2013 Season Recap
Led by Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Wojciech Wojcik, Bradley went 14-7-2 overall, finished third in the Missouri Valley Conference standings with a 3-2-1 league record, then swept through the MVC Tournament at Shea Stadium to earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament ... The Braves produced the second win against the nation's No. 1 ranked team in Bradley Athletics history by earning a 1-0 victory Sept. 14 at Connecticut, then added a 3-2, overtime win at No. 3 Northwestern Oct. 2 ... After upsetting No. 1 seed Missouri State, 1-0, in the final of the 2013 MVC Men's Soccer Championship, Bradley returned to Northwestern to deal the Wildcats a second 3-2, overtime defeat in the first round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship ... Bradley's season came to an end in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, dropping a 3-1 decision at the tournament's No. 4 seed, California ... The Braves graduated 10 players from the 2013 squad, including team scoring leader Wojcik and three-time All-MVC goalkeeper Brian Billings.
Returning Talent
Despite the heavy graduation losses, Bradley's roster is hardly bare of returning talent ... Sophomore forward Christian Okeke, the 2013 MVC Freshman of the Year who registered 16 points on six goals and four assists last year, leads a cast of 14 returning lettermen ... Junior defender Grant Bell was a second-team All-MVC selection and senior midfielder/forward Cody Lofgren earned a spot on the MVC All-Tournament Team after scoring the game-winner in the championship game against Missouri State ... Billings will hand off the goalkeeping duties to junior Shay Niemeyer and third-year sophomore Logan Ketterer ... Ketterer is looking for his first collegiate minutes, while Niemeyer has logged just 185 minutes in three career appearances for the Braves.
Recruiting Class
Bradley adds another strong recruiting class and the Braves will welcome 10 newcomers to The Hilltop when preseason camp opens next month ... The recruiting class is led by German national Falk Dennert, a left-footed defender described as one of the top amateur players in Germany, as well as a pair of players rated 4-star recruits by TopDrawerSoccer.com and who were members of the IMG Academy Top 150 player pool - Daniel Gardner and Richard Olson.
Schedule
Beginning his 19th season as Bradley's head coach, Jim DeRose once again has put together a challenging schedule for the Braves, starting with a home exhibition against defending national champion Notre Dame in the annual Danny Dahlquist Memorial Game Aug. 19 at Shea Stadium ... Following two preseason exhibitions, Bradley will host 10 of its 18 regular-season games at Shea Stadium, then will play host to the MVC Men's Soccer Championship for the fourth time in five years ... The Braves will host San Jose State, UNLV and Western Illinois in the annual Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic at Shea Stadium Aug. 29 and Aug. 31, then will take on BIG EAST Conference member Xavier Sept. 4 to conclude the season-opening home stand ... The Braves will close the regular season by hosting seven of their final nine games, including a visit from Summit League champion Denver Oct. 6 and Valley rival Central Arkansas for the annual Homecoming game Oct. 18.
Danny Dahlquist Memorial Tickets Go On Sale July 9
Tickets for the Danny Dahlquist Memorial Game against defending national champion Notre Dame will go on sale July 9 at the Bradley Athletics Box Office in Renaissance Coliseum ... General admission prices for the "Battle of Champions" are $10 and groups of at least 15 may purchase tickets at the $6 group rate ... A limited number of free tickets will be available for 2012-13 members of the Little Braves Club, who must claim their tickets by July 30.
