Bronco men's soccer releases 2017 schedule

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Western Michigan University's men's soccer program will face six teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last fall in its upcoming 2017 schedule.

The Broncos face a competitive season with 18 total games, 10 of which are home games that will be played in a recently upgraded soccer complex. The complex will have a new playing surface this fall, as a $75,000 fraze mowing facelift and re-seeding is completed this summer. Over the past six years the entire facility has under gone a multi-million dollar transformation, bringing it to the level of one of the best in the Mid-American Conference and the Midwest.

"I am thrilled to release the 2017 game schedule to our supporters," said fifth-year head coach Chad Wiseman. "We're prepared to go up against other big-name programs, including traditional soccer powerhouses and six teams that went to the NCAA Tournament a year ago. The challenge we have in front of us this year is like no other we have created in our tenure."

WMU finished last season with a 9-6-4 overall record and fell to Akron in the MAC Tournament semifinals. The Broncos return 16 players from that team including all-region and All-MAC honorees senior Zach Bock, senior Brandon Bye and senior Drew Shepherd.

Schedule

Home games are noted in bold.

• Home vs. LIU Brooklyn, 5 p.m., Friday, Aug. 25
• Home vs. Stetson University, 11 a.m., Sunday, Aug. 27
• At Eastern Illinois University, 4 p.m., Friday, Sept. 1
• Home vs. University of Cincinnati, 3 p.m., Monday, Sept. 4
• At Butler University, 8 p.m., Friday, Sept. 8
• At Drake University, 4 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 10
• At Oakland University, 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 14
• Alumni Weekend at home vs. University of Dayton, 1 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 17
• Home vs. University of Michigan, 5 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 20
• At University of Maryland, 7 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 23
• At University of Portland, 10 p.m., Friday, Sept. 29
• Home vs. Michigan State University, 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 4
• Big Bronco Tailgate at home vs. University of Akron, 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7
• At Northern Illinois University, 8 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 14
• Home vs. University of Wisconsin, 4 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 17
• At West Virginia University, 7 p.m., Friday, Oct. 20
• Home vs. Southern Illinois University, 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 28
• Senior Day at home vs. Bowling Green, 1 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 4

Learn more about Bronco soccer at wmubroncos.com.

For more WMU news, arts and events, visit wmich.edu/news.