Men's Soccer Tabbed Fifth In Preseason NEC Coaches Poll

The Central Connecticut men's soccer team was picked fifth in the preaseason Northeast Conference Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. The Blue Devils will return an experienced core of veterans as they will look to earn one of the league's top four spots to qualify for the postseason tournament.

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Two-time defending NEC champion, St. Francis Brooklyn, received five first-place votes and was picked as the preseason favorite by the league's head coaches. Saint Francis U collected the other three first-place votes and was picked second. Bryant and Fairleigh Dickinson were followed by the Blue Devils, while Robert Morris, LIU Brooklyn and Sacred Heart rounded out the poll.

After posting a 5-10-2 overall mark in 2014, CCSU returns a pair of players who earned conference award recognition. Senior Zach Zurita earned Second Team All-NEC honors and ranked second on the team with three goals. Sophomore Filosmar Cordeiro was named the NEC Rookie of the Year after tallying two goals and three assists.

Senior Ben Knight returns after starting eight games and will help anchor the backline. Knight played with former Blue Devil Stephen Walmsley on the Ocala Thunder this summer and helped the squad to the Premier Development League semifinals 

The Blue Devils also return three goalkeepers, including senior Josef Abele who started 14 games and posted a 1.59 goals against average.

Central opens the 2015 campaign at Stony Brook on Friday, August 28. They will host Massachusetts in their home opener on Sunday, September 6 at 1 p.m. on the CCSU Soccer Field. The full men's soccer schedule can be found here.