The University of Akron Athletics
Men's Soccer Ranked No. 6 in CSN Preseason Poll
June 25 | Men's Soccer
AKRON, Ohio – Following one of the best
campaigns in program history, the University of Akron men's soccer
team was ranked sixth in the nation, according to a preseason poll
released by College Soccer
News Thursday.
The Zips, who were ranked No. 9 in the final CSN and NSCAA/adidas
polls a year ago, will return seven of 11 starters and nine
letterwinners overall this fall – including All-American Anthony
Ampaipitakwong and freshman All-Americans Kofi
Sarkodie and Darlington Nagbe – from
a team that recorded the second-highest win total in school history
in 2008.
Moreover, UA set a new standard for defensive efficiency, holding
its opposition to a goals-against-average of 0.45 – the top
mark in the country – despite playing one of the most
difficult schedules in Division I with an NCAA RPI of 7. Akron was
also ranked fifth in the nation for win percentage (.826) and
shutout percentage (0.61), 11th in scoring offense (2.04
goals/game) and 12th in save percentage (.849).
Highlights from the record-setting season included the program's 11
Mid-American Conference regular-season championship, its sixth MAC
Tournament title and the school's fourth all-time trip to the Sweet
Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament. Furthermore, Akron secured the
highest NCAA Tournament seed in program history with a No. 5
designation and spent nine of 13 weeks ranked in the top five of
the NSCAA/adidas national poll.
Joining UA's core of returning veterans this fall, will be a host
of heralded newcomers. This group, which features seven
All-Americans and six players with national team experience, was
named the No. 1 recruiting class in the country by ESPN Rise.com
last February.
Also making the preseason poll were six schools on UA's 2009
schedule, including three home opponents. No. 7 Indiana (Sept. 18),
No. 24 St. Louis (Sept. 20) and No. 25 Michigan State (Nov. 4) will
all make the trip to Lee Jackson Field this fall while the Zips
will be on the road to face No. 27 SMU (Sept. 4), No. 12 Tulsa
(Sept. 6) and No. 11 UIC (Oct. 7).
The Zips will open the fall season with a pair of exhibition games
in late August before officially kicking off the 2009 campaign at
the Tulsa Tournament against SMU and Tulsa in early September.
2009 College Soccer News Preseason Top 30 Rankings
1. St. John's
2. Creighton
3. Wake Forest
4. North Carolina
5. Maryland
6. Akron
7. Indiana*
8. California
9. Northwestern
10. Dartmouth
11. UIC*
12. Tulsa*
13. South Florida
14. UC Irvine
15. Loyola (Md.)
16. Notre Dame
17. UCLA
18. Dayton
19. UC Santa Barbara
20. Connecticut
21. Drake
22. Virginia
23. Boston Univ.
24. Saint Louis*
25. Michigan State*
26. Cal Poly
27. SMU*
28. Louisville
29. George Mason
30. San Francisco
* 2009 UA Opponent
