Sunday, August 23
Poughkeepsie, NY
5:00 PM MT
Air Force Academy
at
Marist
Air Force Men's Soccer Takes on Marist this Sunday
8/21/2026 2:04:00 PM | Men's Soccer
MATCH 02
Air Force (0-0-1) at Marist (0-0-1)
7:00 pm ET , Sunday, August 23
Tenney Stadium at Leionidoff Field
Air Force will travel up the Hudson River to take on Marist in the second matchup of the opening week. The match in Poughkeepsie is slated for 7 pm ET at Tenney Stadium at Leonidoff Field. The match will mark the second all-time meeting between the teams. The Red Foxes won the first meeting, 2-1, on September 14, 2007, played at West Point.
A FRESH START
The Falcons battled to a positive result in the season opener against service academy rival Army West Point, 1-1, Thursday evening at Malek Stadium. Air Force, led by Greg Dalby in his second season, retired from the pitch with heads held high on the effort as the Falcons attempted 13 shots in the match, besting last season's average of 9.6, while also putting four shots on target. Sophomore team captain Tucker Kern led the offense with three shots and a successful strike in the 53rd minute. Falcon senior Logan Zaa and freshman teammate Xidane Espinoza took a pair of shot attempts each. Kern, Zaa, Aidan Grubbs, and 2025 goals leader Marcos Goni, each tallied a shot on goal.
AT THE HELM
Greg Dalby enters his second season as the Air Force head coach in 2026. Dalby took the reins on January 13, 2025. Dalby came to the Academy via Oregon State, where he was the head coach for two seasons (2023, 2024). He led the Beavers to great success in his two seasons, accumulating a 21-11-8 overall record.
Oregon State went to the NCAA Tournament both years, including a run to the College Cup in 2023. The Beavers went 11-6-5 in Dalby's first season, with a run that included four NCAA Tournament victories before falling to Notre Dame in the national semifinals. Oregon State ended the season ranked No. 4 in the United Soccer Coaches poll, the highest postseason mark in program history.
LEADING FROM THE FRONT
Air Force announced juniors Oliver Becker and Andrei Bulankou, along with sophomore Tucker Kern, as team captains for the 2026 campaign. Becker and Bulankou were sophomore team captains in 2025. Kern follows in the footsteps of his oldest brother, Ben Kern, who was team captain of the AF men's soccer team in 2015. He is the third of three Kern brothers to play soccer at USAFA (Ben Kern '15, Will Kern '21).
A NEW HOME IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST
The MW is the first NCAA Division I conference to add men's soccer since the Ohio Valley Conference in 2023 and the Sun Belt Conference's reinstatement in 2022. The first-ever MW men's soccer lineup features Air Force, Grand Canyon, San José State, UC Davis, UNLV and Utah Tech.
Grand Canyon and San José State are both coming off double-digit win seasons. The Lopes recorded 14 wins on their way to a WAC tournament title and a third-round appearance in the NCAA tournament. The Spartans won 12 matches, their most since the 2003 season.
PRESEASON POLLS
Grand Canyon and San José State have been voted as the 2026 preseason favorites to capture the inaugural Mountain West men's soccer regular-season title as voted on by the league's six head coaches.
Both programs earned 22 points each with GCU claiming four first-place votes and SJSU earning two first-place votes. The Lopes enter the 2026 season under the direction of first-year head coach Jamie Davies and ranked No. 21 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll. The Spartans are coming off a WAC championship match appearance in 2025 and earned 12 wins for the first time since 2003.
UC Davis was selected to finish the upcoming season in third place with 15 points, while UNLV was picked fourth with 14 points. Rounding out the poll is Air Force in fifth with 10 points and Utah Tech in sixth with seven points.
FALCONS TO WATCH
The Mountain West also announced the 2026 MW Men's Soccer Watch List, as selected by the Conference's head coaches, featuring three student-athletes from each program. Sophomores Tucker Kern and Quinn Muderlak, and senior Logan Zaa were selected as Air Force's players to watch. Kern notched the first goal of the season in the campaign opener at Army.
Marcos Goni, a walk-on sophomore in 2025, led the team with three goals and an assist. Oliver Becker dished four assists with one goal in 17 appearances. Andrei Bulanko started in every game of 2025 and clocked 1,439 minutes of action. Attila Toth led the team with 13 shots on target as a sophomore. The Falcons will brandish a totally new goalkeeping unit with the freshman Hunter Anderson getting the start in the early season.
UP NEXT
The Falcons open Cadet Soccer Stadium for the first time of the 2026 campaign, hosting UC San Diego on Sunday, August 30. Kick off is scheduled for 1 pm MT at USAFA. The matchup will mark the third meeting between the teams with the Tritons leading the series, 2-0. Last time they met was in San Diego in 2024, UCSD bested AF, 3-0. The Falcons have yet to score a goal against the Tritons.
FOLLOW ALONG
The 2026 season kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 20. Catch all the action on the pitch on MW+, the official streaming destination for Mountain West men's soccer. Stream every match live all season long on the web, the MW+ mobile app for iPhone and Android, or your connected TV, including Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku. Subscribe today at watch.themw.com.
