DENVER—Defending champion Seattle U was selected as the favorite to win the 2014 Western Athletic Conference men’s soccer title as determined by a vote of the league’s 10 head coaches. The 2014 WAC preseason all-conference men’s soccer team and preseason Players of the Year were also announced.
This is the second year of men’s soccer in the WAC since the 1999 season. The league is made up of 10 teams: Air Force, Bakersfield, Grand Canyon, Houston Baptist, Incarnate Word, Missouri-Kansas City, UNLV, San Jose State, Seattle U and Utah Valley. Incarnate Word joins the WAC as a new affiliate member this season while Utah Valley begins its inaugural season sponsoring men’s soccer.
Seattle U was selected first in the poll as the team received seven first place votes and 76 total points. The Redhawks return seven of their 11 starters from a team that went 11-9-4 in 2013, won the WAC regular season title with an undefeated mark of 7-0-3, won the WAC tournament title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
UNLV finished second in the poll with one first place vote and 68 points. Bakersfield is third with 58 points followed by San Jose State with 50 points. Air Force was picked fifth with 45 points followed by UMKC (39). Houston Baptist and Incarnate Word were tied for seventh (33), Grand Canyon was eight (31) and Utah Valley was 10th with 17 points.
Houston Baptist sophomore forward Tobenna Uzo garnered Preseason Offensive Player of the Year honors, while UNLV senior keeper Ryan Harding was selected as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
Uzo, a second team all-WAC honoree last season, led the Huskies and was second in the WAC with 11 goals and 22 points in 2013. He also recorded two game-winning goals last year.
Harding was also named to the all-WAC second team in 2013. He led the WAC in goal against average (1.22) and was third in save percentage (.787). Harding posted four shutouts during the season.
UNLV led all WAC teams with four preseason all-conference selections. Bakersfield, UMKC and San Jose State each had two honorees, while Houston Baptist and Seattle U each had one representative.
The 2014 WAC season is set to kickoff Aug. 29 with nine of the WAC’s teams in action. Utah Valley opens its season on Saturday, Aug. 30 with a match against Massachusetts in Orem that will be streamed by NSCAA.tv. The WAC Men’s Soccer Tournament will be held at Seattle U, November 13-14 and 16. The top six eligible teams will participate (Grand Canyon and Incarnate Word are ineligible due to their transition from Division II to Division I).
Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Place |
Team (first place votes) |
Points |
| 1. |
Seattle U (7) |
76 |
| 2. |
UNLV (1) |
68 |
| 3. |
Bakersfield |
58 |
| 4. |
San Jose State |
50 |
| 5. |
Air Force |
45 |
| 6. |
UMKC |
39 |
| 7. |
Houston Baptist |
33 |
| |
Incarnate Word |
33 |
| 9. |
Grand Canyon (1) |
31 |
| 10. |
Utah Valley |
17 |
Preseason All-WAC Team
| Player |
Year |
Position |
School |
| Tobenna Uzo |
So. |
F |
Houston Baptist |
| Jordan Rideout |
Sr. |
F |
UMKC |
| Sal Bernal |
Sr. |
F |
UNLV |
| Rory Knibbs |
So. |
F |
San Jose State |
| Christian Duarte |
Jr. |
MF |
Bakersfield |
| Joe Masumiya |
Sr. |
MF |
Bakersfield |
| Tayna Chiaparro |
Sr. |
MF |
UMKC |
| Rodrigo Fuentes |
Jr. |
MF |
UNLV |
| Bradley Kamdem |
Jr. |
D |
UNLV |
| Andrew Kelly |
Sr. |
D |
San Jose State |
| Kyle Bjornethun |
So. |
D |
Seattle U |
| Ryan Harding |
Sr. |
GK |
UNLV |
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Tobenna Uzo, So., F, Houston Baptist
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Ryan Harding, Sr., GK, UNLV