Centennial Conference Preseason Poll
Centennial Conference Team-by-Team Outlook
HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's soccer team has been picked to finish fifth in the Centennial Conference's annual preseason poll. The Fords garnered 52 points in the voting among conference coaches. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.
Johns Hopkins was the pick among coaches to repeat after the Blue Jays hosted the conference tournament last fall. Defending conference champion Franklin & Marshall was picked second, while Gettysburg and Dickinson tied for the third slot in the poll.
After winning back-to-back Centennial Conference Championships during the 2015 and 2016 seasons, the Fords finished fourth in the regular season standings last fall before being defeated by Dickinson in the first round of the conference tournament. Haverford went 10-5-3 last year with a 5-3-1 record in the Centennial Conference. The Fords have qualified for the Centennial Conference Tournament during each of the last seven seasons, winning conference championships on three occasions. Haverford has hosted a Centennial Conference Tournament match during each of the last five seasons, earning the top seed on three of those occasions.
The 2018 season will mark a new era for the program as head coach Zach Ward takes over the program following his time as an assistant coach at Gettysburg. Haverford will return a pair of All-Centennial Conference performers in junior Nick Jannelli and senior Ben Clark. Jannelli was a first-team All-CC selection in 2017 after earning conference rookie of the year honors during the 2016 campaign. Clark garnered second-team recognition as a junior in 2017.
Haverford returns a total of nine players who have started at least 10 games during their respective careers. The senior-laden team features 11 players who are entering their final season with the Fords and looking to make it three Centennial Conference Championships during their careers.
Men's soccer gets the regular season started next Friday, August 31 on Walton Field against Cabrini at 4:30 p.m. Centennial Conference play opens up around the conference when Haverford hosts preseason favorite Johns Hopkins on Saturday, September 15.