BURLINGTON, Vt. – The University of Vermont men's soccer team, the defending America East Champions, unveiled an 18-game schedule, including nine home games at Virtue Field, for the 2016 season.
 
REALTED LINKS
2016 Schedule
2015 Highlight Video

The Catamounts will play 11 non-conference games and face teams from eight different leagues. Vermont will also face four teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season.
 
UVM will open the 2016 campaign on August 26 hosting Cal State Fullerton at Virtue Field. The Titans won the Big West Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year.
 
Vermont will host the 26th edition of the Peter Baldwin Classic on September 2 and 4 at Virtue Field.  The 2016 tournament features Bucknell, LIU Brooklyn and Sacred Heart. Last season LIU Brooklyn won the Northeast Conference title on penalty kicks and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Blackbirds fell to Rutgers in the first round.
 
Following the tournament, the Catamounts hit the road for the four games. Highlighting the road swing is a trip to Virginia. UVM faces Old Dominion in Norfolk, Virginia on September 9. The game is part of ODU's STIHL Classic. In its 41st year, the tournament is the longest running active men's soccer tournament in Division I. Vermont will also take on Virginia Commenwealth on September 11 in Richmond. The Rams made the Atlantic-10 Championship Game and posted seven wins a year ago.
 
UVM closes out the non-conference slate with three home games. Vermont hosts UMass on September 21 and will face two NCAA Tournament teams in Dartmouth and Hartwick in back-to-back games on September 24 and 27.

Vermont opens the competitive America East schedule hosting Stony Brook on October 1. UVM faces defending America East Regular Season Champion Albany on October 7 and closes out the regular season hosting New Hampshire on November 2.

The top six teams in the final regular season standings will advance to the America East Tournament.  The first round will be held on November 5, followed by the semifinals on November 9. The finals are slated for November 12 or 13.  All games will be played at the highest seeds and the America East Tournament Champion will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Vermont won its fifth America East Championship in program history and second under head coach Jesse Cormier last season. The Catamounts advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the ninth time in program history and faced Boston College in the first round. UVM finished the year with an 11-7-3 mark.
 
Brian Wright was named the Most Outstanding Player of the America East Championship Game. He also earned America East All-Conference First Team honors and earned a spot on the NSCAA Division I Men's All-East Region First Team for the second straight season. Wright was also named to the All-ECAC squad.
 
Teammates Stefan Lamanna and Jackson Dayton were also lauded by the league. Lamanna earned a spot on the all-conference second team in his first year at Vermont, while Dayton was named to the all-academic squad. Dayton was named to the all-tournament team and was selected as the winner of the America East Elite 18 Award as the student-athlete competing in the championship game with the highest GPA.

VIRTUE FIELD ADDITIONS
Construction is currently under way at Virtue Field as a 2,500-seat grandstand is being added to the facility. The new addition is scheduled to be in place for the start of the 2016 season.