UMass Dartmouth will try to improve on a 13-7 record in Coach Ray Cabral's first season with the men's program

(Dartmouth, MA) - UMass Dartmouth men's soccer coach Ray Cabral will try to improve on his first season with the Corsairs and he will get plenty of help from seven returning starters from last year's team which finished 13-7 overall and earned a post-season tournament invitation.

The former UMass Dartmouth women's soccer coach, Cabral took over UMass Dartmouth's men's team prior to last season and helped the Corsairs to a 5-2 mark for third place in the Little East Conference and berths in both the LEC and ECAC New England Division III tournaments. In Cabral's first season after a successful run as the Corsairs' women's soccer coach in the early 1990's, the Corsair men responded with a nine-game winning streak at mid-season, cracking the Division III New England soccer poll tied for tenth place. Following a 1-0 LEC quarterfinal round win, UMass Dartmouth was knocked out of the LEC Tournament in the semi-final round. Babson College ended Cabral's rookie season with the men's team with a 1-0 first round victory.

"With seven returning starters from last season, plus the addition of some freshmen and transfer students moving into the starting lineup, this is a very deep team," said Cabral. "The coaching staff are looking forward to a very competitive year and we expect to challenge for the conference championship."

Tri-captains Jorge Fonseca (Ludlow, MA) and Adrian Gonsalves (Somerset, MA), a pair of seniors and junior back Carlos Semedo (Boston, MA) will lead the 2002 Corsairs. A co-captain last season as a junior, Gonsalves was the Corsairs' lone First Team All-LEC selection as a forward/midfielder. He finished an outstanding season as the Corsairs' fourth leading scorer with three goals and two assists for eight points

Fonseca returns for his final season in goal with impressive credentials, including an 11-5 won-loss record. In 18 games last season as a junior co-captain, Fonseca played 1597 minutes and faced 131 shots, coming up with 105 saves. His goals against average was 1.01, second best in the LEC, and his seven shutouts were tied for second in the conference. Fonseca was a Second Team LEC selection. Semedo was also a Second Team All-LEC selection for the Corsairs and among the most valuable defenders for UMass Dartmouth.

In addition to the Corsairs three tri-captains, UMass Dartmouth will welcome back four of its five leading scorers from the 2001 season, led by senior forward Vesselin Tzolov (Taunton, MA), sophomore forward Diego Escudero (Fall River, MA), and senior midfielder Admir DaSilva (New Bedford, MA). Tzolov finished the season with a team-high six goals plus an assist for 13 points, placing him 12th overall in the LEC scoring race. Escudero was second in scoring on the team with five goals for ten points, while DaSilva finished with a pair of goals and five assists for nine points.

"We are a young team with several new players to the program this season, but we have been very fortunate to receive good guidance from our seniors," said Cabral, who will be assisted by coaches Dave Doherty and Manny Garcia.

UMass Dartmouth will get ready for its LEC action by opening with seven non-conference games in September before hosting Eastern Connecticut on Sept. 28 in the LEC opener. After opening with Curry College on Sept. 4. UMass Dartmouth will face several solid teams, including Division II Stonehill College (Sept. 10), Johnson and Wales (Sept. 12) and Bridgewater State (Sept. 24).