2017 CCC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll Video

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology women's soccer team had a season to remember in 2016 and the defending Commonwealth Coast Conference Champions have been picked to finish third in the CCC Preseason Coaches' Poll.

The Leopards picked up 83 total points to finish behind Roger Williams (93 points) and Endicott (93 total points). Both the Hawks and Gulls received five first-place votes in the poll. The University of New England (67 points) and Curry (50 points) round out the top five.

Salve Regina (47 points), Gordon (46), Western New England (39), Nichols (17), and Eastern Nazarene (14) rounded out the poll in that order.

Wentworth captured the program's first CCC Regular-Season and Tournament Championships and earned the program's first berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament last season. Despite the loss of nine seniors from that team, first-year head coach Meredith Carey welcomes back 18 letterwinners, which includes the 2016 CCC Offensive Player of the Year in senior Emily Richard (Fremont, N.H.), the 2016 CCC Rookie of the year in Sidney Brogan (Los Angeles, Calif.) and a two-time All-CCC keeper in Micaela Robinson (Goshen, N.Y.). Richard had a junior season which saw her score 30 points on eight goals and 14 assists, including scoring the lone goal in the Leopards' 1-0 win over Arcadia in the NCAA Tournament. Brogan was tied for second on the team in scoring with 21 points, coming on nine goals and three assists. Senior Ali Leach (Stowe, Vt.) returns after scoring 16 points on six goals and four assists with four of her six goals standing as game-winning markers. Junior Madyson Reno (Simi Valley, Calif.), the 2015 CCC Rookie of the year, scored four goals and assisted on two others for 10 points as a sophomore. Senior defender Heather MacDougall (Exeter, N.H.) will help anchor a defense which yielded just over a half a goal a game while Robinson had an impressive 0.36 goals against average and 10 solo shutouts on the season.

The women's soccer season kicks off on Thursday, Sept. 1 with seven of the 10 CCC teams participating in non-conference contests. The conference schedule begins on Sept. 16. The top eight teams in the 2017 regular-season conference standings will qualify for the CCC Tournament, which starts with the quarterfinals on Saturday, Oct. 28 and concludes with the Conference Championship a week later on Nov. 4. The CCC Tournament Champion will earn the conference's automatic qualifier in to the 2017 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.

Wentworth opens the 2017 slate on Sept. 1 at Babson. Carey spent seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Beavers before joining the Leopards this past June.

2017 CCC Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll

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