#24 Men's Soccer 2/23/2021 4:03:00 PM

OCU begins season in Wichita

Stars take on Central Christian at 11 a.m. Wednesday in Wichita, Kan.

WICHITA, Kan. – Oklahoma City University's men's soccer team will look to exceed its projections in 2020-21.
The Stars open the season 11 a.m. Wednesday vs. Central Christian (Kan.) at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita, Kan.
OCU picked up the sixth spot in the preseason Sooner Athletic Conference poll. The Stars will be under the guidance of new coach Billy Martin.
Martin, an OCU alum, had been assistant under Brian Harvey, who retired after 34 years as Oklahoma City coach. Harvey established the OCU program in 1986. Martin came back to the Stars after six years as coach of Rose State (Okla.).

TOP RETURNERS

• Ljubisa Palic returns after being OCU's leading scorer last season. Palic, a junior from St. Gallen, Switzerland, turned in six goals, an assist, 13 points and twice scored to win matches
• Guilherme Grave supplied the Stars with four goals and one winning goal. Grave, a senior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, started all 14 matches he appeared in for OCU last season
• Gustavo Cardoso, Aleksa Mitrovic and Nick Stremel lend experience along the Oklahoma City defense. Cardoso, a junior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, started 17 matches as a sophomore and owns three goals and an assist as a Star. Stremel, a senior from Plettenberg, Germany, has been a part of the starting lineup 38 times with two goals and three assists for the Stars. Mitrovic, a senior from Belgrade, Serbia, made 13 starts for OCU last season

NEW FACES

• Lucas de Freitas, a junior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, tallied five goals, two assists and 12 points for Cowley (Kan.) last season. Cowley is coached by former Star Ruy Vaz
• Jusung Kang collected second-team all-NJCAA Region II acclaim for Martin at Rose State. Kang, a junior from Dae Jeon, South Korea, accumulated five goals and five assists in 2019
• Harvey Paul, a junior from Bristol, England, served as team captain and started 15 of 17 matches last season at Rose State

PRESEASON BUZZ

• Sooner Athletic Conference coaches predicted the Stars to finish sixth in the competitive league

MEET THE COACH

• Martin guided Rose State to a 74-35-2 record with four NJCAA Region II regular-season championships and two tournament titles. Martin was Rose State's first coach
• Martin has mentored youth talent on the high school and club soccer levels. Martin has been Bishop McGuinness High School's head coach as well as Oklahoma Football Club and Edmond Soccer Club coach. Martin took Oklahoma Soccer Association coach of the year in 2009 after leading his boys team to the state title
• Martin played an integral part on OCU's first team to reach the national tournament in 1991, picking up six goals, five assists and 17 points from 1989-91. Martin also played professionally

MARK ON YOUR CALENDAR

• OCU's first home contest will be 3 p.m. Saturday vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas) at Brian Harvey Field
• The Stars' other matches set for Harvey Field are 7 p.m. March 20 against Southwestern Christian and 7 p.m. March 27 vs. USAO
• The SAC Tournament happens April 2-9 with the quarterfinals April 2, semifinals April 6 and title match April 9. All contests will be hosted by the higher seeded team

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Players Mentioned

#2 Gustavo Cardoso: D; 5' 7"; Junior

#15 Guilherme Grave: F; 6' 1"; Senior

#6 Aleksa Mitrovic: D; 6' 1"; Senior

#9 Ljubisa Palic: F; 6' 2"; Junior

#5 Nick Stremel: D; 6' 2"; Senior

#14 Lucas de Freitas: F; 5' 8"; Junior

#3 Harvey Paul: D; Junior

#11 Jusung Kang: F; Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Gustavo Cardoso
: 5' 7"; Junior
: D

#15 Guilherme Grave
: 6' 1"; Senior
: F

#6 Aleksa Mitrovic
: 6' 1"; Senior
: D

#9 Ljubisa Palic
: 6' 2"; Junior
: F

#5 Nick Stremel
: 6' 2"; Senior
: D

#14 Lucas de Freitas
: 5' 8"; Junior
: F

#3 Harvey Paul
: Junior
: D

#11 Jusung Kang
: Junior
: F