GANSEVOORT, N.Y. – The three-time defending North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) women’s soccer champion Penn State Berks will once again be the team to beat, according to the coaches’ preseason poll rankings. 

Penn State Berks garnered 169 points after receiving all 13 allowable first-place votes to top the poll.  The Nittany Lions will return 14 players and eight starters from last year’s championship squad, which finished 16-3-2 overall and a perfect 12-0 in conference play to also claim their fourth straight NEAC regular season title.  Leading the way will be senior and three-time NEAC Player of the Year Dana Sarcinello (Downingtown, Pa.), who led the league with 15 assists a season ago.  Senior forward Lizzie Mummau (Mount Joy, Pa.) and senior defender Brennan Moyer (Wyomissing, Pa.), both All-Conference Second Team selections in 2015-16, also return to give Berks a veteran starter at each field position. 

A trio of sophomores also returns for Berks, including forward and 2015-16 NEAC Rookie of the Year Caitlin Golden (Lumberton, N.J.), who led the NEAC in goals (26) and points (62) last season.  Midfielder and All-Conference Third Teamer Alexa Lopez (East Windsor, N.J.) and goalie and 21-game starter Paige Elmy (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) also return for ninth-year head coach Adrian Munteanu, who collected his 100th victory a year ago. 

Penn State Abington placed second in the poll after registering 10 second-place votes en route to 152 total points.  The Nittany Lions, who were last season’s NEAC Tournament runner-up and finished 11-1 in conference play, return eight players and five starters.  That includes a trio of All-Conference selections in juniors Greta Sheridan (Horsham, Pa.) and Michelle Latronica (Philadelphia, Pa.) and sophomore Samantha Friend (Philadelphia, Pa.).  Head coach Brian Blesi will also be back at the helm after being named the 2015-16 NEAC Coach of the Year. 

The Lancaster Bible College Chargers and the SUNY Polytechnic Institute Wildcats each garnered 128 total points, with the Chargers winning the tiebreaker and nabbing the third spot after tallying the remaining first-place vote.  The Chargers will look to make the NEAC playoffs for the sixth straight season behind a strong group of returners.  Those include 2015-16 All-Conference First Team selections Kirsten Webster (Mount Airy, Md.) and Maddie Dionne (Landisville, Pa.), along with a pair of seniors in midfielder Alyssa Wesner (Danville, Pa.) and Kaitlyn Scheuing (Maytown, Pa.), who were named to the All-Conference Second Team and Third Team, respectively. 

The SUNY Poly Wildcats have 18 players returning from last season’s team that made an appearance in the NEAC Tournament semifinals. Junior goalie Angela Bartlett (West Winfield, N.Y.) will once again lead the defense as she enters the season as the reigning NEAC Defensive Player of the Year. Junior midfielder Brittany Waterbury (Remsen, N.Y.) also returns following a selection to the All-Conference Second Team. 

Keuka College claimed the fifth spot with 125 points.  Coming off a NEAC Tournament appearance, the Wolves have 13 players and 10 starters returning, including all-conference selections Sarah Hartman (Walworth, N.Y.), Nicole Browe (Kendall, N.Y.) and Danielle Desimone (Hilton, N.Y.).  Penn College, also coming off a playoff appearance, placed sixth with 115 points.  The Wildcats will see the return of a pair of 2015-16 All-Conference Third Team honorees in Hailee Hartman (Lampeter, Pa.) and Jordan Courter (Mill Hall, Pa.). Wells College rounded out the top-half of the rankings at seventh with 94 points.  The Express return all four all-conference players from last season, including Yanna Ososkalo (Lyme, N.Y.), Mackenzie Maloney (Huntington Station, N.Y.), Amber Welsh (Cortland, N.Y.) and Carley Ryan (Middleburgh, N.Y.). 

The full 2016-17 NEAC women’s soccer preseason rankings can be found below:

Rank	Institution (First-Place Votes)	Total Points
1	Penn State Berks (13)	169
2	Penn State Abington	152
3	Lancaster Bible College* (1)	128
4	SUNY Polytechnic Institute*	128
5	Keuka College	125
6	Penn College	115
7	Wells College	94
8	Cazenovia College	82
9	Morrisville State College	79
10	SUNY Cobleskill	57
11	Bryn Athyn College	45
12	Gallaudet University*	41
13	Wilson College*	41
14	College of Saint Elizabeth	18

*Tie broken by higher ordinal number points

The 2016-17 NEAC women’s soccer season will begin on Thursday, September 1.  A full season schedule can be found on the NEAC website here.  Be sure to follow all the action throughout the season using the free NEAC mobile app, Front Row, which can be downloaded here. 

The preseason poll rankings were conducted by the NEAC women’s soccer coaches, with each coach ranking out all teams but their own using a staggered points system (13 points for a first-place vote, 12 points for second, etc.).  No self-voting was allowed.  This is the second year the NEAC has held preseason polls and they will now become a staple of all 18 conference-sponsored sports moving forward.

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The North Eastern Athletic Conference has fourteen NCAA Division III member institutions which include: Bryn Athyn College, Cazenovia College, College of St. Elizabeth, Gallaudet University, Keuka College, Lancaster Bible College, Pennsylvania College of Technology, Pennsylvania State University - Abington, Pennsylvania State University - Berks, SUNY Cobleskill, SUNY Morrisville State College, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Wells College, and Wilson College.  Associate members are: Cedar Crest College (W Swimming), D’Youville College (M Volleyball), Hilbert College (M Lacrosse & M Volleyball), Medaille College (M&W Lacrosse & M Volleyball), Penn State Altoona (M Volleyball) and Rutgers University - Camden (M Golf).  The North Eastern Athletic Conference has partnered with the North Atlantic Conference in the sports of field hockey and men’s and women’s tennis.