By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- The Willamette University men's soccer team has announced its schedule for the 2017 season. Willamette will play eight regular season games at home, and will travel to Southern California for three games early in the season.

Action gets underway with two exhibition games and the Alumni Game before the regular season starts. The Bearcats will take on Concordia University (Ore.) in an exhibition game in Portland on Friday, Aug. 25. Willamette will play the Alumni Game against former Bearcats on Sunday, Aug. 27 at 1 p.m. (PDT) at Sparks Field. Completing the preseason will be a home game against Evergreen State College (Wash.) on Monday, Aug. 28 at 7 p.m.

Willamette's regular season opener is set for Friday, Sept. 1 in Claremont, California, against Pomona-Pitzer. The Bearcats will remain in Southern California to take on Occidental College in Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 3 and to battle University of La Verne on Monday, Sept. 4 in La Verne.

The Bearcats will return home to face University of California-Santa Cruz on Sunday, Sept. 10. Game time at Sparks Field is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PDT).

WU opens Northwest Conference play with a pair of home games. On Saturday, Sept. 16, the Bearcats will take on University of Puget Sound at 12 p.m. Willamette and Pacific Lutheran University will play on Sunday, Sept. 17, also at 121 p.m.

A road game at Pacific University on Friday, Sept. 22 at 7 p.m. (PDT) will be followed by a game at Sparks Field against George Fox University on Sunday, Sept. 24 at 2:30 p.m.

The annual road trip to take on Whitworth University and Whitman College is set for the weekend of Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. On Saturday, Sept. 30, the Bearcats will play against Whitworth in Spokane. Willamette will take on Whitman in Walla Walla on Sunday, Oct. 1.

Three consecutive home games will be up next when the Bearcats return to Salem. They will take on archrival Linfield College on Sunday, Oct. 8 at 2:30 p.m. (PDT). Willamette will host Whitman on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 2:30 p.m. and will take on Whitworth on Sunday, Oct. 15 at 2:30 p.m.

After playing at George Fox on Saturday, Oct. 21, the Bearcats will be at home for the third time in four games when they battle Pacific on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 12 p.m. It will be Senior Day for the Bearcats.

The regular season concludes with three road games in a row. Willamette will take on Pacific Lutheran in Tacoma, Washington, on Saturday, Oct. 28 and will compete against Puget Sound in Tacoma on Sunday, Oct. 29. The Bearcats will finish their schedule at Linfield on Saturday, Nov. 4.