BOLIVAR, Mo. -- After a warm-up scrimmage with Drury last week to fine-tune their game, the Bearcats hit the road on Thursday to open their 2008 season against Oakland City University, located in Oakland City, Indiana. The Mighty Oaks are members of the NCCAA (National Christian College Athletics Association) and had a 5-9-0 record during the 2007 campaign. This is the first meeting between the schools.

During the 2007 season, the Bearcats were 9-8-3 overall and 8-5-1 in the MIAA. Last November, they reached the finals of the inaugural MIAA tournament, before losing in the 87th minute to Truman State, 1-0. This season, SBU fields a team which, according to head coach Benjamin Wade, "...promises to be even more diverse and exciting than 2007’s team." Their 2008 schedule is particularly favorable between the dates of September 20 and October 16, when they get to play 8 of their 9 matches at home.

"The #1 thing to know about this team concerns our returning starters," said SBU’s Wade. "We only have one player (#21, Sr., Aude Lechat) who will be starting in the same position as last season. We’ll be trying many different schemes, combinations, and formations to find the right chemistry."

"I’m excited about our match with Oakland City. Their head coach, Christian Serino, and I go way back. He and I worked together at SBU, and have even known each other a lot longer than that. Everyone’s looking forward to getting our season going with a very good Bearcats team."

Game Notes Here