2017 Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer Preview and Players to Watch

8/16/2017 12:00:00 AM

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The 2017 Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer preseason poll has been released. Limestone College will enter the season as the favorite to win the Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer Championship, according to Conference Carolinas coaches.

1. Limestone College: The Saints, who earned votes in the 2017 preseason United Coaches national poll, earned 90 points from Conference coaches on nine first-place votes.

Limestone punched a ticket to the 2016 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship last season after going 16-4 in 2016 with a 9-1 Conference Carolinas mark. The Saints would beat Lander in the first round before losing to eventual national champion Wingate in the second round.

The Saints are a traditional power, so even with a new crop of talent in 2017 they will be a favorite to get back to the conference championship match. All-Conference Carolinas defender Miguel Anton will likely be a big reason if they do.

Players to Watch:

*Miguel Anton (Jr.) - Defender
Ruairi Croskery (So.) - Forward
Luca Thuyl (So.) - Midfielder

2. Southern Wesleyan University: The Warriors enter their second season as full Conference Carolinas members with a projected second-place finish. SWU racked up 69 points from Conference coaches and will look to continue to build in 2017 on the solid foundation laid a season ago.

Players to Watch:

Sebastian Castro (Sr.) - Midfielder
Segio Tapia (Sr.) - Midfielder
Miguel Uribe (Jr.) - Goalkeeper

3. Erskine College: The Fleet will enter the year projected third after earning 62 points. Erskine finished 2016 third in the Conference Carolinas standings with a 6-4 record, while turning in an 8-9 overall record.

Daniel Jonna, an All-Conference Carolinas performer as a freshman, returns for his sophomore campaign and should be a catalyst behind Erskine's 2017 success.

Players to Watch:

Edoardo Gullino (Sr.) - Defender
*Daniel Jonna (So.) - Midfielder
Kacper Zac (So.) - Midfielder

4. Chowan University: The Hawks enter their first year as associate members in Conference Carolinas with style, nabbing 57 points and one first-place vote. Chowan posted a 9-6-2 record in 2016.

While they are new to the conference, Lee Wattam and Terrell Williamson should be fun to watch on offense this season. Williamson posted 25 points (12g, 1a) and Wattam 22 points (9g, 4a) in 2016, which could land them on an all-conference team if they can duplicate those numbers in 2017.

Players to Watch:

Jamie McNicholas (Jr.) - Defender
Lee Wattam (Jr.) - Forward
Terell Williamson (Sr.) - Forward

T5. University of Mount Olive: The Trojans captured 54 points and are tied with the Tornado of King in fifth-place to open 2017. Mount Olive also finished tied for fourth with King in the Conference Carolinas standing last season by going 5-5. The Trojans went 7-8-1 overall in 2016.

Players to Watch:

Grant Conybear (Sr.) - Midfielder
Anton Lund (Sr.) - Defender
Trevor Knight (Sr.) - Forward

T5. King University: The Tornado collected 54 points and are tied with the Trojans of Mount Olive in fifth-place to open 2017. King also finished tied for fourth with Mount Olive in the Conference Carolinas standing last season by going 5-5. The Tornado turned in a 7-11 overall mark in 2016.

Another dynamic offensive duo in Conference Carolinas this season could be All-Conference Carolinas selection Faber Bickerstaffe and teammate Luis Calderon. Calderon registered 12 points (4g, 4a) in 2016, while Bickerstaffe tallied 10 points (3g, 4a).

Players to Watch:

Ben Allan (Sr.) - Midfielder
*Faber Bickerstaffe (Sr.) - Midfielder
Luis Calderon (Sr.) - Midfielder

7. Lees-McRae College: The Bobcats narrowly enter the season ranked seventh, as they tallied 53 points from Conference coaches. Lees-McRae finished tied for sixth in the Conference standings last year with its 4-6 record while going 5-14 overall.

With three All-Conference Carolinas performers returning in Thomas Deeley, James Morgan and Pol Vassart to go along with all-tournament pick Nathan Watt, the Bobcats could easily surpass their preseason ranking.

Players to Watch:

*Thomas Deeley (Sr.) - Midfielder
*James Morgan (Sr.) - Defender
*Pol Vassart (Jr.) - Forward

8. Belmont Abbey College: The Crusaders are eighth entering 2017 with 46 points. Belmont Abbey finished tied for sixth in the Conference standings last year with its 4-6 record while going 6-8-2 overall.

Mark Trompeter, who had a breakout season in 2016 netting five goals and an assist for 11 points, will headline the 2017 Belmont Abbey roster.

Players to Watch:

Patrick Kibler (Sr.) - Defender
Gianni Serio (So.) - Forward
Mark Trompeter (Jr.) - Midfielder

9. Barton College: The Bulldogs collected 33 points from Conference coaches to enter the season ranked ninth. Barton went 6-11-1 overall in 2016, which included a 4-5-1 conference record to finish fifth in the standings.

Jens Madsen Hordvik, a 2016 All-Conference Carolinas selection, is one of the top goalies in Conference Carolinas and will be a major factor in Barton's success in 2017.

Players to Watch:

Tolly Beatson (Jr.) - Midfielder
Tyler Dew (Sr.) - Defender
*Jens Madsen Hordvik (Sr.) - Goalkeeper

10. North Greenville University: The Crusaders close out the 2017 poll with 22 points. North Greenville went 1-8-1 in Conference Carolinas action and 2-9-1 overall in 2016.

Players to Watch:

Vitor Tarpinian (Jr.) - Forward

*denotes 2016 All-Conference Carolinas selection

2017 Men's Soccer Preseason Poll

School (first-place votes)	Total
1. Limestone (9)	90
2. Southern Wesleyan	69
3. Erskine	62
4. Chowan (1)	57
T5. Mount Olive	54
T5. King	54
7. Lees-McRae	53
8. Belmont Abbey	46
9. Barton	33
10. North Greenville	22

Conference Carolinas is a NCAA Division II athletics conference made up of 11 teams from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. These institutions consist of: Barton College, Belmont Abbey College, Converse College, Emmanuel College, Erskine College, King University, Lees-McRae College, Limestone College, University of Mount Olive, North Greenville University, and Southern Wesleyan University. Emmanuel College is currently completing the NCAA Membership Process and will be fully competing in league championships in the near future.