• The 49th season of Trinity Men's Soccer kicks off on Thursday, when the Trolls host Dordt (Iowa) for the first of a three-match home stretch to open the new year. Trinity then takes on Rio Grande (Ohio) in a Saturday afternoon matchup.

• Thursday will mark the 13th meeting in the all-time series between the Trolls and Defenders, in a matchup that dates back to 1981. Dordt leads the series to date, 8-4. Last season, the Trolls snapped a four-match slide against Dordt with a 2-0 home victory. Saturday will mark the first-ever meeting between Trinity and Rio Grande.

• The Trolls are coming off one of their most successful seasons in program history; in 2024, Trinity set a program record with 17 victories. The team reached the CCAC Tournament Final after placing third in the regular season, and made their deepest-ever run in the NCCAA Tournament, falling in the national semifinals in penalties.

• Trinity brings back their top four point-scorers from a year ago, led by junior forward David Hernandez. The Madrid native finished second in the CCAC with 16 goals on the year, and was named a First Team All-CCAC selection as well as the NCCAA National Championship Golden Ball award winner.

• Senior Ivan Perez also returns after being honored as the CCAC Midfielder of the Year and an All-CCAC First Team pick last fall. Perez collected five goals, and ranked second in the league with 12 assists. Senior midfielder Ismael Aguero also returns after five goals and an All-CCAC Second Team campaign a year ago.

• Defensively, the Trolls will have some spaces to fill from last year's starting eleven. Goalkeeper Giorgos Christodoulou departs after recording a 9-2-1 record last season, with senior Zach Coppin and sophomore Roberto Navarro set to fill in after seeing a combined nine matches in goal in 2024.

• Along the back line, the Trolls will see graduating seniors James Hutchins, Lucas Vilela, and Tiago Alfieri depart. Senior Guillermo Mate and sophomore J.P. Quaresma are set to lead the defensive efforts, as two of the top five in minutes played last fall both return.