the conference. Dayton was 2-1-1 in neutral site games in 2018.

Head coach Dennis Currier is in his 15th season at the helm of the Flyers, totaling 139 victories, the most in UD history. He leads a veteran squad this season with seven seniors and 10 returning starters.

Last season, the Flyers averaged 1.16 goals per game and held opponents to 0.84 goals each contest. Dayton outshot opponents 14.3 to 11.5 and posted a .386 shots on goal percentage. Defensively, UD recorded eight shutouts.

The Flyers return their top four goal scorers from last season, led by juniors Jonas Fjeldberg (four goals, two assists) and Laurel Aug (two goals, three assists), and senior Rok Taneski (two goals, three assists). Senior goalkeeper Federico Barrios returns for his final season, bringing in a career 46 starts, 0.91 goals against average, and 13 shutouts.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
ILLINOIS CHICAGO
Illinois Chicago was 12-6-2 last season and went 5-2-1 in Horizon league games, winning the confernence tournament over favorites Wright State. The Flames advanced the NCAA Tournament before falling to No. 22 Michigan State in the opening round. Head coach Sean Phillips is in his ninth season.

The Flames scored 1.90 goals per game and ranked Top 10 in the nation in assists per game and total assists. UIC recorded six shutouts and held opponents to 1.25 goals each contest.

UIC lost its top three goalscorers including Max Todd's 12 goals last season, but returns Jesus Perez, who finished with 12 assists which was second in the nation. Goalkeeper Sokratis Vasilas is in his first season between the posts.

CAL ST. NORTHRIDGE
Cal St. Northridge is coming off a 9-8-1 campaign last season and went 3-3-1 in Big West games. The Matadors did not play a neutral site game, but were 6-3 at home in 2018. Head coach Terry Davila is a veteran coach, entering his 21st season at CSUN.

The Matadors finished third in the country in shot accuracy with a .518 mark last season. CSUN scored 1.67 goals each contest and held opposing squads to 1.28 goals.

CSUN is led by junior Daniel Trejo, who totaled 10 goals and five assists, and senior Johnny Rodriguez, who had five goals and four assists. Goalkeeper Paul Lewis and David Preys split time in the preseason.

THE SERIES
Dayton and UIC have played three times previously with a 1-1-1 record overall. The Flyers and Flames last met in 2011 with UIC coming out on top 2-1 at Baujan Field.

The Flyers and CSUN have met just one time in the series history, back in 1990. Dayton and CSUN drew that contest 2-2 in double overtime.

LAST OUTING
Dayton finished the preseason with a 0-0 draw at home against Bowling Green on Aug. 23. The Flyers did not allow a single goal all preseason.

UIC suffered a 2-1 loss at Creighton in its final exhibition game. Pau Mateo scored in the 82nd minute for the Flames, but it was not enough.

CSUN finished up its preseason with a 1-1 draw against California Baptist in its final exhibition.  Daniel Trejo put the Matadords ahead in the 14th minute before CSUN gave up the equalizer in the 79th minute.

BARRIOS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE
Senior goalkeeper Federico Barrios was named to the Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference team as the lone keeper. The Colombia native led the league in save percentage last season with a .815 mark and totaled a conference-high eight shutouts to go with 53 saves.

PRESEASON
The Flyers went undefeated in the two exhibition games this year, finishing with a 2-0 win over IUPUI and a 0-0 draw against Bowling Green. Both shutouts took place at home with the Flyers defending Baujan Field.

DAYTON PICKED TO FINISH 4TH
The Atlantic 10 Conference released its preseason poll and picked the Flyers to finish fourth with 121 points. Dayton was predicted to finish behind favorites VCU (159), Saint Louis (146), and Rhode Island (142).

FLYER SUCCESS
The Dayton men's program has an overall record of 497-420-90 and four NCAA Tournament appearances in its history. The Flyers are also 133-89-26 in the Atlantic 10 Conference and have six conference titles between the regular season and league tournament.

INTERNATIONAL FLAIR
The Dayton program has been known to recruit well outside of the U.S. and this year's team is no different. The Flyers have student-athletes from Ghana, Spain, Norway, Switzerland, Slovenia, Sweden, Germany, Nigeria, and Colombia totaling 15 international players. This is coming off the 2018 season in which the Flyers had 12 international players.

RIGHT TO DREAM ACADEMY PLAYERS
The Flyers have a pair of players from the prestigious Right to Dream Academy in Ghana.  Newcomers Seth Antwi and Kingsford Adjei both attended the academy before their time at Dayton

CURRIER'S IMPACT
The head coach of the Flyers has had success at every place he has coached. Dennis Currier is in his 14th year at Dayton and holds a career record of 327-139-55 in 26 seasons and a 139-90-43 record with the Flyers. His career winning percentage of .686 ranks 10th in the nation amongst active coaches, ahead of programs like Indiana, Notre Dame, Kentucky, UCLA, and Xavier.

UP NEXT
Dayton will play its first home game of the season by hosting Ohio State on Friday, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. at Baujan Field to open the Dayton Classic.