St. John’s men’s soccer Head Coach Dr. David Masur announced the program’s 16-game regular season slate on Thursday.
All Red Storm home games are slated for 7 p.m. with the only exception being Senior Day against Creighton on Oct. 28, a contest slated for 2 p.m. Broadcast destinations for the fall slate will be announced at a later date.
St. John’s opponents for the 2023 campaign combined for four NCAA Division I Tournament nods last season, including a College Cup appearance by 2022 Big East Champion Creighton. Georgetown and Seton Hall also found themselves competing for a national championship, as did Rutgers, reigning Big Ten Champions. The BIG EAST added perennial soccer powerhouse Akron to the conference, a team that brings 35 NCAA Tournament appearances and five trips to the College Cup, including a National Championship in 2010.
The league also announced the implementation of six-team divisions with each squad playing its five divisional members once to go with three crossover matches each year, transitioning from a 10-match conference slate to eight. St. John’s will compete against UConn, Georgetown, Providence, Seton Hall and Villanova in the East Division. Eight teams are now eligible to crack the Big East Tournament field with all eyes aimed at traveling to Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md., for the final two rounds of the championship slate.
The Red Storm will take on three opponents in exhibition contests prior to its regular season debut, facing FDU (Aug. 11) and Iona (Aug. 14) at Belson Stadium before a final tuneup on the road at premier Big Ten opponent Maryland (Aug. 18).
The Johnnies open the 2023 campaign with back-to-back road meetings, featuring an Aug. 24 showdown at Lehigh before squaring off with the Scarlet Knights in Piscataway, N.J., on Aug. 28. The Red Storm will meet Rutgers for the 26th time in program history, holding a 12-6-7 all-time record and winning six of its last seven meetings. St. John’s edged out the Scarlet Knights with a 2-1 victory in its last meeting on Oct. 17, 2012, scoring a pair of goals just 4:18 apart in the first half and did not allow a shot on goal until the 58th minute of action.
The Johnnies will make their Belson Stadium debut on Sept. 1, when Monmouth comes to Queens, looking to make it three-straight wins against the Hawks at home. Three days later, St. John’s will visit its second Big Ten foe of the season on Sept. 4, going to State College, Pa., to face Penn State.
Following consecutive home games against Saint Peter’s on Sept. 8 and Temple on Sept. 11, BIG EAST play will kick off at UConn on Sept. 15. Last season’s meeting with the Huskies ended in a 0-0 tie on Senior Day despite seeing a flurry of chances in the late stages of the game. St. John’s holds a 3-0-2 record over UConn in its last five matches while boasting a 17-14-7 record since its first meeting in 1981.
The Red Storm will head to Princeton on Sept. 19, looking to extend its winning streak to four after taking a 2-1 contest at Belson last season and a 1-0 victory in the 2021 NCAA Tournament’s opening round. Seven of the last eight matches against the Tigers have been decided by one goal or less while the Johnnies boast an 8-4-3 mark all-time.
Akron, the newest member of BIG EAST men’s soccer, will make its way to Queens on Sept. 23 for the first time in over a decade. In its last meeting on Sept. 2, 2013, with both teams ranked in the United Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 at the time, No. 23 St. John’s secured a 2-1 double-overtime victory over fifth-ranked Akron on a Jimmy Mulligan penalty kick in the 106th minute, which was taken after a foul was drawn by current St. Louis City SC defender Tim Parker in the box. The Red Storm and Zips will meet for just the fifth time since 1992 with St. John’s holding a 2-0-2 series record.
After visiting Marquette on Sept. 29, the Johnnies will wrap up non-conference play by welcoming Columbia to Belson on Oct. 3. Following a meeting with its Ivy League foe, St. John’s will square off with Providence in Queens on Oct. 7. Both teams played to a 1-1 draw last season, marking the first tie between the two programs since Oct. 14, 2001.
A week later, the Red Storm will head down to Villanova for an Oct. 14 matchup at Higgins Soccer Complex. In their last appearance in Pennsylvania, the Johnnies edged the Wildcats, 1-0, in overtime on Oct. 9, 2021. Current St. Louis City SC defender Lucas Bartlett buried a penalty kick 84 seconds into the extra period to lift the Red Storm over Villanova.
Four days after its date with the Wildcats, St. John’s and Seton Hall will face off for the 46th time in program history with the Johnnies boasting a 25-15-5 record since their inaugural matchup in 1979.
The Red Storm will have a tough test in its final two games of the season, beginning with an Oct. 21 match in the Nation’s Capital against Georgetown. St. John’s stunned the Hoyas at Belson Stadium last season with a 3-1 victory as Nigel Griffith, Brandon Knapp and Antek Sienkiel found the back of the net to snap a four-game skid.
After a week off, the Johnnies will close out the regular season against defending BIG EAST Champion and College Cup semifinalist Creighton on Oct. 28. The Red Storm battled to a 1-1 draw in its lone matchup in 2022, moving to 3-1-1 against the Bluejays in its last five meetings and 5-5-3 mark overall.
Masur will enter his 37th season as a collegiate head coach and his 33rd with the Red Storm, looking to guide his team to the program’s Big East-leading 10th conference title this season.
2023 St. John’s Men’s Soccer Fall Schedule
Date Opponent Location Time
Aug. 11 FDU (Exb.) Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Aug. 14 IONA (Exb.) Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Aug. 18 at Maryland (Exb.) College Park, Md. (Ludwig Field) 5 p.m.
Aug. 24 at Lehigh Bethleham, Pa. (Ulrich Sports Complex) 7 p.m.
Aug. 28 at Rutgers Piscataway, N.J. (Yurcak Field) 7 p.m.
Sept. 1 Monmouth Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 4 at Penn State University Park, Pa. (Jeffrey Field) 5 p.m.
Sept. 8 Saint Peter’s Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 11 Temple Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 15 at UConn * Storrs, Conn. (Joseph J. Morrone Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 19 at Princeton Princeton, N.J. (Sherrerd Field) 7 p.m.
Sept. 23 Akron * Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 29 at Marquette * Milwaukee, Wis. (Valley Fields) 7 p.m.
Oct. 3 Columbia Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Oct. 7 Providence * Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Oct. 14 at Villanova * Villanova, Pa. (Higgins Soccer Complex) 1 p.m.
Oct. 18 Seton Hall * Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 7 p.m.
Oct. 21 at Georgetown * Washington D.C. (Shaw Field) 1 p.m.
Oct. 28 Creighton * Queens, N.Y. (Belson Stadium) 2 p.m.
* denotes BIG EAST Game
ITALIC denotes preseason game
BOLD denotes home game
All game times are subject to change
