MANCHESTER, N.H. - The Saint Anselm College men's soccer team is set to open the 2023 season on the road this Thursday, August 31st against Molloy University in Rockville Center, N.Y. with kickoff slated for 7:00 p.m.  The Hawks hope to have several returning players step into larger roles after graduating a large class following the 2022 season.

"I think this group is ready to get to the next step," commented Head Coach Bruno Victal, who is entering his eighth season at the helm of the program. "We had a great senior class last year, a lot of guys with tons of minutes in the NE10, but the guys behind them were very good, very strong, and were impacting the team. I would call this year a rebuild for us, but based off what I have seen in preseason, I feel that we have more guys that are ready than if you would have asked me this question on day one."

Saint Anselm was picked 10th in the Northeast-10 Preseason Coaches' Poll after missing out on the conference postseason tournament last fall by just one point.

Senior captain Tucker Henry (Lee, N.H.) said, "It's always tough getting into the NE10 tournament, it's a really competitive conference, but I think this year, one of our greatest strengths is just how close we are as a team from seniors down to the freshmen. If we can maintain our level of commitment, energy, and positivity with each other, I really have a great feeling about this season."

"I tell everybody: the NE10 is a different animal when it comes to soccer with the talent and very experienced players in our league," Victal stated. "Most games will be a battle; it's very, very competitive."

After losing eight starters from a season ago, the Hawks will enter the 2023 season with a mixture of experienced players in addition to a skilled incoming class of seven freshmen and two transfer student-athletes.

"I don't think we have ever been this deep before with this program," Victal explained. "The guys are definitely hungry. I was not expecting our freshmen class to adjust their game to the college level this quick and I can see that they are definitely surprising me."

Saint Anselm opens the season with five consecutive non-conference matchups before beginning conference play on September 16th at New Haven.

Henry added, "I think that just taking each game, focusing on different aspects of our game, and taking something away from every game moving forward is going to be huge."

When asked what it would take for the Hawks to reach their first NE10 postseason since 2009, Victal replied, "Last year, we got the closest ever. We had four games where we allowed that ticket to the playoffs to escape, but it's not going to happen again with this group."