What you need to know:
* The Panthers announced their 20-match men's soccer schedule Thursday morning.
* GSU's slate is highlighted by two Power-Five match-ups, the Capital City Classic, and five SBC matches.
* Georgia State will host the Sun Belt Tournament Nov. 10-13.
ATLANTA- Georgia State men's soccer head coach Brett Surrency announced its 2016 schedule Thursday morning, highlighted by two Power Five matchups and the Capital City Classic, as well as five Sun Belt Conference contests.
“I'm pleased with the way the schedule came together and anxious to get the boys back for preseason. We have some excellent non-conferences games for us that should prove to be great preparation for our Sun Belt Conference games,” Surrency said. “As always, we anticipate the league to be very difficult and the addition of Coastal Carolina will only help further that notion. All in all, it's an exciting time and we are looking forward to the challenges in front of us.”
After an exhibition match against Oglethorpe at home on Aug. 17, Georgia State will open the regular season at Mercer on Aug. 26, for an in-state clash. The team will then begin a three-game home stand, the longest of the season, hosting Memphis on Aug. 28, Lipscomb on Sept. 2, and Central Arkansas on Sept. 4.
The following weekend the Panthers will head to Providence, R.I., for the Capital City Classic, where they will face Brown on Sept. 9, and Providence on Sept. 11. The four-team tournament will also include SMU, and is hosted by both Brown and Providence.
Georgia State will return to Panthersville to host Presbyterian College on Sept. 17, before a three-game road stretch in the Carolinas. The team will travel to North Carolina to face UNC Asheville on Sept. 21 and then to Columbia, S.C., to play SEC opponent South Carolina on Sept. 24. The road trip will end in Durham, N.C., at Duke on Sept. 27.
GSU opens October at home for a weekend match against Pacific on Oct. 2, then travels to USC Upstate in Spartanburg, S.C., for a mid-week clash against the Spartans. The Panthers return home on Oct. 8 for a rivalry match against Georgia Southern to open up Sun Belt play.
Continuing conference play, the team will travel to Howard in Washington, D.C., for a Friday afternoon match on Oct. 14. In another non-conference matchup, Georgia State hosts Surrency's alma mater Jacksonville for a mid-week match on Oct. 18.
In the first of the final two road games of the season, the Panthers will head to Boone, N.C., for another SBC matchup with Appalachian State on Oct. 22, before hosting College of Charleston on Oct. 26, for the final non-conference match of the season.
The last home match for the team will be a Saturday game for the Panthers, who host Hartwick on Oct. 29. Georgia State fell to the Hawks in the Sun Belt tournament championship game last season in a 3-0 loss, earning the Hawks a berth in the NCAA Men's College Cup main draw.
The final regular season game will be against new Sun Belt member Coastal Carolina on Nov. 5 in Conway, S.C. GSU will host the Sun Belt Conference Championship, with matches scheduled from Nov. 10-13.
The Panthers return 18 veterans from last year's team that went 4-1 in conference play and advanced to the Sun Belt championship game after a 5-4 shootout win in the semifinal match against Georgia Southern. The team looks to improve on its second second-place conference finish in a row and earn an NCAA Men's College Cup main draw berth for the first time since 2011.
