Men's Soccer Opens Regular Season at Xavier

Thursday, August 20

Cincinnati, Ohio

7 PM

Purdue Fort Wayne

Xavier

Ben Hissrich

8/19/2026 10:39:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Watch ($)Live Stats

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Mastodon men's soccer team opens the 2026 season with a road non-league game at Xavier on Thursday (Aug. 20) against the Musketeers. It will be the first of two consecutive games in Ohio, with the 'Dons at Dayton on Aug. 31.

Game Day Information
Who: Purdue Fort Wayne (0-0-0) at Xavier Musketeers (0-0-0)
When: Thursday, August 20 | 7 p.m.
Where: Cincinnati, Ohio | Corcoran Field
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Xavier+ ($10)

Know Your Foe
Xavier went 5-6-4 (1-4-3 BIG EAST) last season. They were picked to finish third in the Midwest Division in the 2026 poll, behind Akron and Creighton. Xavier's head coach John Higgins. He took over the program in 2022. He previously was the head coach at Division II UIndy, winning 150 matches in 12 seasons. Gun Ha Lee scored three goals and had an assist in 2025.

Series History
Xavier leads 3-0-0 with wins in 2011, 2012 and 2015.

Poll
Purdue Fort Wayne was picked to finish fourth in the 2026 Horizon League Preseason Poll. The 'Dons were edged by Cleveland State (111), Green Bay (95) and league-newcomer Northern Illinois (92).

New Faces
Jordan Rodgers, Nico Mullen, Marko Martsinkovsky, Kellen Larson, Jonny Escobedo, Kevin Whitlow, Jozef Palushaj, Davan Arias, Max Aquino, Finnegan Railey, Benjamin Graham and David Valencia are new to the Mastodons in 2026.

Old Face in an Old Place
Aidan Antcliff is back in 2026. Antcliff was a Mastodon 2022-24 before transferring to play at Memphis in 2025. In 2023 he was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team. He has three goals and an assist in his Mastodon career.

Back in 2026
Sep Habibi, Max Titterington, Karsten Ternes, Ben Hissrich, Christian Agyekum, Jonny Hernandez, Jackson Liley, Ameer Shetiah, Antonio Tiscareno, Eason Haller, Trey Theard, Julian Zambrano, Tegan Gumbs and Brandon Razo are back for the Mastodons in 2026.

About Last Year
The Mastodons advanced to the Horizon League Championship match for the first time, falling at Cleveland State in extra time in the championship match.

2025 Honors
Shane Anderson (Horizon League Offensive Player of the Year and All-League First Team), Iann Topete (All-League First Team) and Andrew Hollenbach (All-League First Team) have graduated. Goalkeeper Sep Habibi (All-League Second Team) and midfielder Jonny Hernandez (All-League Third Team) are back in 2026.

Old Face in a New Place
Iann Topete is back this season, but on the sidelines instead of on the pitch. He is an assistant coach for the Mastodons this season.

Coming Up
The Mastodons will have more than a week off before returning to action on Aug. 31. The 'Dons will head again to Ohio, this time to play at Dayton.

~ Feel the Rumble ~