Alexis Koral and the Daemen women's soccer team look to continue the fine play that brought them four wins in their final six games of the 2015 season

Women's Soccer 8/25/2016 1:27:00 PM

Women's Soccer Picked Seventh In ECC Preseason Poll

2016 ECC WOMEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL
Rank	School	Pts.	2015 Record
1	Bridgeport (7)	75	21-2-1, 8-0-1 ECC
2	LIU Post (2)	71	14-4-3, 6-1-2 ECC
3	Mercy	63	8-7-3, 6-3-0 ECC
4	Roberts Wesleyan	55	12-5-3, 7-1-1 ECC
5	Molloy	34	6-8-2, 3-6-0 ECC
6	NYIT	31	5-11-1, 0-9-0 ECC
7	DAEMEN	29	7-10-1, 4-5-0 ECC
8	Queens	26	5-8-3, 3-4-2 ECC
9	St. Thomas Aquinas	21	5-11-0, 2-7-0 ECC
( ) - first place votes

AMHERST, N.Y. - With six of their top seven point-producers returning, the Daemen College women's soccer team has been picked to finish seventh in the East Coast Conference this season, according to the ECC preseason poll which was released today from conference headquarters in Central Islip, N.Y. following a vote of the league's nine head coaches.

Daemen sits in a logjam in the middle of the poll where just eight points separates fifth-place Molloy College (34 points) from eighth-place Queens College (26 points). The Wildcats were ranked behind Molloy and sixth-place N.Y. Institute of Technology (31 points), teams which Daemen defeated last season without surrendering a goal. Those wins came during the final three weeks of the 2015 season when Daemen came on strong, winning four of their final six games to finish in fifth place in the league standings. The Wildcats' hot close to the season came after being picked 10th in this poll to start the year. Head coach Dan Dolan's team will be looking to capitalize on the momentum created in that stretch this season.

"I thought we really played well late in the season last year, and there's no question we'll be looking to build off the success we had in that stretch. Hopefully we can carry that over and get off to a better start than we did last year," said Dolan who enters his eighth season on the Daemen bench. "The league is going to be tough again, I'm sure. We had three teams get NCAA tourney berths so the schedule will be a challenge. We've proven that we belong. Now, we have to gut-out some wins, and hopefully when the dust settles we'll achieve our goal of earning a conference tournament bid."

Teams in the upper half of the poll have clearly distinguished themselves, at least in the eyes of the voters. Fourth-place Roberts Wesleyan College, which advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in its history last season, earned 55 points to sit comfortably ahead of the middle of the pack.

Defending ECC champion University of Bridgeport picked up seven first-place votes to sit atop the poll with 75 points. The Purple Knights are coming off the most successful season in program history, winning the NCAA East Region Championship and advancing all the way to the NCAA Final Four. With nine starters returning, the Purple Knights will open the season ranked No. 4 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division II Preseason Poll.

The two first-place votes that escaped Bridgeport went to Long Island University Post who came in second in the voting with 71 points. The Pioneers went 14-4-3 last season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.

Mercy College (63 points), which edged Daemen by two games to earn the final ECC Tournament berth last season, rounds out the poll's top three.

In addition to announcing the league's preseason poll, senior midfielder Bella Mitrevski of Roberts Wesleyan was named the ECC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, and senior midfielder Nicola Worthington of Bridgeport was named the ECC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Both are the reigning ECC Players of the Year in their respective categories. Mitrevski ranked eighth in the country after producing 2.25 points per game (45 total points), while Worthington helped Bridgeport allow just 11 goals in 24 games last season.

Daemen, which set a team record with four ECC victories last season, boasts returners Stephanie Zurales (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South) and Alexis Koral (Williamsville, N.Y./William Smith College) who combined for 11 goals, seven assists and 29 points in 2015. Also back is starting goalkeeper Meaghan O'Leary (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) who made 87 saves in her rookie campaign and defensive stalwart Rose Carboni (Endicott, N.Y./Union Endicott) who earned third-team All-ECC honors last season.

Daemen opens its 2016 season with four consecutive road games, beginning with a September 1 battle for lakefront supremacy with Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio. ECC play gets underway on September 16 when the Wildcats host Mercy. The ECC Tournament will feature the top four teams in the final regular season standings with the overall No. 1 seed hosting both semifinal games on November 2, and the tournament finals on November 4.

For breaking news and continuing coverage of the Daemen women's soccer team, follow @DaemenAthletics and @DaemenWSOC on Twitter.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#10 Rose Carboni: D; 5' 5"; Junior

#18 Alexis Koral: M; 5' 5"; Redshirt Senior

#1 Meaghan O'Leary: GK; 5' 6"; Sophomore

#3 Stephanie Zurales: F; 5' 4"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#10 Rose Carboni
: 5' 5"; Junior
: D

#18 Alexis Koral
: 5' 5"; Redshirt Senior
: M

#1 Meaghan O'Leary
: 5' 6"; Sophomore
: GK

#3 Stephanie Zurales
: 5' 4"; Junior
: F