Centennial Conference Preseason Poll
HAVERFORD, Pa. – A Centennial Conference playoff team during each of the last three seasons, and 10 of the last 12 overall, the Haverford College women's soccer team was predicted for a sixth-place finish in the 2019 Centennial Conference preseason poll. The Fords garnered 61 voting points in the poll as coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.
Every single week in Centennial Conference provides teams with a tough matchup and if the preseason poll is any indication, the 2019 season will continue to follow that trend. Just six voting points separated the fourth through sixth-place teams in the poll as Dickinson garnered 67 votes while Gettysburg received 66 votes for those positions just ahead of the Fords. Johns Hopkins was picked as the preseason favorite while Swarthmore collected enough votes to finish in the second slot.
Haverford graduated another large senior class from the 2018 season and returns just four starters, but the returning players and incoming first-years will battle for a number of highly competitive positions in the starting XI in addition to key reserve spots. Nevertheless, three of Haverford's four returning starters (Kendra Greisman, Leanne Ludwick, and Lindsay Wytkind) earned All-Centennial Conference accolades a season ago. Emily Thissen was also a constant in the starting lineup last year and joins Ludwick and Wytkind as co-captains for the 2019 season.
The 2019 season gets underway this weekend with the annual Haverford College Kick Off Classic where the Fords will battle Arcadia on Saturday, August 31 on Walton Field at 1:30 p.m. The championship and consolation matches in the tournament, which also features Scranton and Montclair State, are set for Sunday.
Centennial Conference action gets underway for the Fords on Wednesday, September 25 at home against Muhlenberg. The top five teams in the Centennial Conference regular season standings will qualify for the conference tournament which begins with the first round game on Wednesday, November 5. Haverford went 8-6-3 overall last season, with a 5-3-2 record in Centennial Conference matches. The Fords finished fifth in the conference standings a year ago with a hard-fought tie against Swarthmore during the regular season finale to solidify their playoff spot. That postseason appearance ended with a heart-breaking 2-1 overtime defeat against Dickinson during the opening round matchup.