MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The Montevallo men's soccer team is set to kick off the 2023 campaign with a matchup against Emmanuel College on Aug. 31 at 4 p.m.
 
The Falcons come into the season picked to finish seventh in the league after losing much of the starting lineup during the offseason. Montevallo finished fourth in the Gulf South Conference a season ago, hosting Auburn Montgomery in the first round of the championship tournament. Head Coach Bruce Dietterle's squad tallied an 8-5-3 overall record with a 7-4 mark in league play before taking a 2-0 loss to AUM in the conference tournament.
 
This season, Montevallo begins with a two-game road-trip to Georgia where the Falcons are set to take on Emmanuel College and Clayton State on Aug. 31 and Sept. 2, respectively. UM will then host North Georgia for the 2023 home opener on Sept. 7 before Newberry makes the trip to central Alabama on Sept. 13. The Falcons then take a one-game trip to Lander before opening GSC play with games at Shorter and at Lee on Sept. 22 and 24, respectively. West Alabama travels to Montevallo on Sept. 29 before the Falcons head north to matchup with Alabama Huntsville on the first of October. UM is set to take on West Florida at home on Oct. 6 before Spring Hill comes to town on Oct. 8. The Falcons go back on the road for three games against Auburn Montgomery, Union and Christian Brothers. Montevallo closes the regular season with home matchups against Mississippi College on Oct. 27 and Delta State on Oct. 29.
 
The 2023 Gulf South Conference Tournament will begin with an on-campus, first round on Nov. 5 with the semifinals moving to Huntsville, Ala. on Nov. 10. The 2023 GSC Championship match will be played on Nov. 12 at John Hunt Park in Huntsville, Ala.
 
Heading into the season, UM added 18 fresh faces to the squad which has proven to be a smooth transition thanks to the leadership of the upperclassmen and coaching staff. Read about the 2023 recruiting class here.
 
"I think one of the things that we really want to focus on here, that really needs to be shared, is the leadership in this group," said Dietterle. "I found that my best years, the leadership steps up. And you have a group of leaders, not just a captain. You've got a group of guys that have done well in preparation for the season and then more so in the season, keeping guys in line, making sure the culture is the culture, that guys know how to act and what's acceptable and what's not acceptable more than the staff. So, if you've got guys that really take pride in the program, you see it on the field. And I think that these guys, the players' union and the older guys, really need to get credit with this group so far and what we're getting as a result. Now, we're not a results-based team. We want to do things a certain way, but got to give the guys, the older guys, credit in this group. They're doing the right thing so far. It really makes me happy to see the results come because of it."
 
 
Of the 18 new players, Dietterle brought 13 new freshmen in, a trio of sophomores and another trio of juniors. Newcomers Branko Buljan Ivelich, Alvaro Martin Lopez and Dawid Adamski were eached named to the 2023 GSC Newcomer Watchlist after spending time at Lindenwood, USC-Upstate and Catawba, respectively.
 
"A lot of the young freshmen, new boys have showed up ready to compete with the older guys," said Dietterle. "A lot of times you have the young guys come in at 18 and they're not ready to play at the speed, pace, athleticism of our older boys. They've done a really good job of pushing older guys and making sure that nobody's job is safe, which is great for me as a coach, great for the older guys because they have to show up every day… [T]heir fitness as a collective has been strong from top to bottom. That makes my job a lot easier because we can focus more on soccer than we have to worry about fitness. It limits injuries, knock on wood, and it just makes things a lot easier when you have those two right from the bat."
 
Senior defender Brock Barbee said the incoming players are showing well at preseason camp. "Well, you would think it'd be pretty hard, 18 new guys when you can only play 11 on the field. It'd be tough to get everyone in, especially from the demographics that we have, but it's gone really well, all things considered. You would think, again, it'd be difficult, but we're coming together and it takes time, obviously, but it's good. I think we have a good base with our older guys, Mark and I, and especially with our coaching staff… [I]t just makes it a lot easier when we all have the same expectations and everyone knows all the same goals. Coach Bruce really sets expectations before we get here. So, they come in knowing exactly XYZ. So, all they have to do is acclimate to the culture and the heat. They've done a good job so far."
 
