(WILMINGTON, Ohio) – The Wilmington College men's soccer team starts their 2025 campaign Friday afternoon at Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati at 5:00 P.M. To start their season in 2024, the Quakers bested the Lions at Williams Stadium, 6-3.

Looking Back
The 2024 season was a solid one for the Quakers, as they finished with an 11-6-3 overall record and qualified for the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) tournament as the No. 6 seed. Despite falling in the first round of the tournament, Wilmington has a lot to be excited for in 2025.

Highlights included starting their season 9-0-3 along with Parker Burke setting the NCAA-Era (since 1990) program record for most points in a season (49) and most goals in a season (22).

Other Quakers with big years were Kaden Young with 36 points and 16 goals, Randy Harris with 32 points and 12 assists, and Jace Houck with 11 assists. Burke and Young led the OAC in both goals and points last season, while Harris and Houck went two and three in assists.

Key Pieces Lost
The biggest loss offensively for the Quakers was Randy Harris. He came to the Quakers for one year from Malone University and was fantastic en route to a First Team All-OAC performance. He led the team with 12 assists and was third with both 32 points and 10 goals. Harris had four games with two assists and was a huge part of what made the Quakers offense go, becoming the fourth best scoring offense in Division III with 3.70 goals per game.

The biggest loss for the Quakers in the midfield and the locker room was captain Alfie Harris. Not only was he a Second Team All-OAC performer, but he was a huge part of getting the Quakers offense in the correct position to succeed. Harris chipped in three goals and two assists for eight points and will be sorely missed this season.

Key Pieces Returning
The Quakers two biggest offensive threats in sophomore Parker Burke and senior Kaden Young are back this season and looking for an even better year than last.

These two players combined for three OAC Player of the Week nods, while both having games with four or more goals. Young scored four goals in their first OAC game of the season against Heidelberg University and had three other games with two goals.

Burke scored an insane five goals in their non-conference matchup with Franklin College and had a hat trick vs. Muskingum University along with two other two goal games. His five-goal game was tied for the second most in program history.

Junior Jace Houck returns to solidify the Quakers midfield, as he was an assist machine last season. Against Wittenberg, Houck recorded three assists against the Tigers. His 11 assists during the season was third most in a season since the Quakers joined the NCAA.

Forwards
Along with Burke and Young, the Quakers look for a breakout season from junior Jordan Domoe. He scored four goals and had two assists last season, as the Quakers hope he can help fill the void left from Randy Harris.

Midfielders
Returning starters are juniors William Jansson and Aidan Barnishin, as they will help Houck in securing the Quakers midfield. Jansson is a former All-OAC performer, and he and Barnishin look to have great seasons.

After a solid freshman campaign, junior Eli Eyrich returns to the Quakers squad this season and will be a key contributor in the midfield.

Some freshmen that look for playing time in the midfield are Brayden Spencer, Vigor Karlsson, and Max Barnishin.

Defenders
The Quakers return a pair of starters defensively in senior Connor Neidemire and junior Jase Edmonson. After not seeing the field a lot during their freshman years, Neidemire and Edmonson have become the leaders of a Quakers defense that looks to keep the opposition away from the net.

Other returners that look for more time this season are juniors AJ Bibb and Alen Salihbegovic along with sophomore Eric Wennstrom. A freshman that will see time on the field defensively is James Comstock.

Goalkeepers
The Quakers return both their starting goalkeepers from last season in sophomores Oliver Metz and Cameron Weirather, as junior Joe Meilstrup also returns to the team for Wilmington.

Metz saw the most action in goal last season, making 19 starts and 67 saves, but Weirather also looked solid in his four games of action and one start, saving eight shots.

Newcomers to the net for Wilmington are Erik Axelsson and Judah Hanks, as they fight to find minutes in between the pipes for the Quakers.

Coaching Staff
Head coach Cory Bucur enters his fourth season with Wilmington and has led the team to the OAC tournament in two of his first three seasons, including the OAC Championship game in 2022. He looks to try and overtake the number two spot in program history this season for victories behind the legendary Bud Lewis.

Anton Niklasson enters his eighth season as an Assistant Coach for the Quakers, as he works primarily with the goalkeepers, while Nick Stifel joins Bucur in his fourth season as an Assistant Coach for the program.

 From Coach Bucur
"There is a lot to be excited for in 2025 within the Wilmington College men's soccer program and Wilmington College athletics as a whole." said Bucur. "The season started with an incredible international trip to Spain and then a transformative 23-million-dollar donation from Quakers legendary women's basketball coach Jerry Scheve to athletics, so the feeling of optimism is high around our program and the college in general. We did a lot of great things last season, including finishing in the top five nationally in goals scored, and we return two of those key front-line guys this season in Parker Burke and Kaden Young. We are getting stronger in our backline, as our returners are working hard, and we have new faces adding quality depth all throughout the field. We see 2025 as another opportunity to take another step or two forward!"

What to Watch For
After playing Mount St. Joseph on the road, the Quakers welcome the Rose-Hulman Fightin' Engineers to Williams Stadium for their first home match of the season on Sunday, August 31st at 2:00 P.M.

Other major non-conference games include the Quaker Bowl at Earlham College on September 23rd, along with games against Wittenberg University (September 26th) and a huge matchup with perennial NCAA tournament competitor Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware on October 1st.

The Quakers open up OAC play in Tiffin, Ohio at Heidelberg University on October 4th before traveling to Muskingum University on October 8th.

Their first home OAC game is against the Purple Raiders of The University of Mount Union on October 11th, as they look to avenge last season's loss. Other major games come against other top OAC teams in Ohio Northern on the road (October 29th) and at home vs. Otterbein (October 15th).