MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The defending 2014 Gulf South Conference Tournament Champions, West Alabama men's soccer, opens the 2015 season Friday at 7:30 p.m. against Lincoln Memorial University on a neutral pitch in Montevallo, Ala.

In its fourth season as an intercollegiate program, the Tigers enter the season as a Top 25 team for the first time after being listed as No. 11 by HeroSports.com. UWA ranked 20^th in the same poll at the close of the 2014 season, wrapping up a storied year with an 11-6-1 record.

The Tigers limited opponents to 1.24 goals per match last season. Sophomore goalkeeper Brad Louis made nine appearances and four starts as a freshman, which included two stellar performances in the GSC tournament. He completed the year with a 1.09 goals against average and 27 saves.

Senior midfielder Brian Meadows, a preseason All-GSC selection, is one of the Tigers' leading returning offensive threats. He accounted for four goals and four assists in 18 appearances as a junior. Alex Brown, also a preseason All-GSC pick, is back after tallying three goals in 17 showings a season ago.
 
Freshmen midfielders Hicham Menaa and Jean Baptiste Meyniel were named as two of the GSC's top newcomers in the preseason. They are two of 14 newcomers to the squad.

"We have a lot of newcomers coming in and a lot of guys pushing to get their start, so that has created a lot of energy," said UWA head coach Matthew Thorne. "We're still making decisions up to Friday on who will get to start. Preseason has gone very well and we've had a great performance from the team. We have big expectations for this year.

"Every game will be difficult this year. Being conference champs puts a big target on our backs. Every game is going to be a battle and we are going to have to give a 100 percent in each match, but we know we are up for the challenge."

The Railsplitters are entering the 13th season under the direction of head coach Helio D'Anna. D'Anna is 30th among active Division II coaches in career winning percentage and 18th in total victories.
 
West Alabama is 3-0 in season openers, while the Railsplitters are 9-3 in their opening matches. Two of those three season-opening losses have come since 2011. LMU finished seventh in the South Atlantic Conference last year with a 7-6-3 overall record.  
 
It will be the first ever meeting between Lincoln Memorial and West Alabama.