LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) released its men's soccer preseason coaches poll on Wednesday afternoon. West Chester was picked to finish second in the East with three first-place votes, trailing only Bloomsburg, who captured the top spot with four first-place votes.
Bloomsburg and West Chester accounted for the top two spots in the Eastern Division, followed by Millersville, East Stroudsburg, and Lock Haven to round out the top five. Shippensburg was picked to finish sixth, followed by Shepherd in seventh to complete the Eastern Division. Erie neighbors Mercyhurst and Gannon tied for first place in the Western Division with three first-place votes each, followed by Seton Hill in third. Slippery Rock secured the fourth spot in the poll, with California in fifth and Pitt-Johnstown in sixth to round out the Western Division.
West Chester enjoyed another strong season in 2022, which included stretching its PSAC Tournament appearance streak to six years in a row before falling on PKs at East Stroudsburg in the Quarterfinals of the Tournament. The Golden Rams return three of their top five scorers from a year ago, led by
Andrew Markopoulos (Drexel Hill, Pa./Msgr. Bonner & Prendie), who led the team in goals a year ago with six, along with
Frankie Taylor (Delran, N.J./Delran), and Owen Slack (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) who finished the year with four goals and two goals, respectively. West Chester will also look to 2021 First Team All-League selection
Josh Daniels (Fleetwood, Pa./Oley Valley) to return to form in 2023 after having a shortened season in 2022 due to an injury early in the campaign. Additionally, West Chester returns goalkeeper
Daniel Good (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) for a final season wearing the Purple and Gold as he looks to continue rewriting the WCU men's soccer record book. A year ago, the two-time First Team All-PSAC East selection finished the year with a record of 9-5-3 with four shutouts, which allowed him to tie the career shutout record and move into fourth all-time in victories with 53 career wins.
West Chester opens its 2023 season on the road at Jefferson on August 31 before returning home on September 2 to welcome Holy Family to Rockwell Field in the first of a four-game homestand for West Chester. The final game of the homestand will see West Chester open PSAC play against Shepherd on Wednesday, September 13, before heading to Preseason favorite Bloomsburg on Saturday, September 16.
East Division
1. Bloomsburg (4)
2. West Chester (3)
3. Millersville
4. East Stroudsburg
5. Lock Haven
6. Shippensburg
7. Shepherd
West Division
T-1. Mercyhurst (3)
T-1. Gannon (3)
3. Seton Hill
4. Slippery Rock
5. California
6. Pitt-Johnstown
