EVANSTON, Ill. ? In an effort to beat the weather, Saturday's soccer exhibition game between Bradley and Northwestern has been changed to a 2:15 p.m. start time at the LBT Athletic Complex. The game was originally scheduled for a 7 o'clock start Saturday night.
Coming off its 2007 run to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, Bradley continues its tough offseason schedule Saturday against the Wildcats. Northwestern was a 12-game winner that also qualified for the NCAA tournament last season.
The only home game of the spring is scheduled for April 19 at noon, as MVC rival Drake will visit Shea Stadium. The Braves knocked off Drake last Oct. 27, 1-0 at Shea Stadium. The Bradley soccer awards banquet will take place the evening of April 19. 2007 NCAA tournament participant Saint Louis is the final BU opponent in the spring, as the Braves will visit the Billikens April 26 at 11 a.m.
"The quality of opponents on our spring schedule is fantastic with our six opponents averaging ten wins," Derose said. "All of these teams should be among the preseason favorites in their respective leagues in 2008, and with five of the six matches away from Bradley, I am confident that our team faces a very realistic picture for next fall. There are tremendous opportunities to be had by individuals who previously have not played many minutes, and this spring will provide those opportunities in the most challenging of environments. I believe our veteran players are prepared to assume a greater and expanded leadership role, and I know the players are extremely excited to get started."
Junior-to-be Chris Cutshaw (Carmel, Ind./Carmel H.S.) is the top returning scorer for the Braves, scoring eight goals last season to go along with three assists. Freshmen Wolfe Repass (Geneseo, Ill./Geneseo H.S.) and JC Reid (Omaha, Neb./Ralston H.S.) will see their first playing time after ACL surgeries last summer prior to coming to BU.
"This spring will prove extremely challenging and is very important to gauging our performance next fall," Derose said. "Training just 15 field players and one goalkeeper this spring has given us the opportunity to focus a tremendous amount on the technical portion of the game, but we have yet to be challenged in any type of 11 vs. 11 situations."
