Men's Soccer to Open 2026 Season at Boston College

Match One: Dartmouth (0-0-0) at Boston College (1-0-0) – Friday Aug. 28, 7 p.m.
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HANOVER, N.H. – The Dartmouth men's soccer team officially opens the Connor Klekota era on Friday, Aug. 27, against Boston College at the Newton Soccer Field.

New Era For The Big Green
Connor Klekota, the Bobby Clarke Head Coach of Men's Soccer, will lead the Big Green for the first time in 2026. Klekota joined Dartmouth after serving as an assistant coach at Georgetown, one of the nation's premiere men's soccer programs. Over his eight seasons with the Hoyas, Klekota helped guide Georgetown to sustained national prominence including the 2019 NCAA National Championship, two College Cup appearances, and a run of six BIG EAST Regular Season Championships and five BIG EAST Tournament Championships. As a player, Klekota played at Notre Dame from 2012-15 and helped lead the Fighting Irish to the 2013 NCAA National Championship, appeared in 66 career matches and earned Atlantic Coast Conference All-Tournament honors. Klekota was also invited to participate in the Major League Soccer Combine.

Klekota's staff includes assistant coach Ross Macklin, who spent the previous four seasons as Associate Head Coach at Carnegie Mellon and recruited the UAA Rookie of the Year in 2025 who also earned All-Region honors in 2025 as well a Freshman First Team All-UAA in 2025. Macklin also helped lead the Tartans to the 2022 NCAA Tournament.

Liam Abdalla, who will work primarily with the Big Green goalkeepers, rounds out Klekota's staff. Abdalla spent the past three seasons at the University of Pennsylvania and coached star goalkeeper Phillip Falcon III, who led the conference in multiple statistics and accumulated multiple conference and national award recognitions, as well as led the Quakers to top defensive stats in the nation.

Key Returners
Olly Spicer, a Second Team All-Ivy honoree in 2025, led the Big Green in points with nine after recording three goals and three assists.

Trenton Blake, a two-time Second Team All-Ivy honoree, is set for a comeback season after playing the first five matches of 2025 then missing the rest of the season due to injury.

Raphael Oppong Owusu stepped into an important role in the midfield in 2025, playing in 11 matches and making nine starts. His 589 total minutes doubled his total from 2024.

A trio of senior forwards, Douglas Arveskär, Vasilis Moiras and Will Lulka, will add experience and depth.

In goal, Konstantinos Dellas made nine starts and played in ten matches in 2025, and TJ Jeffreys made three starts and played in six matches.

The Newcomers
Six newcomers join Big Green ahead of the 2026 season. Owen Anderson (forward), Nicholas Brown (goalkeeper), Eli Granda (midfield), Nicholas Greer (centerback/rightback), Daryl Hage (centerback) and Bo Robbins (midfield) begin their journey at Dartmouth this season.

All-Time Against The Eagles
The Big Green have an opportunity to tie the all-time series against the Eagles, as Boston College currently leads 10-9-3.

Last Time They Met
Dartmouth fell to Boston College, 2-1, on Friday, Aug. 30, at the Newton Soccer Field. The match was tied after Vasilis Moiras scored on a header in the first half, then in the 73rd minute when the Eagles broke through for what was the match-winning goal.

Scouting Boston College
The Eagles are 1-0 on the season, first defeating Merrimack, 4-0, on Thursday, Aug. 20. Boston College returns eight players who appeared in 14 or more games during the 2025 season, including two who played in all 17 matches, and added nine freshman and two transfers to this season's roster. Boston College was 7-9-1 in 2025

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