The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team remains on the road for the second weekend of September, heading next to the campus of Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash., for a weekend tournament.

While there, they will take on Houston Baptist University for the first time in program history and a Gonzaga squad they have not met on the road since a similar trip in 2005.

They are scheduled to square off against the Huskies Friday in a 2 p.m. contest before wrapping up the weekend against the host Zags in a 3:30 p.m. match on Sunday. Both of those game starts are central time. This will easily be the longest road trip (in terms of miles from Wisconsin) that UWM will take during the 2015 regular season. That pair of games will feature live stats and video courtesy of TheW.tv and GU Sports Information, with all links available on the Milwaukee website.

As stated, UWM and HBU have never met. The series with Gonzaga is tied at a brief 1-1-1, with Milwaukee winning the most recent matchup in the Panther Invitational last season by a score of 2-1.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:
HOUSTON BAPTIST: The Huskies have started the 2015 campaign with a record of 2-2-0. HBU returns 11 letterwinners and five starters from a season ago when it went 3-11-2 on the field. Fans will see 11 newcomers on the team.

Marcelo Acuna scored both goals as HBU went 1-1-0 at the UT-Rio Grande Valley Invitational last weekend, falling to IPFW 2-1 and defeating previously unbeaten Buffalo 1-0 in overtime. On the season, Acuna is second in the WAC in points (7), tied for second in goals (3), and fourth in points per game (1.75). Between the pipes, Philip Poser has seen most of the action, with a 1-2-0 record, a 0.86 GAA, a .727 save percentage, and one shutout.

GONZAGA: Gonzaga welcomes back eight starters from last season's team that went 5-11-1. Overall, GU returns 16 letterwinners including four All-WCC honorable mention players in Graison Le, Connor Bevans, Ben White and David Sigurdsson. The Zags return three of their top five scorers from 2014 as well. Head coach Einar Thorarinsson has opened his 21st season as the head coach in 2015 with a 2-1-1 record, posting a pair of clean sheets.

PART OF HISTORY
The Panthers and all of the fans jam-packed into Engelmann Stadium for the 'Milwaukee Cup' matchup against Marquette Sept. 3 became part of history. The 4,030 in attendance not only blew away the old facility record of 3,312 (set in the 2013 'Milwaukee Cup'), but was also the largest crowd to ever watch a collegiate men's soccer game in the history of the state of Wisconsin. UWM now holds four of the top five spots on the list.

4,030 - SEPTEMBER 3, 2015 (MKE CUP)
3,312 - Aug. 30, 2013 - Milwaukee 2, Marquette 1 (MKE CUP)
3,256 - Sept. 13, 2006 - Milwaukee 3, Marquette 2 (MKE CUP)
3,000 - Nov. 22, 1980 - Cleveland State 1, Milwaukee 0
2,470 - Oct. 13, 1995 - Wisconsin 2, Indiana 0
2,250 - Sept. 3, 1990 - Milwaukee 0, Evansville 0
2,145 - Oct. 15, 1993 - Indiana 5, Wisconsin 1
2,138 - Oct. 1, 2003 - Wisconsin 1, Milwaukee 0

WELCOME TO MILWAUKEE
There will be plenty of chances for newcomers to make an impression in 2015, as 14 players out of the 33 on the roster will be making their UWM debuts this year, all as freshmen. It's one of youngest rosters in the land, as seven sophomores give the Panthers 21 underclassmen. Based on a recent analysis, just a handful have more across the country. Tulsa, with 15 freshmen and nine sophomores (24 total underclassmen) leads the list.

24 - Tulsa
23 - Radford & East Tennessee State
22 - Bradley
21 - Milwaukee, Xavier & Northeastern
20 - Indiana & Seton Hall

And they have been playing a major role so far. Seven players out of the group have appeared in every game and six have started all four contests (Matthias Binder, Francesco Saporito, Tinashe Marowa, Sean Holmes, Josh Kaye & Jason P. Svensson).

