Cole Beale returns for his senior season with 19 points in 45 career games to date

Men's Soccer 8/26/2016 1:32:00 PM

Men's Soccer Picked Tenth In ECC Preseason Poll

2016 ECC MEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL
Rank	School	Pts.	2015 Record
1	LIU Post (9)	99	15-3-3, 9-1-0 ECC
2	NYIT	86	12-6-1, 7-3-0 ECC
3	Molloy (1)	69	10-6-0, 5-5-0 ECC
4	Bridgeport	65	10-7-0, 6-4-0 ECC
5	Queens	55	7-10-0, 7-3-0 ECC
6	Roberts Wesleyan	52	10-7-2, 5-4-1 ECC
7	Mercy	43	6-9-1, 4-5-1 ECC
8	District of Columbia	40	5-11-1, 3-7-0 ECC
9	St. Thomas Aquinas	31	5-11-1, 2-7-1 ECC
10	DAEMEN	10	2-13-1, 0-9-1 ECC
( ) - first place votes

AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen College men's soccer team has been picked to finish 10th 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 10 head coaches.

Daemen earned 10 points in the poll after going 2-13-1 overall and 0-9-1 in the league last season. Approaching each game with an underdog mentality is something the Wildcats will put to use this season, according to first-year head coach Bobby McColl.

"As a coach, I've never read too much into preseason polls," said McColl. "We know every game in this conference is tough, but we fully believe we can play with anyone if we fulfill our potential. The underdog tag is something we will embrace and use as motivation throughout the season."

Long Island University Post, which has won three of the last four ECC titles including last season, was voted as the favorite again this season. The Pioneers picked up nine first-place votes and finished with 99 points in the voting. They'll return eight players who started at least 11 games in 2015, and they also begin the season ranked No. 9 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division II Preseason Poll.

N.Y. Institute of Technology (86 points), Molloy College (69 points) and University of Bridgeport (65 points) round out the teams picked to finish in qualifying positions for the ECC Tournament. All three won at least 10 games last season. The second-place Bears of NYIT advanced to the ECC title game last year - their fourth such appearance in the last five years.

Queens College picked up 55 points to sit fifth in the poll. The Knights were ECC Tournament participants last season after winning seven of their 10 regular season ECC contests.

Roberts Wesleyan College (52 points), Mercy College (43 points), University of the District of Columbia (40 points) and Saint Thomas Aquinas College (31 points) filled poll spots six through nine ahead of Daemen.

In addition to announcing the league's preseason poll, senior forward Kyle Poetzsch of Molloy was named the ECC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, while LIU Post's David Arvidsson, a junior back, was named the league's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Poetzsch was a first-team All-ECC and first-team All-Region selection last season after tying for the league lead in goals with 13. Likewise, Arvidsson earned All-ECC and All-Region honors, as well as being an NSCAA third-team All-American pick, after anchoring a Pioneer defense that allowed just 24 goals in 21 games.

Daemen returns three of its top point-producers, including seniors Alex Reid (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport) and Cole Beale (Hamburg, N.Y.). Reid tied for the team lead with 10 points last season and has posted 13 goals, seven assists and 33 points in 47 career games. Beale led the team with five goals and 11 points during the 2014 season, and has 19 points in 45 games played in his career. Also back is sophomore Kyle Tracy (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) who posted 10 points with a team-best five goals during his rookie campaign last year. Starting goalkeeper Justin Figler (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) also returns after playing every second of every game between the pipes as a true freshman, finishing second among all ECC net-minders with 88 saves.

Daemen opens its 2016 season with an exhibition friendly versus Division I University at Buffalo this evening at UB Stadium. The regular season officially kicks off when the Wildcats play host to Lock Haven University on September 1, and ECC play gets underway on September 16 with Mercy making the trek to Amherst. 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 3, and the tournament finals on November 5.

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

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Players Mentioned

#10 Cole Beale: M/F; 5' 10"; Senior

#1 Justin Figler: GK; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#22 Alex Reid: M/F; 5' 7"; Senior

#19 Kyle Tracy: M; 5' 10"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#10 Cole Beale
: 5' 10"; Senior
: M/F

#1 Justin Figler
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: GK

#22 Alex Reid
: 5' 7"; Senior
: M/F

#19 Kyle Tracy
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: M