GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Three opponents that advanced to the NCAA Division II postseason highlights the 2015 Tusculum College men's soccer schedule announced head coach Allen Vital. (2015 Schedule)

The Pioneers will take on a challenging 16-match schedule, which includes seven exciting home contests at Pioneer Field.

Coach Vital, who is entering his fifth season at his alma mater, returns 17 lettermen, including six starters from last year's 11-6-3 club that finished the year strong going 8-1-2 in its last 11 contests, while capturing the South Atlantic Conference Tournament title.

All-Region defender Guillermo Lazcano returns as does All-South Atlantic Conference forward Jonathan Spicher and All-SAC goalkeeper Jorge Alvarez. Also slated to return is 2015 SAC Tournament Most Valuable Player Andreas Kvam.

Tusculum will kick off the season on Sept. 3rd when the Pioneers make the short trip to Bristol to take on in-state foe King University. The Tornados tied for fifth place in Conference Carolinas while posting a 7-10 record, including a 2-0 road loss at Tusculum.

Tusculum will play its only non-regional opponent on Sept. 5th as TC hosts Milligan College at Pioneer Field. The Buffaloes posted a 6-9-2 worksheet in 2014, including a 2-1 home loss to the Pioneers.

On Sept. 9th, the Pioneers host regional power Lees-McRae College as the Bobcats are coming off a 13-5-2 season and finished fourth in Conference Carolinas. LMC upset No. 10 Limestone College 1-0 in overtime in the conference semifinal.

Tusculum begins its 17th South Atlantic Conference campaign on Sept. 16th as the Pioneers travel to Queens University Charlotte. The Royals suffered a down season in 2014 with a 3-13 record, one season removed from Queens capturing the SAC Championship. Tusculum defeated the Royals 2-1 in last year's league-opener.

The Pioneers travel to Wilson, North Carolina on Sept. 19th to face Barton College. The Bulldogs earned a NCAA Tournament at-large berth as BC went 13-7 and finished third in Conference Carolinas. Barton posted a 2-1 season-opening victory at Tusculum last year.

The Pioneers return home to host in-state rival Lincoln Memorial University on Sept. 23rd. TC and LMU played to a 1-1 draw in last year's encounter. The Railsplitters tied for seventh place in the SAC standings as LMU ended the year with a 7-6-3 record.

Tusculum hosts Anderson University on Sept. 26 as the Trojans look to improve on last year's 8-9-1 overall record and fifth place finish in the conference. Anderson edged the Pioneers 1-0 in last season's meeting.

The Pioneers will play its next three contests on the road, beginning on Sept. 30th with a trip to Pfeiffer University. The Falcons went 17-5-1 last year, finished runner-up in the Conference Carolinas regular season, but caught fire in the postseason to win the league tournament championship. Pfeiffer advanced to the second round of the NCAA postseason.

Tusculum will follow with back-to-back SAC road outings at Newberry College (Oct. 3) and Brevard College (Oct. 7). Newberry tied for ninth place in the league with a 6-10-2 record, while Brevard placed 12th with a 4-13-1 overall mark. TC defeated Newberry 4-1 in last year's regular-season finale, while the Pioneers preceded that with a 7-0 win over Brevard at Tusculum.
Coker College visits Greeneville on Oct. 11th as the Cobras posted a 4-8-5 record and tied for seventh place in the conference. Tusculum got a late goal in a 1-0 win at Coker in last year's encounter.

TC begins a three-match North Carolina road trip on Oct. 14 at Lenoir-Rhyne University. The Bears finished fourth in the SAC and amassed a 6-8-5 overall record in 2014, including a 2-1 victory at Tusculum on Oct. 19th, which proved to be TC last loss of the year.

On Oct. 17th, Tusculum takes on cross-mountain rival Mars Hill University. The Lions finished runner-up in the SAC regular-season with an 8-3 league record, one point behind SAC champion Wingate University. Tusculum and Mars Hill played a pair of thrillers in last season. In the regular season, MHU notched a 1-0 road win over the Pioneers. In the SAC Tournament semifinal, Mars Hill scored a goal with 27 seconds remaining in regulation to send the match into overtime. The two teams went to penalty kicks as Alvarez recorded a save, while Tusculum made all five of its attempts, including Jonathan Spicher's match-clincher. The Lions ended the season with a 9-7-1 overall record.

TC closes out the three-match road swing on Oct. 24 at Catawba College. The Catawba Indians tied for ninth place in the SAC with a 6-9-2 record, including a 3-0 loss to Tusculum at Burley Stadium in Greeneville.

The Pioneers close out the regular season with two matches at home. Tusculum hosts arch-rival Carson-Newman University on Oct. 27th. The Eagles went 7-9-2 last season and finished third in the league, a year removed from C-N's national runner-up finish in 2013. In last year's regular-season meeting, Tusculum scored a second half goal in a 1-1 draw in Jefferson City. The two teams met again at C-N in the SAC quarterfinal as Spicher scored the match-winner in the 88th minute in a 2-1 Tusculum victory.

On Oct. 30th, Tusculum and Wingate will meet at Pioneer Field in the regular-season finale and a rematch of last year's SAC Tournament final. The Bulldogs captured a 3-1 win over Tusculum on Sept. 27th as Wingate posted an 8-2-1 league record to capture the SAC regular-season championship. Tusculum got a goal from Andreas Kvam in the 89th minute of the SAC Tournament final with Wingate to send the match into extra time. Tusculum would get a goal from Mark Patterson late in the second overtime frame as the Pioneers captured their fifth SAC Tournament title. Wingate still earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament as the Bulldogs advanced to the second round. Wingate ended the season with a 14-5-1 record and a No. 22 national ranking.

The 2015 South Atlantic Conference Tournament will begin Nov. 3rd with quarterfinal matches held at campus sites. The semifinal and championship rounds will be conducted once again at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, South Carolina (Nov. 6 & 8).

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