NEW YORK — The Columbia men's soccer team (1-3-2) begins the seven-game Ivy League season on Sunday when it welcomes Penn (3-2-2) to Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
GAME COVERAGE:
Fans unable to make it to the game can watch live on ESPN+. Fans can also track the live stats courtesy of GoColumbiaLions.com. In-game updates will also be provided on the @CULionsMSOC social media accounts.
 
NON-CONFERENCE RECAP
Columbia has gone 1-3-2 entering Ivy League play and will play two additional non-conference matchups in October against Army West Point (Oct. 14) and Fordham (Oct. 28). After dropping a close battle in their season opener at Lehigh, 2-1, the Lions went on a three-game unbeaten streak, drawing Villanova, 0-0, drawing Fairfield, 1-1, and defeating Manhattan at home, 2-0. The unbeaten streak was the team's longest since 2018, as head coach Michael Casper looks to bring a historically strong Columbia program back to prominence.
 
Junior midfielder Jack McDaid has scored two of Columbia's five goals through its first six matches. He had the opening goal against Manhattan, heading home a short corner sent in from Joao Lima. He scored his second goal in Columbia's last match, blasting home a free kick from just outside the 18 to cut Hofstra's 2-0 lead in half in the 87th minute. McDaid also owns an assist for a team-leading five points. Five of his eight shots have been on frame.
 
The Lions have outshot their opponents by a total of 81-75 so far this season. Their 13.5 shots per game rank fourth in the Ivy League. Columbia took a season-high 23 shots in the win over Manhattan, its most shots in a game in eight years.
 
Defensively, the Lions are allowing an even 1.00 goals per game. They've shut out both Villanova (Sept. 5) and Manhattan (Sept. 15), with both of those matches coming at home. In fact, the Lions have not conceded at home all season, playing four away matches compared to two in New York City. Senior goalkeeper Dean Kelliher has earned the two shutouts, playing all 90 minutes of each match. Kelliher owns a 0.80 goals against average on the season, playing and starting five of the six matches, with a .750 save percentage.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
Penn enters Ivy League play on a three-game unbeaten streak, including a 3-0 win over Villanova this past Tuesday, and a 2-0 win over Air Force last Saturday. The Quakers have played five of their seven matches at home with a record of 3-1-1 in those five matches. However, they are still winless away from home this season, playing to a 0-0 draw against Seton Hall in South Orange, and falling at Delaware in the very next match, 1-0. Sunday's match will be their first away from home since traveling to play the Blue Hens on September 9.
 
Sophomore Romeo Dahlen leads the Quakers with four goals scored so far. Seniors Patrick Cayelli and Oliver Pratt have each found the back of the net twice. Penn has outscored opponents 12-5 this season, averaging 1.7 goals per game, which ranks No. 2 in the Ivy League. They average 7.14 shots on goal per game, which ranks No. 15 in the country. Defensively, they allow 0.71 goals per game and hold a shutout percentage of 0.571, which ranks 17th nationally. Goalkeeper David Howard holds a GAA of 1.00. Howard has started five of the seven matches.
 
THE SERIES
Penn leads the all-time series 36-34-8 and is on a three-match series winning streak. Last year, the then-No. 20-ranked Quakers edged Columbia, 1-0, in Philadelphia. Dahlen scored the game's only goal in the 52nd minute. The two sides drew 1-1 in both 2019 and 2021. Columbia's last win came on the road, 2-0, in 2018, which was its sixth straight series win at the time.
 
2025 PRESEASON NOTES

RETURNING
The Lions return 22 players from last year's team. Of them, 18 returners played in eight or more matches last season, while 10 players started at least half of last season's 14 matches.
 
In goal, senior Dean Kelliher returns with the most experience. He started nine matches a year ago in his first season as the primary keeper. It included his first collegiate shutout in a 1-0 victory over the previous season's Ivy League tournament champion, Yale. He would later make a career-high six saves in a one-goal loss to Harvard. Alexander O'Brien played and started four matches in his rookie season. They will both compete for the starting spot alongside first-year Aris Taki.
 
The defensive half and the back line also return a lot of game experience. Staples to last year's defensive formation included senior Carmine Falco, junior Joe McDaid, junior Jack McDaid, junior Jackson ten Oever and sophomore Andrew Hilton II. All five started at least 12 of 14 matches, with Falco and Joe McDaid starting all 14. Jack McDaid and ten Oever each scored twice and shared the team lead in goals. McDaid was named Second Team All-Ivy League, while ten Oever earned All-Ivy Honorable Mention.
 
Returners in the attacking half include senior Ryan Yang, senior Joao Lima, sophomore Luke Zielinski and senior Alessandro Franciosa. Those four started at least half of last season's matches with Lima earning one goal and one assist.
 
Columbia returns 89 percent of its scoring from last season, but will look for an uptick in goal production. They managed to find the back of the net just nine times last season, averaging just 0.64 goals per game. Will Case, Luka Peric, Peter Chang and Andres Garcia also got plenty of experience last season, all playing in 10 or more matches. Garcia came away with a goal and an assist as a rookie.
 
THE CAPTAINS
Columbia men's soccer announced that its captains for the 2025 season are senior Carmine Falco and junior Jackson ten Oever. Falco has played in 38 matches and started 37 of them heading into his senior year. Last season, he totaled 1,075 minutes on the field and went the full 90 four times. Ten Oever was a 2024 All-Ivy League Honorable Mention and was also named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. He was named Ivy League Player of the Week following his game-winning goal while preserving a shutout against Yale. The Brooklyn native has played and started 27 matches in his career.
 
THE NEWCOMERS
In late June, Columbia announced the addition of eight new players to the 2025 roster. In the announcement, head coach Michael Casper stated, "We want players that fit the model of what we want Columbia men's soccer to look like – hard-working and technical with the ability to become difference makers."
 
Among the newcomers are goalkeeper Aris Taki, defenders Conor Owen and Sage Kinner, midfielders Yianni Goulandris, Stepan Kapranov, Oli Sacks and Amir Yahalom, as well as forward Henning Myrvang.
 
YEAR THREE UNDER CASPER
In what is now his third season leading the Lions, head coach Michael Casper will look to turn the corner and bring the program back to prominence. Last year saw a step in the right direction, when Columbia put an end to a five-year Ivy League winless drought by defeating the 2023 tournament champion Yale, 1-0, at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. With key defensive pieces returning, he will look to a talented group of returners and newcomers to increase goal production.
 
ABOUT COLUMBIA MEN'S SOCCER
The 2025 season marks the 78th varsity season of men's soccer at Columbia University. The program was established in 1906 but discontinued as a varsity sport from 1916-57. The program regained its varsity status in 1957 and played 63 straight seasons until the 2020 campaign was canceled due to COVID.
 
Columbia men's soccer came to prominence in the late '70s, advancing to their first NCAA Tournament in 1978 before going all the way to the Final Four in 1979. After multiple NCAA Tournament appearances and Ivy League championships through the early '80s, the Lions made a run to the NCAA Tournament Championship Game in 1983. Columbia defeated UConn, 4-0, in the Final Four to take on Indiana for the National Championship. The Hoosiers outlasted Columbia, 1-0, in overtime.
 
Columbia owns 10 Ivy League championships and 13 NCAA Tournament appearances all-time.
 
FOLLOW THE LIONS:
For the latest on Columbia men's soccer, be sure to follow the team on Twitter and Instagram (@CULionsMSOC), on Facebook (ColumbiaMensSoccer), or by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com.