The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men’s soccer team has been selected to repeat as seventh-place finishers in the 2017 AMCC Preseason Coaches Poll, conference officials announced Tuesday.
With seven first-place votes, league coaches selected Penn State-Behrend to defend its 2016 AMCC title, while Medaille was picked as the conference runner up for the second straight year.
“Last season, we took a big step forward in conference play,” second-year Head Coach Nathan Whitehurst said. “This year, we hope to start the season strong a take another step forward. We have a lot of new faces this season, and we will look to keep improving.”
In 2016, the Pitt-Bradford Panthers picked up a pair of conference wins, the first, a 3-1 win over Pitt-Greensburg on Oct. 1 and the second a 1-0 win over D’Youville in the season finale on Oct. 25.
The Panthers helped their conference record with a pair of draws against Hilbert (Oct. 5) and La Roche (Oct. 15).
The two wins and two draws came at home at the Kessel Complex.
Second-year head coach Nate Whitehurst will field a team of 11 returners and 15 newcomers, compiled of five seniors, seven juniors, five sophomores and nine freshmen.
Returning is senior Steven McFetridge, who finished second in 2016 with two goals, was named as Pitt-Bradford’s player to watch by the AMCC. Junior Mohammed Al Qahtani and senior Tyler Koch also scored for the Panthers last season. Juniors Andrew Hoyt and Derrick Brock are the returning goalkeepers for Pitt-Bradford, looking to replace graduated Third Team All-AMCC Colin Frownfelter.
The Panthers’ 2017 season kicks off with three straight road games beginning on Sept. 1 at Lancaster Bible at 4 p.m. The first home action will be Friday, Sept. 8, as Allegheny comes to town for a 4 p.m. kickoff.
UPB women’s soccer ranked third in preseason poll
The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women’s soccer team has been selected to finish third in the 2017 AMCC Preseason Coaches Poll, conference officials announced Monday.
Penn State-Behrend received 10 first-place votes to land as the conference favorite, predicted to be six-time AMCC title defenders.
Pitt-Greensburg was voted to repeat as second-place finishers, looking to continue its 2016 success that resulted in a 7-1-1 record in AMCC play.
The Panthers finished third in the conference in 2016, going 5-1-3 in AMCC play and 9-6-4 overall. Their season came to an end in the AMCC Tournament semifinals against Pitt-Greensburg, 2-0, on Nov. 2.
Five of the six Panthers named to the 2016 AMCC All-Conference teams will be returning – first-team goalkeeper Sarah Dailey, second-team midfielder Kaitlyn Donnelly, third-team forward Courtney Shade, third-team midfielder Abbey Kalin and third-team defender Meghan Stuck.
Pitt-Bradford will be guided by first-year head coach Melissa Lincoln, who inherits an experienced team of eight seniors and nine juniors, along with three returning sophomores and four freshmen.
The 2017 season kicks off with five consecutive road games, beginning with a matchup at Oberlin on Sept. 1. The first home action will be Wednesday, Sept. 13, as Houghton comes to town for a 5 p.m. kickoff.
