WKU Soccer Picked to Finish Ninth

Conference USA has released their preseason coaches poll, and the reigning Sun Belt regular season champions, our Lady Toppers, had a rough go, as they were selected to finish in a tie for ninth place with those pesky Blue Raiders. No Lady Tops were selected to the all-conference team, either.

UNC-Charlotte, who are the reigning Eastern Division Champions, were picked to win it all coming in 2014. Below is the full preseason coaches poll:

1.) UNC-Charlotte
2.) North Texas
3.) Rice
4.) FIU
5.) UTEP
6.) UAB
7.) Marshall
8.) Florida Atlantic
T9.) Middle Tennessee
T9.) WKU
11.) UTSA
12.) LA Tech
13.) Old Dominion
14.) Southern Miss

The ninth place predicted finish is a stark fall from where the Tops left off last season, and is by far the biggest predicted drop off by any Hilltopper team this year. The thing most surprising to me is the lack of  Toppers on the all-conference team, as Coach Niedell is returning both of last year’s standout freshman – Iris Dunn and Caitlin Hesse – who I was almost assured would make the preseason squad. It appears that soccer is the strong suit of the conference’s fall sports, and hopefully the Lady Toppers can advert expectations for the better.

Coach Niedell did have some words following the coaches poll coming out:

"Coming into a new conference, I knew we would have to earn respect. I think being picked ninth will give us some motivation throughout the season. It’s not about where you start, it’s where you finish."

Practice for the Lady Tops begins this week (!!!), and the season is just around the corener.