CONCORD, N.H. - NHTI Men's Soccer opens the 2026 regular season Tuesday evening when the Lynx travel to Haverhill, Mass. to take on Northern Essex Community College. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Whittier Tech High School.

Tuesday will mark the first regular-season match at NHTI for interim head coach Jarrod Smith (Watertown, N.Y.) who was named to the position in August. Smith joined the Lynx after serving as interim head coach and first assistant coach at Clark University from 2024 to 2025. He previously served as an assistant coach at Suffolk University from 2022 to 2024 and as the first assistant and goalkeeper coach for the Wellesley College women's soccer program from 2019 to 2023.

Before beginning his coaching career, Smith was a two-sport student-athlete at Newbury College, competing for four years as a goalkeeper in soccer and as a sprinter and jumper in track and field. He helped lead Newbury to the 2018 NECC Soccer Championship and was part of the school's 2017 and 2018 NECC Outdoor Track and Field championship teams.

NHTI enters Tuesday following one preseason scrimmage, a 4-0 loss versus New England College on August 26. The match was played in a modified three-period format consisting of 30-, 30-, and 20-minute periods. The Lynx were originally scheduled to open the regular season Saturday, September 5 at Bristol Community College, but the match was canceled.

The Lynx return several key contributors from last season, led by Delvaughn Daley (Randolph Mass.), who paced NHTI with seven goals, two assists, and 16 points in nine games. He led the team in each of those statistics, while his 37 shots ranked second and his 21 shots on goal tied him for second.

Conner Newcomb (Lebanon, N.H.) also returns after starting all 10 matches a season ago. Newcomb scored three goals for six points, with his three goals tied for second on the team and his six points ranking third. He converted three of his 12 shot attempts for a .250 shooting percentage.

NHTI also brings back Dominick Sapounas (Pembroke, N.H.) and Ben Taylor (Haverhill, N.H.), who each started all 10 games last season and finished with one goal and one assist for three points. Taylor logged 270 minutes, tied for the team lead, while Sapounas played 265 minutes. Taylor recorded 15 shots, including 10 on goal, while Sapounas finished with 12 shots and six attempts on target.

Tuesday's matchup begins a new chapter for an NHTI side featuring both an experienced returning core and a new head coach on the sideline. Kickoff between the Lynx and Knights is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Whittier Tech High School in Haverhill, Mass.