WALTHAM, Mass. – For the third straight season, the Bentley men's soccer team will get its season going at the Kickoff Classic in North Andover, Mass. The Falcons will first take the field on Thursday vs. Post University at 4:00 pm, followed by taking on Caldwell on Saturday at noon.

Head coach Gary Crompton, entering his 9^th season after claiming the 2015 Northeast-10 Coach of the Year award, sees 16 players return from last year's squad that finished 4^th in the NE-10 standings and advanced to the conference semifinals.

That was the third time in Crompton's tenure the program has finished in the top-four in the highly competitive conference, with 2010 and 2012 being the other seasons. Bentley has been a consistent playoff team in the NE-10 under his tutelage, with seven appearances in his eight previous seasons.

Despite losing several talented seniors to graduation, the team remains well positioned to make another run in 2016. Below is a synopsis of the team's position groups.

Forwards: Junior Sean Sullivan (Suffield, Conn./Suffield) is the team's leading returning goal scorer after bagging seven goals last season, which was second on the team to Nick Hoffman, who graduated. Sullivan caught fire towards the end of the season, with six of his goals coming in the last seven matches. Included in that haul were both goals in a 2-1 victory over Saint Anselm in mid-October, and match winning goals against New Haven and AIC as the Falcons went 6-1-1 in the season's final month.

Juniors Luc Batawi (Raleigh, N.C./Enloe) and James Zaepfel (Williamsville, N.Y./Canisius High) among the returning players will provide competition up front.

Midfield: Bentley's midfield is well-stocked with experience and playmakers.  Both of the team's captains, senior Forest Scaringe (Cohoes, N.Y./CBA) and junior Eric Spangler (Lafayette, Colo./Centaurus) reside in midfield positions. Scaringe started 16 times last season, and scored the winning goal in Bentley's 1-0 victory over Stonehill. Spangler made 16 appearances in last season's experience laden squad. Northeast-10 All-Rookie team selection and now sophomore Evan Ryan (Cornwall, Vt./Middlebury Union) should see his influence on the team further increase this season. A newcomer to watch for is Alex Mierzejewski (Craryville, N.Y./Taconic), who prepped at Marbella United in Malaga, Spain.

Backs: The Falcons should have an experienced backline with three starters returning. Both fullbacks return in senior Brett Ripperger (Westfield, N.J./Westfield) and junior Chuck Leone (Rockville Centre, N.Y./South Side). Ripperger started 17 of 18 matches last season, and had a hand in setting up the winning goal in Bentley's 3-2, NE-10 Quarterfinal win over Southern Connecticut with a run down the left. Leone started 17 matches as well, and played a big part in that Quarterfinal win with an assist on the first goal in the 67^th minute to tie the match 1-1.

Junior Matthew Jones (Bradenton, Fla./Saint Stephen's) should assume one of two starting center back roles after starting 13 matches there last season. Graduate student and former kicker on the Bentley football team, Michael Baron (Medfield, Mass./Roxbury Latin) will compete for time here as well.

Goalkeepers: All three goalkeepers on the roster will vie for playing time to replace three-year starter Jack Blatchford, who graduated. Junior Liam McCarthy (Northborough, Mass./Algonquin) and sophomore Harrison Rapant (Pittsfield, Mass./Pittsfield) will compete with junior transfer Greg Koutroukas (Watertown, Mass./Watertown).

Schedule: After opening with Post on Thursday, Bentley will conclude the Kickoff Classic on Saturday vs. Caldwell on Saturday at noon, the same two teams Bentley faced in last season's Classic, which saw a 1-0 defeat to Post and a 3-1 win over Caldwell.

Following the match with Caldwell, the Falcons are off for 10 days. When they return, they will host Southern New Hampshire on Sept. 13 for the team's home-opener, in what will be a rematch of the two teams' Northeast-10 Semifinal match last season. Bentley will face two other NE-10 heavyweights in September, when they host Merrimack Sept. 21 and visit Adelphi Sept. 27.

Bentley starts October at home when they take on Saint Rose on Sunday the 2^nd as part of Homecoming Weekend. Following that match, the team will embark on a five-match road swing which involves playing in four different states. Finally back at home, Bentley will host Saint Michael's on Oct. 22 and New Haven Oct. 25, before closing out the regular season at AIC on Oct. 28.

The Northeast-10 Playoffs get underway on November 1, with the top-eight teams qualifying.