VICTORIA – Like every year, a new crop of players will don the University of Victoria Vikes home white jersey for the first time on Friday night when they host the Trinity Western University Spartans at Centennial Stadium. For many, it's a thrill they have been waiting a long time for.

It's not just the freshmen that have been counting down the days until the home opener. For two returning players, it's felt like a lifetime since the last time they tossed on the Vikes uniform. Both Isaac Koch and Matt Hobson will play their first game after missing the entire 2017-18 season with lower-body injuries.

"Last year was super tough. It was a really big injury and it was just as mentally draining as it was physically draining. Sitting on the sidelines and watching your team play without you is super tough," said Koch, a history major.

A few weeks after Koch tore his left anterior cruciate ligament, Hobson injured his meniscus three games into the Vikes' preseason schedule.

"Isaac brings steadiness to our lineup and a veteran presence. We definitely missed having him out there last year and I think it showed," said Bruce Wilson, who is entering his 32nd season as head coach of the Vikes. "With Isaac being older than Matt, we decided to make him one of our captains this year.

"Matt was a young player that we were excited to get into our system. To see him get injured right before the season was unfortunate. We are glad they are both healthy and ready to start the season with us."

Returning two talented players with fresh legs boosts this year's roster could possibly take some of the pressure off Matteo Ventura, who burst onto the scene last year as a freshman and led the Vikes in all offensive categories. Ventura was a point-per-game player in games he started, as he finished with 10 goals and three assists in 13 starts.

Ian Whibley was second on the team with five goals and three assists in 16 games. The Coombs, BC product has returned and is ready for his third season with the Vikes.

A young squad last season, the Vikes only saw their former captain of two years, Mackenzie Rigg, graduate the program. Rigg has stayed with the program and will help out as team manager this season.

"We saw a lot of our first year players get battle-tested last year, which can be a pretty rare thing at the U SPORTS level. Now in their second year, we have high expectations for them because they know what the league demands," said Evan Libke, the other Vikes captain this season.

Now one year older, aging sophomores such as Sylvain Taghaoussi, Griffin Fougner-Rukus, Kiyoshi Croke and Nick Park, will look to bounce back from the program's lowest win total since the 2016-17 campaign.

To do so, they will need a strong season from netminder Jas Lally, one of two fifth-year players on the roster. Lally carried the load last year with 11 starts, where he earned a 2-6-3 record with one shutout. Second-year keeper Harjot Nijjar of Surrey, BC, is back in the fold. He picked up one more victory than Lally and two shutouts last season in five games. Joining that tandem in net is Jared Perras of Campbell River, BC.

Niko Cristante is the other graduating player this season. In his first season with the Vikes last year, Cristante netted a pair of goals, highlighted by a snipe in his first game as a Vike against the Spartans.

Other names to keep an eye on this season are Chris Merriman, Jose Sagaste and Sergio Duran.

Merriman won't be ready for the start of the season, but he spent his past three seasons with the Vancouver Island University Mariners, where he won the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association men's soccer national championship last season. Sagaste and Duran come from the Reynolds Secondary soccer program and spent the summer training with the Victoria Highlanders of the Pacific Coast Soccer League.

If everything breaks right for the Vikes this season, Wilson sees no reason why they shouldn't be competing for a playoff spot once again.

"We play some really tough teams in our conference, but making the Canada West playoffs is always the plan," said Wilson.

The Canada West pre-season coach's poll lists the Vikes eighth, while the UBC Thunderbirds topped the polls. All Pacific Division teams and select Prairie Division teams will webcast games live at canadawest.tv. To purchase your 2018 Canada West TV pass, click here. Tickets for Vikes home games can be purchased in person or online at govikesgo.com/tickets.

2019 CW MSOC PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Team - Points (First-place votes)

1. UBC Thunderbirds - 144 (12)
2. Alberta Golden Bears - 126
3. Trinity Western Spartans - 124 (1)
4. Thompson Rivers WolfPack - 100
5. Saskatchewan Huskies - 96
6. Calgary Dinos - 80
7. Fraser Valley Cascades - 77
8. Victoria Vikes - 64
9. Mount Royal Cougars - 57
10. UNBC Timberwolves - 56
11. UBCO Heat - 43
12. MacEwan Griffins - 32
13. Lethbridge Pronghorns - 15

NOTE: Coaches ranked all opponents 1-12. First-place votes worth 12 pts., second-place worth 11 pts. etc. 

VICTORIA VIKES
2018 CW record: 5-8-3, 6th Pacific
2017 post-season record (CW and U SPORTS combined): N/A
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 2009 / 13
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 2011 / 5
 
2018 CW regular season leaders:
Goals: 10 – Matteo Ventura F
Assists: 3 – Matteo Ventura F, Will Adams M & Ian Whibley F
Points: 13 – Matteo Ventura F
Wins: 3 – Harjot Nijjar GK
Shutouts: 2 – Harjot Nijjar GK

Key additions (name / position / eligibility / hometown / last team):
Matt Hobson / 1st / Mid / Surrey, B.C. / Surrey United
Sergio Duran / 1st / Mid / Victoria, B.C. / Castaways U21
Isaac Koch / Mid / 4th / West Kelowna / Victoria Highlanders

Key losses (name / position / hometown / years with program): 
Mackenzie Rigg / Def / Kelowna, B.C. / Five