LOUDONVILLE, NY – For the first time in over 16 months, Siena Men’s Soccer (0-1, 0-1 MAAC) will take the field at home in regular season action, Thursday afternoon. The Saints will welcome conference foe Canisius (0-1, 0-1 MAAC) to Hickey Field for their first of three scheduled matches during the Spring 2021 season, with kickoff from Loudonville set for 3:00 PM.

Although there will be no live stream to watch the action, live Twitter updates from tomorrow’s season opening match will be available by following @SienaSoccer on Twitter. Due to MAAC protocols prohibiting spectators at contests through the end of March, there will be no fans allowed at Thursday’s contest.

The Green and Gold will take the field at home first the first time under first year head coach Graciano Brito and will look to rebound from a 1-0 loss at Rider last Thursday. The match featured a goal in the third minute from the Broncs, who outshot the Saints on their home field, 14-4. Siena saw the roster debut of eight players during the contest, with freshman Bilal Hersi leading the way offensively with a pair of shots. Junior goalkeeper Greg Monroe played the entirety of the contest in-between-the-pipes, marking five saves in his 14^th consecutive start.

Making its first road trip of the season, Canisius will also look for its first win of the season after dropping a 2-0 home result to Fairfield last week. The Golden Griffins were outshot, 13-5, in the loss, with five different players registering a shot. Senior goalkeeper Tom Crosbie made one save while spending the entirety of the game in-goal. Canisius finished the 2019 season with a 2-15 overall record, including a 1-9 mark in MAAC play.

Siena holds an 18-11-3 advantage in the all-time series between the two programs, which began back in 1987. The Saints have carried a non-losing result in every annual meeting since 2014, with 3-1 and 2-0 wins coming in each of the last two meetings. Siena’s 3-1 victory on October 2, 2019 in Buffalo featured the team’s first hat trick since 2010. The Green and Gold have also won the last six meetings in Loudonville dating back to 2008.

Following the team’s home opener, Siena will head back out on the road to take on Brito’s former club in Quinnipiac, with kickoff scheduled for Thursday, March 25 at 2:30 PM.