Final Tune-up on Thursday
The Westminster men's soccer team begins the 2016 season this week with a pair of games. They host Salt Lake CC in the team's final tune-up on Thursday at 3 p.m. MT from Dumke Field. The Griffins will then travel to Grand Junction, Colo., to face Eastern New Mexico on Saturday at noon MT from Walker Field on the Colorado Mesa University campus.
 
Live video and stats will be available for the game on Saturday only. Tickets for the Thursday home game are now on sale at WestminsterGriffins.com/tickets.
 
New Era for Westminster Men's Soccer
The Griffins will embark on a new path this season as Josh Pittman takes over as head coach. Pittman was named the new coach in March after Chris Dorich retired after 32 years as the team's only head coach. Pittman served last season as head coach at Dixie State where he led the Red Storm to 10-2-4 record and a runner-up finish in the Pacific West Conference. He has 13 years of collegiate coaching experience, all of which were at the NCAA Division II level, and over 20 years of soccer experience as a coach and player. He also has 11 years of experience in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, including seven seasons at Colorado Mesa University (CMU) where he launched the program from the beginning.
 
Experience Returning
The 2016 roster features 22 players that were on the roster last season. That group includes nine players that started the 2015 season finale against South Dakota Mines. The returning players accounted for 91 percent of the team's total goals last season to go with 82 percent of the total shot attempts. The roster consists of nine seniors, nine juniors, eight sophomores, and eight freshmen.
 
Exhibition Recap
Westminster compiled a 1-1 record during two exhibition games last week. After falling to The Master's, 2-0, the Griffins rebounded with a 5-1 win over Carroll. Five different Griffins scored in the win with three others recording an assist. The three keepers finished the two games with a .700 save percentage.
 
Quickly
• While the 2016 team returns most of the offense from last season, they enter the years having gone 13 games since posting multiple goals in a game. The team is just 1-11-1 during that span and they were shutout six times.
 
• Jonnathan Rodriguez returns this season after tying for the team lead with three goals in 2015. The junior led the Griffins with 14 shot attempts and eight shots on goal while playing in 14 games.
 
• Also tying for top goal scoring honors on the team last season was Hunter Kone. The sophomore begins the new season having attempted nine shots in 2016 and getting four of them on frame.
 
• The defense will look for Matthew Warne to play a pivotal role in 2016. Warne, a junior, made 15 starts last season and was third on the team with 1,295 minutes of action. He tied for third on the team with three points – one goal and one assist – and he scored a goal in the exhibition game against Carroll.
 
• The Griffins will also look to the experience of Warren Cook to provide leadership in the midfield. A senior, Cook has played in 52 games with the Griffins while making 39 starts. He has tallied over 1,000 minutes each season at Westminster and finished with 1,245 in 2015.
 
• The only player to start all 16 games last season was Hunter Stutz. Returning for his junior campaign, Stutz played a team-best 1,427 minutes at his defensive position last season. He was credited with nine shots last season and got four of them on goal.
 
• The team features three keepers on the roster with only Sean Lyne having any collegiate game experience. Lyne played in six games last season and finished with a 2.67 goals-against-average and .673 save percentage.
 
Match Facts: Salt Lake CC
• The Griffins and Bruins will play for the first time on Thursday.
• The game doesn't count in stats or records for Westminster.
• This is the first season of men's soccer for Salt Lake CC.
• Mark Davis will lead the Bruins through their inaugural season as head coach.
 
Match Facts: Eastern New Mexico
• Saturday will be the first-ever game against Eastern New Mexico for the Griffins.
• The Greyhounds went 6-8-2 in 2015.
• Greyhound's head coach, Paul Tate, begins his second year at the helm of the program and returns a wealth of experience and young talent for the 2016 squad.
 
Looking Ahead
The Griffins will spend next weekend in Nampa, Idaho to play a pair of games. The face Hawaii Hilo on September 8 before a contest with Northwest Nazarene on September 10.