SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Gordon College has been voted as the favorite to win the 2014 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men's soccer championship after receiving six first place votes and a total of 93 points in the CCC preseason poll.  Western New England University, the defending champion, earned second place with 87 points and three first place votes. Roger Williams University claimed third with 77 points, while Nichols College was selected fourth after receiving 70 points and Salve Regina University placed fifth with 66 points after garnering the remaining first place vote to round out the top billing. A season after an eighth-place finish, Wentworth was tabbed to finish in that same spot this season.

Voting for the preseason poll was conducted among the league's head men's soccer coaches.

The top three teams in the 2014 poll all competed in the NCAA Tournament in 2013. Last year marked the first time in CCC history that the conference received multiple bids into the NCAA tournament, the Golden Bears captured their second CCC title since 2011, a 2-0 victory over Roger Williams, to receive the conference's automatic bid into the national tournament, while Gordon and Roger Williams both earned at-large bids. All three teams earned first-round victories, as the Fighting Scots defeated Eastern Connecticut State 1-0, the Hawks earned a 3-1 win over Rutgers-Newark, and Western New England shut out MIT, 2-0. The second-round matchups proved to be too tough for the CCC, as No. 2 ranked Amherst handed Gordon a tough 5-0 loss, No. 17 Brandeis defeated the Hawks 1-0, and the No. 24 Golden Bears lost 4-1 to Williams.

The Wentworth Institute of Technology (2-15-1, 2-6-1 CCC) men's soccer team looks to take another step towards being a contender for the conference championship after doubling its win total, increasing its offensive output, and earning a berth in the CCC Tournament a season ago. Second-year head coach Connor Erickson has a talented mix of veterans and rookies, including junior Sam Martins (Dartmouth, Mass.), an Honorable Mention All-CCC selection from a season ago after tying for the team lead with seven points. Seniors Connor Gullifer (Scarborough, Maine) and Erik Shaw (Hooksett, N.H.) anchor a veteran midfield, along with sophomore Alec Watkinson (Merrimack, N.H.), who also tied for the team lead with seven points.

The 2014 CCC men's soccer campaign gets started this weekend with all ten teams in action. The top eight teams in the regular-season conference standings will qualify for the conference tournament, which gets underway Saturday, November 1 with quarterfinal action. The winners of the quarterfinal matchups will move on to the semifinals on Wednesday, November 5. The two semifinal victors will battle for the CCC championship on Saturday, November 8.

Click HERE to view the 2014 CCC Men's Soccer composite schedule.

2014 CCC Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll

(Portions of this release courtesy of the Commonwealth Coast Conference office)