Missouri State University men's soccer head coach Jon Leamy has finalized his team's schedule for the upcoming 2010 season. The schedule includes six opponents from last season's NCAA Tournament.
Missouri State will play seven regular season and one exhibition home match at Plaster Sports Complex. The Bears will have three non-conference and four conference matches at home during the 2010 season.
"It's a challenging schedule," said Leamy. "We have a number of perennially good teams on our schedule this season."
Missouri State will begin the regular season in Dallas on September 1 to play Southern Methodist, a team the bears defeated 3-1 last season. The Bears will then play UMKC on September 6 in Kansas City for a Labor Day evening match.
The Bears will face Green Bay in the home opener at Plaster Field on Friday, September 10 with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. The Phoenix were an NCAA Tournament participant in 2009. Two days later, Missouri State will host IUPUI for an afternoon tilt.
The Bears will then set out on the longest and toughest road trip of the season. The first stop will be at Louisville, an NCAA Tournament team from last season, on September 18. The Bears will then head to Tulsa to play the Golden Hurricane on September 21. Tulsa reached the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals a year ago.
On Saturday, September 25, the Bears begin Missouri Valley Conference play at Central Arkansas, a new member to the MVC in men's soccer. The two teams played to a scoreless draw in Conway last season.
"These teams (Central Arkansas and SIU Edwardsville) bring a lot to the Valley," remarked Leamy regarding UCA and SIU Edwardsville joining the MVC in men's soccer. "They are good teams that will make the MVC even more challenging."
Missouri State will then head to St. Louis for an NCAA Tournament rematch with the Billikens on September 28. Saint Louis knocked the Bears out of the last season's NCAA Tournament with a 2-1 first round win over MSU.
The Bears then face another opponent from last season's NCAA Tournament in Northwestern. The match on October 3 will be the first between the two squads since head coach Jon Leamy's first season at the helm of the Bears in 1992. The Bears end the road trip with a stop in Charleston, Ill., to face Eastern Illinois on October 9. The Panthers were the only team to defeat the Bears in regular season conference play last season.
Missouri State returns home to face Drake on October 16 to begin a four-game home stand. Last season, MSU beat Drake twice during the season, but the Bulldogs ended up advancing to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. Evansville, Memphis and Bradley complete the home stand and October for the Bears.
Missouri State will travel to Omaha to face Creighton on November 3 to round out the road schedule. A final home game versus SIU Edwardsville ends the regular season for the Bears. The Cougars are also a new member of the MVC in men's soccer. Following the regular season, MSU will travel to Peoria, Ill., for the State Farm MVC Tournament.
"The MVC schedule will be very demanding this season," continued Leamy. "Every team has a chance to win the league this year, so our guys will have to battle from start to finish all year."
The Bears will travel to Tulsa to play New Mexico as part of the exhibition slate. A home exhibition against Missouri S&T on August 27 will complete the exhibition schedule.
Last season, the Bears were 12-5-2 and won the MVC regular season title with a 7-1-1 conference record. Missouri State advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in team history, but were eliminated by Saint Louis in the first round.
