Garnet Ranked No. 13 in NSCAA Division III Preseason Soccer Poll
SWARTHMORE, Pa. – The reigning Centennial Conference champion Swarthmore men's soccer team will enter the 2009 season ranked No.13 in the NSCAA Division III Preseason Poll, the association announced on Tuesday.
The Garnet - coming off the program's most successful season in 25 years – is one of two Centennial Conference teams ranked in poll; Johns Hopkins – who the Garnet defeated in the 2008 Centennial Conference championship game - is ranked No. 16.
Along with Hopkins (home September 19), 2009 Garnet opponents No. 2 Stevens Tech (home September 13) and No. 20 Richard Stockton (away October 7) can be found in the NSCAA Division III Preseason Poll.
Under the direction of eighth-year head coach Eric Wagner, the 2009 Garnet return several key performers from last year’s squad, including All-Centennial Conference performers Dylan and Morgan Langley. Last season, the Garnet captured the program’s first Centennial Conference championship, advanced to the third round of the NCAA Championship after making the program's first appearance in the tournament since 1991 and set program records for Conference victories (8) and longest unbeaten streak (13).
The Garnet open the season on Wednesday, September 2, with a non-conference match at Penn State-Abington. The team will then return home to host the 12th Annual Garnet Alumni Classic the weekend of September 5-6.