Entering his 10th season as the University of Toronto men's soccer head coach, Anthony Capotosto bolsters a veteran roster as the Varsity Blues open their season on the road this Friday, August 26 against the Nipissing Lakers.
 
The Blues return to Varsity Stadium on Sunday (Aug. 28) to take on the Laurentian Voyageurs in their 2016 home opener at 2:15 p.m.


 
Toronto took an incredible step forward in 2015, finishing second in the OUA East division with an 11-3-2 record. The Blues earned the OUA bronze medal along with their 15th national championship berth, and first since 2011, in program history. U of T also received numerous recognitions, netting five OUA all-star nods, one OUA major award winner and one CIS all-Canadian honour.
 
Fourth-year co-captain and 2015 CIS all-Canadian Lukas MacNaughton will once again be relied upon to guide U of T from his centre back position. The native of Brussels, Belgium scored three goals last season, while also shutting down attacking offences.
 
MacNaughton will be joined on the backline by fellow captain and OUA East first team all-star Devon Bowyer. Together the pair will look to duplicate a strong defensive campaign from a year ago, finishing second in the province in goals allowed.
 
In the midfield, the Blues return OUA East first team all-star Nikolay Saveliev and rookie of the year Yousef Helmy. Scoring one goal last season, Helmy proved to be an efficient facilitator, consistently creating offensive chances for his teammates while also serving as a strong transitional player for the Blues.
 
On the scoring end of several of those Helmy through-balls was OUA East second team all-star striker Nirun Sivananthan. The life sciences major and 2015 leading scorer used a combination of blistering speed and outstanding body control to outmaneuver opponents to six goals last season, lifting his career total to 16 goals scored in three seasons at U of T.
 
In net, third-year goalkeeper Mark Rogal will be handed the reins following the graduation of four-year starter Rab Bruce-Lockhart. Rogal enters the season with plenty of experience having dressed for 13 games over the past two seasons, earning four clean sheets including a critical five-save victory in the OUA bronze medal game last season.
 
The Blues remain at home following their season-opening weekend with two contests scheduled over Labour Day weekend at Varsity Stadium. Toronto will first host the Trent Excalibur on Saturday, September 3 before welcoming the UOIT Ridgebacks on Sunday, September 4.
 
Both games are scheduled for 3:15 p.m. kick offs.

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— Varsity Blues (@Varsity_Blues) August 19, 2016

 
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