SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg University men's soccer season kicks off this weekend with the Wittenberg Invitational Tournament. Four teams, including the host Tigers, will step onto the field on Saturday for two semifinal games, with the winners coming back to play a championship game and the losers squaring off for third place, both on Sunday. The other three teams invited to this year's Wittenberg Invitational are Notre Dame College, Ohio Dominican University and Otterbein College.

Games begin on Saturday as Wittenberg hits the field against Ohio Dominican at 2 p.m. Otterbein and Notre Dame College will play the second game at 4 p.m. On Sunday the winners of the previous two games will meet on the field to determine the champion at 3 p.m. This will be preceded by the consolation game, starting at 1 p.m.

Wittenberg resumes play this season after a challenging 2003 campaign in which the Tigers finished with an 8-10 overall record, including a mark of 4-5 in the North Coast Athletic Conference. With 10 letterwinners and six starters back this year, the Tigers have high hopes of moving back into the upper echelon of the always challenging NCAC. The Wittenberg Invitational promises to provide a good test for the young Tigers, a team with just one senior on the roster.

The three teams joining the Tigers in the Wittenberg Invitational in 2004 will provide strong competition. Otterbein, the 2002 NCAA Division III runner-up and 2003 Wittenberg Invitational champion, is coming off another winning season in the Ohio Athletic Conference in which the Cardinals finished a respectable 11-7-2. Traditional NAIA powerhouse Ohio Dominican is also coming off a winning 2003 season (10-8-2). The third visiting team, Notre Dame, is coming off an uncharacteristic losing season (8-10-3), but the Falcons are expected to be dangerous this season with an influx of new talent.

Head Coach Steve Dawson returns to Wittenberg this year for his 22nd season as Wittenberg men's soccer Head Coach. Dawson has amassed an impressive career record of 215-150-17 in 22 seasons leading the Tigers. He ranks 34th among active coaches in victories in NCAA Division III.

Bryan Metzger '05, Office of University Communications student assistant, contributed to this release

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