THE BATTLE FOR THE MILWAUKEE CUP
Milwaukee and Marquette play for the "Milwaukee Cup", one of the longest-standing rivalries in all of college soccer. In fact, in the summer of 2011, the College Soccer News website published a list of what they called "The Fourteen Greatest Rivalries in College Soccer." Weighing in at No. 10 on their list was the Milwaukee Cup.

The Panthers certainly have the upper hand all-time, now holding a 28-11-4 record in the series. They also posted back-to-back wins very recently, reclaiming the Cup in 2010 with a 4-2 victory and keeping possession in 2011 with a 2-1 final score.

The 2012 matchup will also go down in the memory books, as the Golden Eagles, trailing the Panthers 2-1 with less than 10 minutes remaining in the contest, pulled off a stunning finish to grab possession of the Cup. Following a goalkeeper miscue, Marquette found the equalizer at the 81:53 mark and then won the contest at the buzzer as the winning goal crossed the line at the 89:59 mark before the horn sounded. The 2013 edition was just as exciting, with the Panthers scoring just 60 seconds into the affair en route to a 2-1 victory over a Marquette squad that was ranked No. 12 at the time.

FOR OPENERS
Milwaukee is now 21-17-5 all-time in season openers, including a 26-12-5 ledger in home openers after dominating Evansville, 5-2, Aug. 28. Head coach Kris Kelderman now has five season openers on his resume at the NCAA Division I collegiate level, going 4-1-0. In addition to the victories over the Purple Aces (2015), DePaul (2014) and a nationally-ranked Marquette squad (2013), his Green Bay squad topped SIU Edwardsville, 1-0, in 2011.

DAZZLING OPENER
There were many highlights for the Panthers from the season-opening 5-2 victory over Evansville. Among them:
-The most goals scored in a season opener since 1996 (a 5-0 win over Northwestern) and the second-most all time (seven is the record).
-No fewer than six freshmen (#4 Josh Kaye, #10 Matthias Binder, #19 Sean Holmes, #26 Francesco Saporito, #27 Jason P. Svensson & #28 Tinashe Marowa) started the contest, the most for a UWM team in at least the past 20 years. The former high-water mark was four freshmen, which has been done three times (2014, 2011, 2009).
-Senior Declan Rodriguez scored twice to become the first player to record a brace in a season opener since Edison Crespo had a pair vs. Marquette in the 2010 opener. The program record remains a hat trick (3) by Dan Day in 1984.
-The two newcomers to score (Binder/Saporito) became the sixth and seventh freshmen since 2000 to net a goal in the opener.

BRING ON THE CUP
Speaking of the "Milwaukee Cup", it is one of the three traveling trophies that the Panthers play for each and every season. In addition, Milwaukee takes on Green Bay for the "Chancellor's Cup" and also play Northern Illinois for the "LeWang Trophy". Back in 2011, UWM posted wins in all three games (2-1 over Marquette; 3-2 in double-overtime against Green Bay and 1-0 against NIU) to hold all three trophies for the first time since the start of the 2005 campaign. A year ago, the team tied the Phoenix, 2-2 (Green Bay kept the cup), and also tied NIU, 2-2, to retain possession of the LeWang Cup.

TOP OF THE CHARTS
In taking on Creighton Aug. 30, the Panthers battled a squad that is a consensus Top-10 program in 2015, with the Blue Jays ranked No. 6 by the National Soccer Coaches Association when they played (they rose to No. 1 Sept. 8).

The Panthers had not played a Top-10 team since the 2009 season, dropping a 2-0 decision to then-No. 9 UC Santa Barbara. The last time UWM played a team as high as No. 6 was when it took on then-No. 6 Washington in 2006, falling 2-1 in overtime.

