UC San Diego Again Picked to Defend Women's Soccer Title
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SAN RAMON, Calif. – Back-to-back women’s soccer defending champions, UC San Diego has been tabbed to take the top spot in the CCAA for the third year in a row, as voted on by the league’s 13 head coaches.
The Tritons collected 136 points and seven first-place votes to claim the No. 1 position, followed closely by 2017 CCAA Tournament runners-up Sonoma State, and regular-season second-place squad from a year ago Cal State LA with 129 and 126 points, respectively.
Following in fourth is Cal Poly Pomona, up two spots from their 2017 finish. Chico State takes fifth, and fresh off a CCAA Tournament semifinal appearance, Cal State San Marcos is slated sixth, rounding out the projected postseason teams.
San Francisco State and Stanislaus State are nipping at the Cougars’ heels looking to break into the postseason bracket. They are followed by Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State Monterey Bay, and Humboldt State, with Cal State East Bay and Cal State Dominguez Hills rounding out the preseason predictions.
After sweeping the CCAA regular season and tournament titles for each of the past two years and claiming the league’s tournament trophy is 2015, UC San Diego is seeking its sixth-straight CCAA crown in 2018. The Tritons are coming off a 17-2-3 overall mark where the squad advanced to the NCAA West Region finals and boasted an unbeaten 10-0-1 campaign in league action. UC San Diego is 24-0-1 over the last 25 conference games, a CCAA record-making streak that dates back to the 2015 campaign.
Despite losing three All-CCAA first team performers to graduation, the Tritons return 2017 CCAA Defensive Player of the Year Natalie Saddic, fellow CCAA first-team forward Mary Reilly, second-team selection in the midfield Summer Bales and Goalkeeper of the Year Angelica Ramos. UC San Diego opens the year ranked No. 5 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll.
Picked to take second in 2018, Sonoma State is coming off their fifth NCAA tournament in the past six seasons, where the Seawolves eventually succumbed to 2016 NCAA champion Western Washington in the second round of play. Second-team All-American Riley West anchors the 25th-ranked Seawolves defensive front, who became Sonoma State’s first non-senior honoree since 1999.
Third in the polls, and just three votes behind Sonoma State, Cal State LA’s squad features 23 returning players including last year’s Offensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, Paulina Chaidez. The Tijuana, Mexico native led the CCAA in goals (10) and points (25) in her first year donning a Golden Eagles jersey.
Should the coaches’ prognostications ring true, the
2018 CCAA Tournament will feature the same lineup of six squads, albeit in slightly altered order. Playing host for the second consecutive year, the 2018 CCAA Tournament semifinal and final rounds will be held Nov. 2-4 in La Jolla on the campus of UC San Diego.
The 2018 regular season kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 30, as 11 squads take to the pitch. CCAA play begins on Wednesday, Sept. 12, as Sonoma State hosts Humboldt State for an afternoon double-header in Rohnert Park.
| 2018 CCAA Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll |
| Rank |
Institution |
Points (First place votes) |
| 1. |
UC San Diego |
136 (7) |
| 2. |
Sonoma State |
129 (5) |
| 3. |
Cal State LA |
126 (1) |
| 4. |
Cal Poly Pomona |
105 |
| 5. |
Chico State |
100 |
| 6. |
Cal State San Marcos |
79 |
| 7. |
San Francisco State |
77 |
| 8. |
Stanislaus State |
75 |
| 9. |
Cal State San Bernardino |
61 |
| 10. |
Cal State Monterey Bay |
36 |
| 11. |
Humboldt State |
35 |
| 12. |
Cal State East Bay |
30 |
| 13. |
Cal State Dominguez Hills |
25 |