Coker Tops Men's Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll
HIGH POINT, N.C.- The Coker College men’s
soccer team has been voted as the preseason favorite for the 2012
season. As the defending Conference Carolinas regular season and
tournament champions, the Cobras are a preseason No. 18 pick in the
National Collegiate Soccer Coaches Association (NSCAA) poll.
"It's very pleasing to be recognized by our fellow conference
teams,” said head coach Paul Leese. “Conference
Carolinas is incredibly strong in men's soccer, so to be voted No.
1 is a tremendous achievement. I am particularly pleased for our
current seniors who have transformed the program during their time
here. We know it will be tough to defend our conference title but
we hope to continue developing as a team and we want to make Coker
and the Hartsville community proud."
The Cobras are returning 11 veterans from an 18-3 squad that
logged a 10-1 record in league play. Returners include last
season’s conference player of the year, Carlos Recinos as
well as five all-conference performers; James Sweeney, Atticus Lum,
Fernando Bedoya, Rommel Fondin and Stephen Scrivens.
Recinos led the attack on the season with 13 goals and 10
assists to combine for a team high 36 points. Fondin added to
the attack power with four goals and five assists, while Scrivens
was right behind tallying three goals and three assists. Sweeney
was a brick wall for the Cobras only allowing 13 goals on the
season and collecting an 81.7 save percentage. Lum and Bedoya
gave the opposing offenses’ little chance to score only
allowing 71 shots on goal for the
year.
To add more fuel to the fire, the Navy and Yellow added seven
new recruits to their 2012-13 lineup that includes three defenders
and four offensive specialists.
The Limestone College men’s soccer team
enters the 2012 campaign with one of the most potent offenses in
the nation, returning 55 out of 58 goals scored from a season ago.
The Saints, who led the nation with 3.05 goals per game in 2011,
finished 12-7 overall and 7-4 in league play last year while
advancing to the Conference Carolinas Tournament Semifinals for the
third time in six years.
From front to back, the Blue and Gold will feature a
well-balanced mixture of veteran talent and leadership, but will
count on several new additions to make an immediate impact. The
newcomers will need to adjust quickly as Limestone will play a
daunting non-conference schedule in addition to an always
challenging slate of conference matches.
The Lees-McRae College men’s soccer is
primed to take a big leap in Lee Squires’ second year at the
helm, returning 12 lettermen from the 2011 squad, which finished
runner-up in the race for both the conference regular season and
tournament titles en route to the program’s fifth straight
NCAA Tournament appearance. The Bobcats return a veteran corps led
by senior John Williams, and juniors Thomas Rusling and James
Galvani.
Coach Squires and the Bobcats posted a sterling 15-6-1 record
last season, including a 9-2 mark in league play, as Galvani and
Smith combined for 17 goals, 14 assists, and 46 points to lead the
LMC attack. Rusling will be called up to anchor the Bobcat defense
once again, carrying a career goals against average of 1.07 into
the season, which ranks third all-time in program history.
"I think we have a point to prove to people this year,”
said Squires. “We want to get back to being top of the
conference and region at the end of the season, and we are working
very hard to achieve this. It's a tough league, and there are no
easy games, so we have to be prepared for each and every game."
Barton & Erskine finished tied for fourth
in the poll, followed by Queens, King, North Greenville,
Belmont Abbey, Mount Olive and Pfeiffer
respectively rounding-out the poll standings.
Conference
Carolinas Men’s Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll
(# of First Place Votes in Parenthesis)
1.
Coker.................................................................................
(9) 99
2.
Limestone..........................................................................
(2) 90
3.
Lees-McRae.......................................................................
79
T-4. Erskine.............................................................................
58
T-4. Barton.............................................................................. 58
5. Queens............................................................................. 56
6. King................................................................................... 44
7. North
Greenville................................................................
39
8. Belmont
Abbey................................................................... 34
9. Mount
Olive........................................................................ 27
10.
Pfeiffer................................................................................ 21