Air Force (0-0-1) at Marist (0-0-1)
7:00 pm ET , Sunday, August 23
Tenney Stadium at Leionidoff Field
Air Force will travel up the Hudson River to take on Marist in the second matchup of the opening week. The match in Poughkeepsie is slated for 7 pm ET at Tenney Stadium at Leonidoff Field. The match will mark the second all-time meeting between the teams. The Red Foxes won the first meeting, 2-1, on September 14, 2007, played at West Point.
A FRESH START
The Falcons battled to a positive result in the season opener against service academy rival Army West Point, 1-1, Thursday evening at Malek Stadium. Air Force, led by Greg Dalby in his second season, retired from the pitch with heads held high on the effort as the Falcons attempted 13 shots in the match, besting last season's average of 9.6, while also putting four shots on target. Sophomore team captain Tucker Kern led the offense with three shots and a successful strike in the 53rd minute. Falcon senior Logan Zaa and freshman teammate Xidane Espinoza took a pair of shot attempts each. Kern, Zaa, Aidan Grubbs, and 2025 goals leader Marcos Goni, each tallied a shot on goal.
AT THE HELM
Greg Dalby enters his second season as the Air Force head coach in 2026. Dalby took the reins on January 13, 2025. Dalby came to the Academy via Oregon State, where he was the head coach for two seasons (2023, 2024). He led the Beavers to great success in his two seasons, accumulating a 21-11-8 overall record.
Oregon State went to the NCAA Tournament both years, including a run to the College Cup in 2023. The Beavers went 11-6-5 in Dalby's first season, with a run that included four NCAA Tournament victories before falling to Notre Dame in the national semifinals. Oregon State ended the season ranked No. 4 in the United Soccer Coaches poll, the highest postseason mark in program history.
LEADING FROM THE FRONT
Air Force announced juniors Oliver Becker and Andrei Bulankou, along with sophomore Tucker Kern, as team captains for the 2026 campaign. Becker and Bulankou were sophomore team captains in 2025. Kern follows in the footsteps of his oldest brother, Ben Kern, who was team captain of the AF men's soccer team in 2015. He is the third of three Kern brothers to play soccer at USAFA (Ben Kern '15, Will Kern '21).
A NEW HOME IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST
The MW is the first NCAA Division I conference to add men's soccer since the Ohio Valley Conference in 2023 and the Sun Belt Conference's reinstatement in 2022. The first-ever MW men's soccer lineup features Air Force, Grand Canyon, San José State, UC Davis, UNLV and Utah Tech.
Grand Canyon and San José State are both coming off double-digit win seasons. The Lopes recorded 14 wins on their way to a WAC tournament title and a third-round appearance in the NCAA tournament. The Spartans won 12 matches, their most since the 2003 season.
PRESEASON POLLS
Grand Canyon and San José State have been voted as the 2026 preseason favorites to capture the inaugural Mountain West men's soccer regular-season title as voted on by the league's six head coaches.
Both programs earned 22 points each with GCU claiming four first-place votes and SJSU earning two first-place votes. The Lopes enter the 2026 season under the direction of first-year head coach Jamie Davies and ranked No. 21 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll. The Spartans are coming off a WAC championship match appearance in 2025 and earned 12 wins for the first time since 2003.
UC Davis was selected to finish the upcoming season in third place with 15 points, while UNLV was picked fourth with 14 points. Rounding out the poll is Air Force in fifth with 10 points and Utah Tech in sixth with seven points.
FALCONS TO WATCH
The Mountain West also announced the 2026 MW Men's Soccer Watch List, as selected by the Conference's head coaches, featuring three student-athletes from each program. Sophomores Tucker Kern and Quinn Muderlak, and senior Logan Zaa were selected as Air Force's players to watch. Kern notched the first goal of the season in the campaign opener at Army.
Marcos Goni, a walk-on sophomore in 2025, led the team with three goals and an assist. Oliver Becker dished four assists with one goal in 17 appearances. Andrei Bulanko started in every game of 2025 and clocked 1,439 minutes of action. Attila Toth led the team with 13 shots on target as a sophomore. The Falcons will brandish a totally new goalkeeping unit with the freshman Hunter Anderson getting the start in the early season.
UP NEXT
The Falcons open Cadet Soccer Stadium for the first time of the 2026 campaign, hosting UC San Diego on Sunday, August 30. Kick off is scheduled for 1 pm MT at USAFA. The matchup will mark the third meeting between the teams with the Tritons leading the series, 2-0. Last time they met was in San Diego in 2024, UCSD bested AF, 3-0. The Falcons have yet to score a goal against the Tritons.
FOLLOW ALONG
The 2026 season kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 20. Catch all the action on the pitch on MW+, the official streaming destination for Mountain West men's soccer. Stream every match live all season long on the web, the MW+ mobile app for iPhone and Android, or your connected TV, including Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku. Subscribe today at watch.themw.com.
Players Mentioned
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