Westwood, MASS.- Babson College lands in the top spot in the 2024 NEWMAC Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll, collecting four first-place votes. Head Coach
Jon Anderson returns for his 39th season at the helm for the Beavers, after leading Babson to their fifth-straight NEWMAC title match in 2023. Reigning NEWMAC Defensive Player of the Year, goalkeeper
Walker White, returns for the Beavers after leading league play with a .250 goals against average, a .944 save percentage and six shutouts. All-NEWMAC performer
Samuel Kalishman also returns to the pitch.
Defending NEWMAC Champion WPI has nabbed the second spot, securing three first place votes. They are led by head coach
Brian Kelley, who will look to returners
Evan Haas and
Aaron Vaz to make an impact. Haas earned All-NEWMAC and All-Region honors in 2023, as the defender helped WPI to a .67 goals against average in NEWMAC play. Haz was an All-Region third team selection, netting five goals for the Engineers in 2023.
Landing in the third slot was Wheaton College, who also nabbed two first-place votes. Led by head coach
Bryan Waggoner, the Lyons return a pair of All-Region honorees from a back line that ranked 11th in the nation with a 0.63 goals against average. Fifth-year senior
Ryan Bell was a First Team All-Region selection and Second Team All-NEWMAC, while senior
Ethan Alfano was a Third Team All-Region designee. 2022 NEWMAC Co-Offensive Athlete of the Year
Alasdair Ferrier is also fully recovered after an injury hampered season in 2023.
MIT, coached by
Ken Bovell, lands in the fourth spot. Among the Engineers returners is 2023 NEWMAC Rookie of the Year,
Nico Mangiafico, who finished the season with four goals and two assists. Fellow sophomore
Dilin Meloni also returns after leading the Engineers with four assists, while also tacking on three goals.
Coming in at the five-spot is U.S. Coast Guard Academy, who is coached by
Chris Parsons. The Bears return several key contributors, including
Jude Sargent, who was named Second Team All-Region II after his performance during his junior year. He started in 15 games and tallied four goals for the Bears.
Springfield lands in the sixth spot. The Pride are coached by
Tommy Crabill, who led Springfield to their first NEWMAC tournament appearance since 2021. Fifteen student-athletes will return for the Pride, including All-NEWMAC performer
Noah Pote, who tallied 66 saves, a 1.24 goals against average and a .759 save percentage over 1530 total minutes in the net.
Salve Regina University enters the poll in the seventh spot. Interim head coach
Bill Lawler takes the helm for the Seahawks, who will look to improve upon their inaugural NEWMAC season in 2023.
Emerson College and Clark University round out the poll in eighth and ninth place, respectively. Emerson is coached by second-year head coach,
Liam McKerskie, while the Cougars return 22 players from last year’s team, including senior
William Lopez, who led the team in goals last season.
Men’s soccer conference play will begin on Saturday, September 21. The NEWMAC Championship will start with quarterfinals on November 5, followed by semifinals on November 7. The Champion will be crowned on Saturday, November 9.
2024 NEWMAC Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
- Babson (4)
- WPI (3)
- Wheaton (2)
- MIT
- Coast Guard
- Springfield
- Salve Regina
- Emerson
- Clark
About the NEWMAC
The NEWMAC is an association of 12 selective academic institutions: Babson College, Clark University, U.S Coast Guard Academy, Emerson College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mount Holyoke College, Salve Regina University, Smith College, Springfield College, Wellesley College, Wheaton College, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, that are committed to providing high quality competitive athletic opportunities for student-athletes within an educational and respectful environment that embodies the NCAA Division III Philosophy. The conference also partners with four Associate Members: Norwich University (Football), Simmons College (Rowing), SUNY Maritime College (Football), and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Football), while sponsoring 20 sports.