Over the offseason, Montevallo men's soccer lost 11 players but returned 17 off the 2022 roster. The Falcons' returning stats leaders feature Julio Rojo who led the returners from 2022 with three goals and eight points while Otger Vendrell returns with the most assists (four) and shots (25). Barbee returns to Montevallo with the most game winners with two.
 
Dietterle also highlighted several other returners who have entered preseason in sharp form. "I mean, I'm throwing him out there. It's Diogo. His first year with us two years ago, he redshirted. Last year, he got a couple minutes, but not a lot. But he's done extremely well the first couple of days of preseason, and that's on and off the field. He's probably one of our hardest workers, if not the hardest worker. He's really starting to put it together on the field and playing like an older player, a little bit more composed, but he's then creating a good environment for the young guys to learn and do things really well. So, we're really proud of him… And then you've got Sebastian Flores, who played a lot of minutes last year, is really coming into his own in the back. So, a lot of the old boys are kind of making the conversion from 'I'm just a player on this team' to 'Now I'm a leader.' And that's not to mention that these guys are doing a really good job off the field because I truly believe that off the field, chemistry and leadership matters a lot."
 
UM also lost one of the league's top goalkeepers in Salvador Plaza over the break but, the Falcons return Tomas Valles who garnered a GSC Freshman of the Week and a GSC Defender of the Week award in his lone start of the season. Valles spent 90 minutes in goal and stopped five shots en route to his first collegiate victory over Lee on Oct. 14, 2022. The Falcon coaching staff added four more keepers in the offseason; Andre Etcheverry, Ethan Biedenstein, Manuel Munoz II, and Andrew Ginestra.
 
Despite losing a top-tier goalkeeper to graduation, Dietterle feels as though this season's group of keepers may be one of the best to come to the Bricks. "So, the goalkeeping situation this year is that we have five. Unfortunately, we lost one of them to a broken hand, our boy from Florida. But the core is still very good. We returned Tommy. Andrew came in last semester. We added Ethan and picked up Manny. The group itself really has very small gaps between one another. They all bring a certain skill set or tool, but it's one of those where when I look at who's starting or who's playing, there isn't a drop off. So, if I say blank is going to start today and something happens, I know we've got a guy, and another guy right behind him, that we can throw in net and our defenders won't blink… It really just raises the level entirely."
 
Senior midfielder Mark Shoebridge says that the squad goes deep with technical ability and playing style being the standouts of this year's team. "Yeah, the squad depth is really good. I think that's one of the biggest highlights this year is how good the majority of our squad is. Technical ability and playing style are some of the best attributes that we have this year."
 
Montevallo has already taken to the pitch with a pair of exhibitions in the preseason. The Falcons showed well in the early-going of preseason play with players, both upper and lower classmen, coming into form ahead of the first regular season contest.
 
"Preseason's gone really, really well," said Dietterle. "We've already played two games that I think that we've used them as good stepping stones. Results are going our way, but it's preseason so I don't really care about the results. It's the actions in the games. The guys have come together really, really well. The heat has been miserable, but given our depth and the guys fitness, they've done a really good job getting acclimated."
 
Though the Falcons may look different on the pitch this year, the goals remain the same. Win with team play.  
 
"Obviously, we want to look forward and look to championships and titles," said Barbee, "but at this point, we're taking it game by game. We've had two good games to where we've had good results and good team performances and a lot of improvements. But for me, it's just the next game, and after that game, it's just the next game and then we'll get into conference play."
 
"Our target is always to do well against everybody," said Dietterle, "but we pride ourselves on finishing top four, trying to finish with a title in the Gulf South. Because if you're in the top four in the Gulf South, you're probably one of the better teams in the country."
 
Montevallo kicks off the regular season with a trip to Franklin Springs, Ga. to take on Emmanuel College at 4 p.m. on Aug. 31.