DETROIT (9/4/22) – The Detroit Mercy men's soccer team opens a three-game road swing with a Labor Day showdown at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) on Monday, Sept. 5 at 8:30 p.m. ET. The match will be broadcast live from Durwood Soccer Stadium on Roos All-Access.
The Team:
The 2022 season marks the 35th year of the men's soccer program
Head Coach Nick Deren is in his 13th season as head coach and 19th season overall with the program.
Rocco was Rolling: Senior
Rocco Galati scored both goals to lead Detroit Mercy to a 2-1 home opening win over Chicago State (9/1) in the home opener at Titan Field on Thursday.
Assists All-Around:
Graduate student
Bennett Brooks, sophomore
Stephen Kosto and junior
Saeid Jannoun each added their first assists on the season in the Titans first win of the season over Chicago State.
Kliewer Solid in Goal for Season Opener:
Redshirt sophomore
Jonathan Kliewer posted a career-high 11 saves while facing 20 shots in Detroit Mercy's season opening 2-2 draw at Jacksonville.
Freshman Firsts:
The freshman tandem of
Tim Allos and
Casey McCarthy recorded their first career collegiate points as Allos scored his first career goal off an assist from McCarthy in the 81st minute giving Detroit Mercy a 2-1 lead in the season opener at Jacksonville (8/25).
Andres and Powder on the Board:
Senior
Matthew Andres also connected on a header off a cross from junior
Samory Powder to open scoring for the Titans just six minutes into the game at Jacksonville.
Titans picked fifth in 2022 #HLMSOC Preseason Poll:
The Detroit Mercy men's soccer team was picked to finish fifth in the 2022 Horizon League Men's Soccer (#HLMSOC) Preseason Poll as announced by the league office on Wednesday and voted on by the league's 10 head coaches. The Titans received 56 points.
Defending 2021 #HLMSOC regular season and tournament champion Oakland was picked to repeat with 93 points and six first place votes. Cleveland State was picked second with 90 points and two first place votes followed by Milwaukee in third with 81 points and a first-place vote. Wright State was slated fourth with 68 points and first place vote while the Titans rounded out the top-five.
Returning Firepower:
Detroit Mercy returns junior
Samory Powder who ranked second on the team in goals (3) and third in points (6) while leading the team and ranking fourth in the league in total shots per game (3.07). Powder was selected as one of 24 players to enter the Residential Camp for the Trinidad & Tobago Men's Senior National Football Team Provisional Squad in March in preparation for the Confederation of North America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) Nation's League in June. The National Team played two international friendly matches against the national teams from Barbados and Guyana at Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port of Spain in Trinidad.
Graduate student
Ryan Halloran, senior
Matthew Andres, junior
Rocco Galati and sophomore
Stephen Kosto all return after each recorded a goal last season. Graduate student Brooks Bennett also recoded an assist.
Lost Firepower:
The Titans lost their top two offensive leaders from last season in All-League Second Team selections
Demetri Pliakos, who led the team in points (12) and assists (6) while ranking second in goals (3), and
Kyle Bandyk who led the team in goals (4) while ranking second in points (10) and assists (2). In addition,
Daniel Iyok lead the team in assists (3).
Last Line of Defense:
The Titans return Horizon League Goalkeeper of the Year and All-HL First Team selection
Jonathan Kliewer. Kliewer, a Grand Rapids, Mich. native, started in 16 played leading the league in goals against average (0.91) while ranking second in shutouts (6) and save percentage (.800) and sixth in saves per game (4.00). After posting back-to-back clean sheets against Purdue Fort Wayne and Milwaukee making a total of five saves to help the Titans earn six points in league play, he was named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week. Kliewer's other shutouts came against UIW, IUPUI, Robert Morris and in the regular season finale against Wright State which clinched a berth in the 2021 Horizon League Championships for the Titans as a No. 5 seed. He also posted a season-best eight saves in the 2-2 draw against arch-rival Oakland.
Home Grown Talent:
Detroit Mercy has 30 student-athletes from the state of Michigan with three others from New Jersey, Texas and Ohio.
International Flavor:
The Titans have two student-athletes from Canada and one from Norway.
Newcomers:
Detroit Mercy has a diverse group of 14 newcomers in goalkeepers
Robby Spradlin III and
Quinn Tews; forwards
Zander Crooks,
Tim Allos,
Guershom Sylvain and
Mardig Alajajian; midfielders
Vincent Stockton,
Clayton Lafayette and
Andri Myftari; defenders
Mateo Phillips,
Kendell Howard,
Casey McCarthy,
Spencer Powe and
John Nino who will look to make an immediate impact.
Season Rewind:
Detroit Mercy 2 vs Chicago State 1 – (9/1/22)
Senior
Rocco Galati scored both goals to lead Detroit Mercy to a 2-1 home opening win over Chicago State at Titan Field. Sophomore
Stephen Kosto assisted on Galati's first goal while graduate student
Bennett Brooks and junior
Saeid Jannoun assisted on the game-winner. Redshirt sophomore Jonahan Kliewer picked up the win in goal making three saves.
Detroit Mercy at Jacksonville – No Contest (8/28/22)
The road match between Detroit Mercy and Stetson was deemed a no contest due to rainy weather conditions. The Titans took a 1-0 lead early in the first half but thunderstorms and constant lightning in the area didn't allow for the game to be resumed.
Detroit Mercy 2 at Jacksonville 2 - (8/25/22)
The freshman tandem of
Tim Allos and
Casey McCarthy recorded their first career collegiate points as Allos scored his first career goal off an assist from McCarthy in the 81st minute giving Detroit Mercy a 2-1 lead. However, Jacksonville got a late equalizer in the 87th minute as the Titans and Dolphins played to a 2-2 draw in the season opener on Thursday night. Senior
Matthew Andres also connected on a header off a cross from junior
Samory Powder to open scoring for the Titans just six minutes into the game. Redshirt sophomore
Jonathan Kliewer posted a career-high 11 saves while facing 20 shots.
Exhibition Rewind:
Detroit Mercy 0 Northern Illinois 2 - (8/20/22)
Junior
Samory Powder and graduate student
Ryan Pierson each recorded two shots on goal followed by one each from junior
Luke Winters and freshman
Tim Allos as Detroit Mercy fell 2-0 to defending Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon at Titan Field to conclude exhibition play.
Detroit Mercy 0 vs Duquesne 0 - (8/17/22)
Redshirt sophomore
Jonathan Kliewer posted six saves as the Detroit Mercy men's soccer team opened exhibition play with a scoreless draw against visiting Duquesne. Junior
Samory Powder and senior
Matthew Andres led the Titans recording three shots each. For the game, the Dukes held a 18-10 shots advantage while both teams had five corner kick chances.