Honolulu (8/29/10) – The HPU men's soccer season opener is less than one week away, as the Sea Warriors play host to Cal State University-East Bay. The match is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff at the Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium.

“It's going to be a good test for us,” said first-year HPU Coach Chris Fisher. “We have a lot of new players and, with a new coach at East Bay, they are sure to be improved from last season.” HPU will field 11 newcomers on Saturday, four of whom are expected to start.

Junior Chance Bukoski (Kapaa, HI, Kapaa High School)and sophomore Kainoa Kahui (Honolulu, HI) return as HPU's 2009 All-Conference players, guiding the Sea Warriors to a 13-2-2 record and a second-place PacWest finish. Also rejoining HPU after redshirting a season ago is junior Linus Ekden (Lidkoping, Sweden). Ekden was the PacWest Newcomer of the Year in 2007, and is now co-captaining the team with senior Nathan Scott (Phoenix).

“It's been a work in progress this preseason,” added Fisher, “but we've made steady improvements over the last two weeks and I expect us to be ready come Saturday.”