Last season: 11-5-3 overall, 6-2-2 all UE, 5-1-2 UE regular season.

Coach: Tyler Mensch, 10^th season. Career record: 55-94-22.

Top returnees: (last season stats)Junior forward Jimmy Friedman of East Greenville (4 goals); sophomore center-mid forward Hunter Gabloff of Succasunna, New Jersey; sophomore center-mid wing Scott Goldfeder of Mechanicsburg; senior midfielder Cooper Smith of Carlisle (1 assist); senior center- midfielder Mason Kostick of Souderton (1 goal, 1 assist).

Key losses: Tommy DeGeyter (6 goals, 6 assists), Cole Catherman (W-L-T 10-4-1, 13 goals allowed, 0.95 goals-against average, 52 saves), Logan Stapleton (4 goals, 2 assists), Jack Lenosky (2 goals, 2 assists), Matt Neeson (1 assist).

Top newcomers: (all freshmen)Center-midfielder Silas Miller of Mechanicsburg, center-midfielder Pedro Nava of Reading, wing Diego Diaz of Abbottstown, center-back Will Watson of Collegeville, goalkeeper Justin Crismale of Glen Gardner, New Jersey, center/midfielder Logan Berfield of Walnutport.

Outlook: Last year, Penn College had its first double-digit win season since 2013 and earned its most all-conference selections in the NCAA era (since 2014-15) that included second-teamer Goldfeder. However, replacing the talent provided by UE first-teamer DeGeyter, UE third-teamers Stapleton, Lenosky and Neeson, along with starting goalie Catherman, will take time.

“I believe we will have one of the deepest teams I’ve ever coached at Penn College. We have a lot of new guys who have all played at a high level. The competition has been really strong, and a lot of guys are battling and trying to make an impact right away. There will be a lot of new faces who need to step up right away, and I think they will be up to the challenge. We lost seven starters from last year’s (UE quarterfinal match), but I believe we have a lot of talent on the team where we can get right back into the mix and competing in the United East Conference playoffs. The key to a successful season will be to not be result-driven. Every team wants to win; however, we need to establish our system of play early, and there will be challenges presented to us where we may drop a few matches. At the end of the day, we need to have the right lineups and style of play that works best for us ready to go Sept. 27 when we open up our United East account,” Mensch said.

Inside the UE: St. Mary’s (Md.) College is the two-time defending champion and is favored to repeat  (Penn College is ranked sixth), according to a preseason poll. Thirteen teams will vie for 10 playoff positions. First-round playoffs Oct. 28, quarterfinals Nov. 1, semifinals Nov. 5, championship Nov. 8. NCAA first round begins Nov. 14.

UPCOMING MATCHES/RECORD

Overall: 0-0

UE: 0-0

Friday, Aug. 29 — host Centenary University, 2 p.m.

Saturday, Aug. 30 — host King’s College, 4 p.m.

Tuesday, Sept. 2 — at Pitt-Greensburg, 4 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 6 — at Keuka College, 1 p.m.

For additional information, visit the Wildcats Athletics website.

For more about the United East, visit the conference website.