The University of Connecticut men’s soccer team will return to Storrs after launching their Big East schedule last Saturday against Butler.

Opening Big East did not follow UConn’s path. The Huskies (3-2-0, 0-1-0 Big East) lost another close game 1-0, this time to the Butler Bulldogs despite several chances to tie the game in a second half agressive.

Despite this heartbreaking result, the Huskies’ offense has shown its might in five games this season. Freshman Okem Chime has lived up to his potential, leading the team with three goals, and his 11 shots on goal are the team’s second. The team leader is the second year stallion Moussa Wade. Although he doesn’t have any goals yet, he had a remarkable number of chances and had three assists along the way.

Then there is Dominic Laws senior and Giancarlo Vaccaro in second year. The two have scored their first goal of the season against Yale and will look to dominate against another school in the Ivy League. Laws’ 11 shots are tied for second with Chime while Vaccaro only has four shots but tried to make the most of them.

Speaking of dominance against an Ivy League institution, the midfielder will be led by a sophomore who knows how to handle the clever gameplay he brings. At their head is Jayden Reid, a member of the Big East honor roll, who scored one goal and three assists against Yale last Tuesday. Reid was able to add to his shots tally last time around and now has up to seven shots this season, making him a reliable option to try to find the net.

Reid continues to plead his case to be a starter, but right now the midfield group is loaded. It starts with senior Felix Meltzer, whose two shots on Saturday were his first of the season, rookie Mateo Leveque, who has a goal and an assist to support his strong start, and junior captain Ahdan Tait. Together they create great games that have the potential to be highlights day in and day out.

In the backfield is rookie Bjorn Nikolajewski, who scored the only shot on goal in Saturday’s loss, rookie Vactor Guillaume and sophomore Thomas Decottignies. Together, the three will look to continue their physical defense style to create more scoring opportunities up front.

The Huskies have relied on goaltender Jahmali Waite throughout the season. Despite suffering the loss on Saturday, Waite has looked amazing in five games this season. He allowed two goals and made 12 saves with three clean sheets to go with them. He continues to make a strong case as one of the best goaltenders in the Grand Est and is one of the main reasons the Huskies have kept their opponents off the board.

Then there is the University of Dartmouth in New Hampshire. The Big Green (0-3-0) enters Storrs after a sudden loss.

They last played on Wednesday September 15, losing 2-1 to UMass Minutemen. The start of the season has not been easy for the Big Green, who will play their fourth straight road game.

They too have great scoring chances, and it all starts with their three goalscorers, first-year midfielder Ben Jenkins, junior midfielder Trevor Gee and senior defenseman Matt Pickering. While their group of attackers don’t have any goals, that shouldn’t rule this team out as it’s still unclear what their midfielder or defense can bring to the table.

Jenkins scored his first career goal against UMass and knows how to take the shots he needs and find the back of the net. Gee is another name to watch in a very powerful midfielder. Other key playmakers include Year One Kristian Feed, Senior Mothibi Penn-Kekana, and Year Two Tom Collins, as they all have the potential to cheat you with incredible moves. It will be a real test for the midfielders, and the winner of this game will have a better midfield overall.

But let’s not forget the attack position. Junior Clayton Molter is tied for first on the team in shots with Jenkins (five) and is looking to score his first goal of the season. He and junior David Alino will be looking to do their best to find the back of the net. If they can get some help from the midfielder, then there’s a chance they will.

Defensively, senior Jordan Bailon has one of two assists this season (the other belongs to Jenkins) and has the experience to lead the backfield like a professor teaching a conference. He is joined by sophomore Daniel Coons, freshman Louis Weisdorf, senior Garrett Scott and senior Ohad Yahalom. This defense will seek to set up a clinic against a hot Husky offense.

Finally, there’s senior goalie Alex Budnik, who has played two games and allowed five goals while making 11 saves so far. Budnik will have to deal with two key factors throughout this game in goal patrol and attacking offense and will look to silence both in a 90-minute game.

Dartmouth is averaging one goal per game, compared to UConn’s 1.60 GPG. Shots per game lean heavily in UConn’s favor, at 14.4 shots per game versus 9.3 for Dartmouth. Look for the Huskies to use the number of shots to their advantage as they try to find multiple ways to get the ball to the back of the net.

The Huskies lead the all-time series 26-15-4, and they will look for their 27th victory over Dartmouth at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium at 7 pm tonight. The game can be accessed on FloSports, with live stats provided by Statbroadcast.