A season ago, Milwaukee was 0-3 against Top 25 opponents, but is just a year removed from winning two of three games against ranked opponents in 2013. That season, the Panthers opened with a 2-1 win over No. 12 Marquette and beat No. 23 UIC 2-0 in the Horizon League Tournament Championship before falling to No. 19 Wisconsin, 1-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

EXHIBITION SEASON REWIND
Milwaukee played a pair of exhibition contests this year, playing Loyola to a 1-1 draw (no overtime periods were played) and a 2-0 loss to a very good SIU Edwardsville team that is coming off a second-round appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2014 and is the preseason favorite in the Missouri Valley Conference race this year. The team recorded 18 shots in the two games, led by five off the feet of senior Declan Rodriguez. Sophomore Nick Moon was next with three, while freshmen Tinashe Marowa (goal) and Josh Kaye (assist) combined on the score. Time in goal was split in half each contest, with senior Agustin Rey allowing one goal and making two saves. Junior Liam Anderson was credited with three saves and allowed a pair of goals.

NOW THIS IS HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
When it comes to home field advantage, the Panthers have historically ranked right up there with the best in the business. From 2001 through 2006, UWM turned Engelmann Stadium into a place visiting teams did not want to see on their schedule, going 49-8-2 in that time. After a few down seasons by UWM standards, the magic is back - the Panthers have compiled a record of 16-5-3 at home in Kris Kelderman's three years as the head coach.

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
The squad lost a very talented senior class - which included an All-American - and four regular starters overall. What that means is that there will be plenty of opportunity for a new group of players to shine. The Panthers lost two of their top three point scorers from 2014. If you look over the list, the team lost over half of its total points (32 of 59) and half of its goals (9 of 18).

POSTSEASON HARDWARE
The team had six players earn all-conference honors in 2014, with a pair of seniors moving on with first-team accolades in All-American Laurie Bell and captain Luke Goodnetter. Three of the six are back on the field in 2015. Declan Rodriguez was named to the All-Horizon League Second Team, while Nick Moon and Reid Stevenson were named to the all-freshman team.

Rodriguez earned second-team status for the second time in his career in the midfield, also accomplishing the feat as a freshman in 2012. He started and appeared in 17 games, playing every minute of 14 of the contests in recording a pair of goals on the season and 32 shots.

PRESEASON CHATTER
The Panthers are targeted as the fifth place team in a tightly-packed Horizon League, according to the HeroSports.com website, with Oakland as holding the top spot. The website tabs senior Declan Rodriguez as "The Cornerstone" and hails sophomore Reid Stevenson as "The Supporting Cast".

I LOVE L.A.
Junior Liam Anderson is halfway through his playing career and has made serious inroads on the all-time goalkeeping records. Starting the 2015 season, he sits 10th all-time with his 36 starts and fifth all-time with his 0.99 goals-against average. At 13 career shutouts, he will move into the Top 5 with one more clean sheet, as he tries to chase down the school record of 21 over the remainder of his career.

CATCH THEM ANYWHERE
Milwaukee men's soccer will be readily available for the viewing pleasure of UWM fans this season, as eight home games will be streamed live on ESPN3. The Horizon League and ESPN have an agreement that includes ESPN hosting the league's digital network on the ESPN3 platform. ESPN3 is available to nearly 116.3 million homes. In addition, the men's game against Marquette Sept. 3 and Green Bay Oct. 14 are set to be televised locally by Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.

A LOOK BACK AT THE SCHEDULE
The Panthers certainly had their hands full with the strength of their schedule prior to the start of league play in 2014. In addition to playing teams that were ranked No. 19 (George Mason) and No. 22 (American) at the time, UWM took on No. 17 Marquette Sept. 17. On top of that, Milwaukee played an Oregon State team that ended up nationally-ranked and matched up with a Creighton squad (a 0-0 draw in the exhibition season) that was as high as the No. 2 team in the land. In fact, that stretch marked a program first. Never before had Milwaukee played three consecutive games against ranked opponents. The most prior was two and has occurred on just a pair of occasions: UWM played No. 23 UIC in the league tournament championship and then No. 19 Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament in 2013. The only other prior occurrence was in the NCAA's in the 2004 postseason, defeating No. 20 San Francisco before falling to No. 1 UC Santa Barbara.

ON TAP
Just one game will be on the schedule next week, but it will be a big one as the Panthers stay on the road to open conference play Sept. 19. They head to Rochester, Mich., to open against the defending Horizon League champion, the Oakland Golden Grizzlies.