St. Lawrence Men's Soccer co-captain Dan Hunt and the Saints were voted first in the 2014 Liberty League preseason poll.
St. Lawrence (17-3-2, 7-1 LL), on the heels of winning its third Liberty League title in four years and making its fourth NCAA Division III Men’s Soccer Tournament since 2004 was selected first in the preseason poll. The vote was conducted by the league’s nine head coaches.
St. Lawrence led the poll with 62.5 points and six and a half first place votes. Skidmore came in second with 53.5 points. Union (43) edged out Hobart (41) for third. RPI (40), Vassar (36), RIT (25), Clarkson (15) and Bard (8) rounded out the rest of the poll.
The Saints lost only two players from last season, including the 2013 Liberty League Offensive Player of the Year, Andrew Bednarsky. Bednarsky led the Saints in scoring and was among conference leaders last season with nine goals and nine assists for 26 points. This season, St. Lawrence welcomes back three of their top four scorers from 2013, senior Mark Provost (6 G, 9 A, 21 Pts.) along with a pair of juniors Morgan Smith (5 G, 7, A, 17 Pts.) and Dan Hunt (7 G, 2 A, 16 Pts).
In the backfield, the 2013 Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year, goalkeeper Aaron Costello returns in net to lead a defensive unit that was second in the nation in shutouts (16) and goals against average (.44) last year.
Skidmore returned to the Liberty League tournament for the first time since 2006 last season and finished the year with a 12-6-2 overall record and 5-2-1 conference record. The Thoroughbreds reached the finals of the conference tournament and were seeking the program’s first tournament title before falling to St. Lawrence. Skidmore loses four seniors to graduation including a pair of defenders however, the Thoroughbreds welcome back their top two scorers from 2013, Brock Bakewell (12 G, 1 A, 25 Pts.) and Adam Beek (6 G, 4 A, 16 Pts.). Also returning is goalkeeper Eli Kisselbach (0.93 GAA, .797 SP) who was a major part in the team’s success last season.
Union had an unbeaten season at home in 2013 with a 6-0-1 record at the Turf at College Park in Schenectady and the Dutchmen finished the 2013 campaign at 12-3-2 and 4-3-2 in conference play. Union returns two All-Liberty League selections this season, forward Carl Faber and defender Kevin Janson. Faber led the Dutchmen in goals (10) and points (23). He also led the Liberty League with 1.44 points per game and was second in total points. Janson anchored a defensive unit that allowed the second fewest goals in the Liberty League and Union committed a league-low fouls per game. Also joining Janson in the backfield is goalkeeper Ryan Carter and fellow defender Sam Hunter.
Hobart finished the 2013 season with an 11-8-1 overall record and a trip to the ECAC Metro Men’s Soccer tournament. One of the Statesmen key losses is Charlie Kelly who led the Liberty League in goals and points with 12 and 29, respectively last season. Hobart does return several strong offensive players with midfielders Bernard Abagali and Marco Ronning at the helm. Defensively, goalkeeper Mike Lucas returns along with defender Kyle Herod.
RPI went 11-5-2 overall with a 5-1-2 mark in Liberty League placing it second among league standings in 201. The Engineers advanced to the semifinal round of the conference tournament. RPI loses a trio of defenders, Jared Doolan, Tim Young and Ryan Gracey but goalkeeper Rob Dewald returns after last season where he had a .81 goals against average and a .731 save percentage. The Engineers also welcome back their top two scorers All-Liberty League midfielder Matt Koziol (5 G, 2 A) and forward Nate Gunderson (4 G, 3 A) who combined for 23 points last season.
Vassar went 8-5-5 overall and 3-1-4 in the Liberty League as the Brewers advanced to the conference semifinals last season. Vassar loses five seniors including a trio of All-Liberty League selections goalkeeper Ryan Grimme, defender Evan Seltzer and midfielder Juliano Pereira. Returning for the Brewers is All-Liberty League and Vassar’s leading scorer Tom Wiechert (12 G, 24 Pts.). Defenders Nick Hess and Zach Nasipack will lead the Vassar backfield.
Clarkson brings back eight starters in 2014 including All-Liberty League first team selection Trevor Blackwell. Blackwell will anchor the Golden Knight defense while the offense will be led by midfielders Marco Parisi and Tucker Wilcox. Clarkson will have a new head coach this season as former Vassar assistant Chris Taylor begins his tenure with the Golden Knights.
RIT finished the 2013 campaign at 8-7-3 and the Tigers open 2014 with the loss of six seniors. There will be some holes to fill, but RIT returns a roster full of experienced players that will be led by captains Danny Bloshkin, Ruben Marquez and Mike Vincelli. All-Liberty League Bloshkin led RIT in scoring notching four goals and dishing out six assists for 14 points. Vincelli with returning goalkeeper Mark Reeves will pilot the defense in 2014.
Bard returns with All-Liberty League sophomore Austin Higgins and a crop of incoming freshmen in its fourth season with the conference. Higgins made an immediate impact for the Raptors last season scoring in his first collegiate game and leading the team in shots as well as shots on goal.
2014 Men’s Soccer Preseason Poll
Place. Team, Points
1. St. Lawrence, 62.5 (6.5)
2. Skidmore, 53.5 (2.5)
3. Union, 43
4. Hobart, 41
5. RPI, 40
6. Vassar, 36
7. RIT, 25
8. Clarkson, 15
9. Bard, 8
(First-place votes are in parentheses)