League Release
Newport News, Va. – With the regular season starting this weekend, the Atlantic 10 Conference announced its women's soccer preseason poll and All-Conference team on Wednesday.
Fordham, which made the Atlantic 10 Championship final a year ago, was picked to finish seventh, behind Dayton, George Washington, VCU, La Salle, Saint Joseph's, and Duquesne. George Mason (8
th), Massachusetts (9
th), Saint Louis (10
th), Richmond (11
th), Rhode Island (12
th), Davidson (13
th), and St. Bonaventure (14
th) rounded out the poll.
The Atlantic 10 Championship will be held at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, Rhode Island, November 3
rd-6
th.
In addition to being picked seventh, the Rams also had two players make the preseason All-Conference team, as seniors
Nicole Bates (Basking Ridge, N.J./Ridge) and
Ally Doyle (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlowe) were two of five defenders named to the team.
Bates and Doyle, who along with
Turner Block will serve as the team captains for 2016, were both named Second Team All-Atlantic 10 a season ago, as they anchored a Rams' defense, which set the school records for shutouts in a season with 11 and goals against average at 0.81.
Bates and Doyle added one assist each on the offensive end in 22 games, while academically both were named to the Atlantic 10 Commissioner's Honor Roll. Bates was also named to the Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Academic All-Conference and All-Championship teams in 2015.
The Fordham women's soccer team is slated to open their 2016 campaign on Friday, August 19
th at DePaul, beginning at 4:00 PM EST.
| 2016 Atlantic 10 Preseason Coaches' Poll |
| Place |
Team |
Points (1st Place Votes) |
| 1. |
Dayton |
185 (8) |
| 2. |
George Washington |
173 (5) |
| 3. |
VCU |
153 |
| 4. |
La Salle |
134 |
| 5. |
Saint Joseph's |
133 |
| 6. |
Duquesne |
132 (1) |
| 7. |
Fordham |
112 |
| 8. |
George Mason |
111 |
| 9. |
Massachusetts |
82 |
| 10. |
Saint Louis |
76 |
| 11. |
Richmond |
73 |
| 12. |
Rhode Island |
46 |
| 13. |
Davidson |
32 |
| 14 |
St. Bonaventure |
28 |
| 2016 Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Team |
| Forwards |
Defenders |
| Alexis Kiehl, Dayton |
Nicole Bates, Fordham |
| Katie O'Connor, Duquesne |
Ally Doyle, Fordham |
| Julia Suarez, VCU |
Deja Davis, La Salle |
|
Paige McDowell, La Salle |
| Midfielders |
Kacey Bright, Saint Louis |
| Linnea Faccenda, Duquesne |
|
| Alex Myers, George Mason |
Goalkeeper |
| Sofia Pavon, George Washington |
Miranda Horn, George Washington |
| Emily Gingrich, Saint Joseph's |
|
