WINTHROP, Mass. – Johnson & Wales University has been selected atop the 2015 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Soccer Preseason Poll, it was announced by the league office on Monday morning. The Wildcats, who have claimed the last two GNAC Championships, received six first-place votes and 96 points in the poll, as voted upon by the league's 10 head coaches.
Saint Joseph's, led by second-year Head Coach Adrian Dubois, has been forecasted to finish in a tie for sixth as the Monks and the Saints of Emmanuel College both received 47 points in the coaches' poll. Last fall, St. Joe's finished the year with a 5-15 overall record, including a 3-6 mark in GNAC play, en route to earning the #8 seed in the 2014 GNAC Men's Soccer Tournament.
JWU (15-6-1, 8-1 GNAC) claimed the 2014 GNAC regular-season title and tournament championship en route to its NCAA Tournament appearance, where the Wildcats fell to Franklin & Marshall, 1-0, in the first round.
Norwich University (13-7-2, 5-2-2 GNAC) finished second in the poll with 89 points and a pair of first-place tallies, The Cadets advanced to the GNAC Championship last season at JWU before falling to Lesley in the ECAC New England Quarterfinals.
Albertus Magnus College (11-7-2, 5-3-1 GNAC) placed third in the preseason ledger with 77 points and one first-place nod. The Falcons opened up last year's campaign with a 7-1-2 mark before falling in the GNAC Tournament Quarterfinals.
Lasell College (9-9-1, 5-3-1 GNAC) and Mount Ida College (9-9-1, 4-4-1 GNAC) rounded out the top-five with 66 and 57 points, respectively, in the voting.
Emmanuel College (5-11-2, 4-5 GNAC) and Saint Joseph's College of Maine (5-15, 3-6 GNAC) shared the sixth position with 47 points apiece, while Emmanuel also received one first-place vote. Suffolk University (5-10-2, 3-4-2 GNAC) finished eighth with 25 points, Rivier University (1-14-1, 1-7-1 GNAC) was ninth with 20 points and Anna Maria College (4-12, 3-6 GNAC) placed 10th with 16 points to round out the poll.
Regular-season action begins Tuesday, September 1, with seven GNAC programs kicking off their 2015 schedules. Conference-play gets underway on Saturday, Sept. 12, with the GNAC Tournament slated to begin on Sunday, November 1.
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
2015 GNAC Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Johnson & Wales (6) - 96
2. Norwich (2) - 89
3. Albertus Magnus (1) - 77
4. Lasell - 66
5. Mount Ida - 57
T6. Emmanuel (1) - 47
T6. Saint Joseph's of Maine - 47
8. Suffolk - 35
9. Rivier - 20
10. Anna Maria - 16
COURTESY OF GNAC SPORTS INFORMATION
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
