The University of Delaware men’s soccer team will play a challenging 2016 schedule highlighted by a tough road match against the University of Maryland in its efforts to build on last season’s success.

The Blue Hens will play nine of their 18 games at home at Stuart and Suzanne Grant Stadium.

In 2015, UD went 10-7-4 overall and 5-2-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association and advanced to the CAA tournament final for the third consecutive year before falling to Hofstra University in the championship match.

The Blue Hens, led by 11th-year head coach Ian Hennessy, kick off the regular season with a matchup at Bucknell University on Aug. 26 before returning to Newark to face Fordham in the home opener on Aug. 28. The team will then head north to face Lehigh, which made the NCAA tournament and received votes in the final NSCAA Coaches Poll last season, on Sept. 2.

UD will return for a six-game homestand against Iona (Sept. 7), Villanova (Sept. 11), Seton Hall (Sept. 14), William and Mary (Sept. 17), Virginia Tech (Sept. 20) and Northeastern (Sept. 24). The Blue Hens open conference play against William and Mary, prior to welcoming Virginia Tech of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Following the home stretch, UD will travel to Drexel on Sept. 28 and will host Hofstra in a rematch of last year’s final on Oct. 1 in a pair of CAA matchups. The squad heads to Penn on Oct. 5, prior to a league road contest at James Madison on Oct. 12. UD will then play its final regular season home match of the year three days later in a conference game against the College of Charleston.

The Blue Hens then hit the road for four matchups against Temple on Oct. 18, CAA opponent Elon on Oct. 22, Maryland on Oct. 26, and conference foe the University of North Carolina-Wilmington on Oct. 29. Elon and Maryland will both provide difficult challenges as they were ranked 23rd and 10th respectively in last season’s final RPI rankings. Additionally, Maryland, which dropped a 2-1 decision to the Blue Hens in College Park, went on a run in last year’s NCAA tournament before exiting in the quarterfinals on penalties.

The first round of the six-team CAA tournament will take place on Nov. 5 at the higher seeds’ home fields, followed by the semifinals and championship to be played on Nov. 11-13 at the home of the CAA’s regular season champion.

UD will be returning a number of mainstays from last year’s team, highlighted by senior forward Guillermo Delgado, who was named third team All-American and first team All-CAA in addition to holding a spot on the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. Junior defender Thibault Philippe was named second team All-CAA, senior defender Thomas de Villardi was tabbed first team All-CAA and third team All-Midwest Region, and sophomore defender John Schroeder was selected to the CAA All-Rookie Team.