2010 Warriors Men's Soccer schedule released

11 home games, trip to New Jersey highlight slate

Head Coach Joe Luedke

MILWAUKEE – Wisconsin Lutheran College will play 11 of its 20 regular season games on the pitch of Warrior Field, as well as two games in New Jersey, according to the 2010 men's soccer schedule that was released by head coach Joe Luedke.

"I'm excited about the way our schedule plays out," says Luedke, who completed his 10th season as head coach in 2009. "We face some solid non-conference opponents in the beginning then hit the ground running with our conference schedule. It will give our team chance to mature throughout the season. Competition in the Warrior Cup is strong and the trip to New Jersey will be a great experience for our student-athletes."

The Warriors, who finished 4-11-3 overall and 2-7-2 in the Northern Athletics Conference last season, open their 2010 season at home Wednesday, September 1 against Beloit College (10-3-6). Later that week, WLC hosts its fourth annual Warrior Cup on September 3 and 4 by taking on UW-Platteville (9-8-3) on Friday before tangling with Northland International University (12-8-1) on Saturday. The four-game opening-week homestand concludes Tuesday, September 7 against the North Central College (Ill.) Cardinals (8-10).

Wisconsin Lutheran begins a stretch of four straight road games when it travels to Newark, N.J., for the Scarlet Raider Classic hosted by Rutgers-Newark. The Warriors meet Drew University (11-5-5) September 10 before battling the host Scarlet Raiders (13-6-4) September 11. WLC journeys to Ripon College (5-12-1) Wednesday, September 15 for a non-conference contest with the Red Hawks before beginning its NAC schedule at MSOE September 18 (13-6-2).

The Warriors return to their home turf for their final two non-conference games hosting Carroll University (14-1-4) and Finlandia University (2-17-0) back-to-back on September 22 and 23, respectively. Wisconsin Lutheran hits the road for a pair of conference games at Maranatha Baptist Bible College (5-11-1) Saturday, September 25, and Rockford College (1-14) September 28.

WLC plays its first NAC home game October 2 against the Sabres of Marian University (5-11-2) prior to traveling south to Lisle, Ill., to take on the Benedictine University Eagles (7-10-1) Wednesday, October 6. The Warriors open a three-game homestand October 9 versus Lakeland College (8-10-1) before welcoming four-time defending conference champion and 2009 NCAA Division III Final Four qualifier Dominican University (19-2-3) to Warrior Field October 12. The homestand wraps up Saturday, October 16 with a match against the Edgewood College Eagles (12-5-3).

Following a road contest with the Spartans of Aurora University (12-6-1) October 20, WLC returns to Warrior Field October 23 for its final regular-season home game against conference rival Concordia University Wisconsin (12-4-5). The regular-season slate concludes at Concordia University Chicago (4-14-1) in River Forest, Ill., Tuesday, October 26.

The NAC Tournament, which features the conference's top six teams, takes place October 30 (quarterfinals), November 2 (semifinals) and November 6 (championship). The tournament champion receives the conference's automatic bid to the 2010 NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championships.