Tuesday, August 17, 2010

MACON, Ga. - The Atlantic Sun Conference announced its men’s soccer preseason poll with Stetson, the defending tournament champions, sitting in the top spot with six first-place votes from the league coaches. The Hatters’ junior midfielder, Fredrik Brustad received the Preseason Player of the Year honor.

Stetson tallied a 14-4-2 overall mark last season (6-2-1 record in A-Sun play) and earned the two seed in the conference tournament. The Hatters beat ETSU and Mercer to claim their second A-Sun Tournament Championship. The Hatters feature two players on the preseason all-conference team; Brustad and Jonathan Mendoza. A native of Oslo, Norway, Brustad leads returning Hatters in goals as he netted seven in 2009, which tied for third in the A-Sun.

Campbell corralled two first-place votes in the poll to claim the second spot in the preseason poll. The Camels have captured each of the last two regular-season titles. Mitchell Cardenas represents the Camels on the all-conference list after totaling five goals and six assists in 2009.

FGCU and ETSU earned the two other first-place votes with the Buccaneers’ Guilherme Reis and Aaron Schoenfeld appearing on the all-conference squad. Reis, a senior defender, picked up one of three unanimous choices to the All-Atlantic Sun preseason team, while Schoenfeld’s five goals last season catapulted him onto the preseason list.

Mercer and Jacksonville claimed the fifth and sixth place in the preseason vote. The Bears, who advanced all the way to the title game at last year’s championship placed two student-athletes on the All-Atlantic Sun preseason team – goalkeeper Brett Petricek and midfielder Ian Cameron. The lone representative for Jacksonville, Tobbias Hottner, returns as a junior defender for the Dolphins.

The seventh-ranked team, Lipscomb boasts two on the preseason team with senior defender Garrett McLaughlin and unanimous choice Miguel DaSilva, a senior forward. Following Lipscomb in the poll, UNF placed senior forward Adam O’Neill amongst the all-conference honorees.

Belmont and USC Upstate round out the poll with the Bruins’ sophomore forward Brandon Tarr selected to the preseason team. Tarr returns at the top goal scorer in the league as he tallied eight goals in only 13 games in 2009.

The 2010 Atlantic Sun men’s soccer season begins on the first of September with seven teams in action and concludes with the 2010 Men’s Soccer Championship from November 6-13.

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.