Centennial Conference Preseason Guide
HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's soccer team, currently receiving votes in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, has been picked to finish second in the Centennial Conference in the voting of conference head coaches. The Fords received three first-place votes for a total of 67 points. That total ties them with defending Centennial Conference Champion Muhlenberg for the second slot in the poll.
Franklin & Marshall, the team Haverford knocked off in the Centennial Conference semifinals last season, has been selected as the preseason favorite. The Diplomats received five first-place votes to top the poll with 74 points. Dickinson (64 points) received the final first place vote, while Johns Hopkins (51 points) rounded out the top five teams in the poll which also made up the Centennial Conference Tournament field a season ago.
Haverford has it to the Centennial Conference Championship match in three of the past four seasons, including the 2012 Championship season. The Fords also hosted the tournament as regular season champions in the lone exception during the streak under fifth year head coach Shane Rineer.
The Fords graduated just one senior from last year's Centennial Conference runner-up team that fell by a 1-0 margin to Muhlenberg in the conference championship match. The squad returns a Centennial Conference-leading four all-conference selections to this year's team, including 2014 first-team All-CC selection Brady Seitz. He will team up with honorable mention picks from last year in Colin Seitz, Will Corkery, and Tejan Walcott. Additionally, Sam Yarosh earned first-team All-Centennial conference recognition during the 2013 season.
Men's soccer will open the2015 season next Tuesday, September 1 against Scranton at 4:30 p.m. That game will be the first on the newly-renovated Walton Field, one of nine home dates for the Fords during the upcoming season. Centennial Conference play opens on the road at Johns Hopkins on September 19. The Fords will host each of the other three teams to receive first-place votes on their home field this fall.