LA MIRADA, Calif. --- The 2016 Biola Men's Soccer season is just about an hour away from commencing. The Eagles come into the new year with a big, fat target on their backs because of the immense success the team experienced in 2015 with a pair of Golden State Athletic Conference Championships and a deep national postseason run.
 
It is sure to be another exciting year with a good batch of playmakers returning, a solid bunch of new recruits joining the team and the added sentiment of this being the final season of NAIA and Golden State Athletic Conference play.
 
"The season is upon us. We are very excited for a new season. Part of that excitement is the unknowns," said Head Coach Todd Elkins. "We have a different team from last year. We had a really exciting season last year, but I can definitely sense the anticipation from our team about what we can accomplish this year."
 
Biola Men's Soccer finished 2015 in the second round of the NAIA National Tournament and completed its season with a 15-5-1 overall record and a ton of team and individual hardware.
 
The Eagles return eight of their 11 starters from the end of last season, with one hole in the midfield, one hole on the on the wing and one hole at goalkeeper.
 
"All season long we are going to have to deal with opponents that are going to be gunning for us," said Elkins. "I really like our group. I think that the kind of success we will have will be determined by how well we can deal with those challenges."
 
Elkins filled his few holes well during this offseason as he brought in a pair of talented keepers to take the place of All-GSAC goalkeeper JT Addington. Igor Puglia is a tall, physical keeper that joins the Biola roster with a few years of collegiate soccer already under his belt. His size and experience will be immensely valuable on this relatively young group of student-athletes.
 
Robert Sams is the second new keeper. Sams comes in as a freshman out of Elk Grove, California. He's been between the pipes for the Eagles' preseason scrimmages and exhibitions and has played well as Puglia nurses a minor injury. Sams recorded an 18-1-4 overall record and posted 10 shutouts during his high school career at Consumnes Oaks High School.
 
"We really improved in that position (goalkeeper)," said Elkins. "Both of those players are really talented and we are excited to have them on our side."
 
Other notable additions include transfer Yuri Cruz and the Sotelo brothers, Gilbert Sotelo and Hernan Sotelo. Cruz joins the team after two splendid seasons of NAIA soccer at No. 4 Lindenwood-Belleville. He will be a utility player of sorts for Elkins as he can play all over the midfield.
 
Hernan Sotelo was on the team in 2015, but was never able to see much time on the pitch due to injury, but he's now healthy his younger brother, Gilbert, joined the squad and should make for some exciting, energetic play up front for BU.
 
Finally, the team will be captained by three seniors: Leonardo Contreras, Devin Leon and True Tamplin. Coach Elkins selected these three not just because of their seniority or abilities on the pitch, but mainly because he notes that each one brings something different to the overall cohesion of the team.
 
All three have radically different personalities and playing styles, but each one has the good of the team as a number one priority and will push to make 2016 the best year of Biola Men's Soccer yet.
 
The Eagles begin play with a top-25 matchup at No. 21 Marymount California at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. This is part of Elkins' approach to scheduling his preseason as difficult as possible in order to get the team ready to compete in one of the toughest conferences in all of NAIA soccer.
 
"Marymount is a very strong side and we are anticipating a battle today," said Elkins. "Both sides know that this is a very important preseason game with a lot on the line"
 
During this six-match preseason schedule, BU faces three teams that are either ranked inside of the NAIA Top-25 Coaches' Poll or are just outside of the top-25 and are receiving votes. Coincidentally enough, all three of these top-25 battles take place in the first two weeks of the year.
 
"It's going to be a little bit of an extra emotional season, a nostalgic season, because we've been competing in this league and this conference for such a long time and this is the final year," said Elkins. "We are really ready to finish strong."
 
The Eagles kick-off 2016 Golden State Athletic Conference play on Sept. 20 against Arizona Christian. This match begins a stretch of four conference home matches in a row for BU. After that the Eagles have just one more home match, which takes place Oct. 22 against San Diego Christian and is the Eagles' senior night.
 
To catch Biola's first match of the season please tune in to https://portal.stretchinternet.com/marymountca/. To follow live stats visit this link.