Cal Poly Pomona Selected as Preseason Men's Soccer Favorites
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SAN RAMON, Calif. – In a tight race, defending NCAA West Region champions and 2017 national semifinalists Cal Poly Pomona has been picked by the league’s 13 coaches to take the CCAA crown.
The Broncos collected 129 total points, narrowly edging out 2017 CCAA Tournament victors Cal State LA by three points. The Golden Eagles were in the top position on five coaches’ ballots, followed by just one point by UC San Diego, sitting at a tally of 125.
Chico State lands in fourth with San Francisco State picked to take fifth with a tally of 101 points. The Gators are followed by Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State Dominguez Hills and Sonoma State with the trio duking it out for the sixth and final playoff spot in the preseason prognostications. Then, Stanislaus State lands in ninth, followed by the pair of Cal State Monterey Bay and Humboldt State in a tie for 10th. Cal State San Marcos and Cal State East Bay round out the conference’s 13 squads preparing to hit the field to open the season this week.
Cal Poly Pomona is ranked at No. 4 in the 2018 United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, and the team has qualified for the NCAA Championship for each of the past three seasons. Despite losing reigning CCAA Offensive Player of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year Sergi Monso and CCAA first-team midfielder Luis Najera Jr. to graduation, the Broncos return an experienced senior class. Cal Poly Pomona All-American and All-CCAA performer Nadeer Ghantous will anchor the defense, with All-West Region player Jimmie Villalobos manning the midfield. Head coach Adam Reeves embarks on his second year at the helm of the Broncos.
Cal State LA’s 2018 squad boasts 17 returners from last year’s CCAA Tournament champion team which knocked off Cal Poly Pomona 2-0 in the championship final. The always stout Golden Eagles, coached by Chris Chamides, are 91-28-27 over the past seven seasons and claimed NCAA West Region titles in 2011 and 2014.
The UC San Diego lost just twice last year, but missed out on a tournament semifinal match on their home field after being upended by San Francisco State to close their 2017 campaign. The Tritons are looking to rebound from the postseason disappointment from a season ago to get back to the form that saw the side charge to the NCAA semifinals in 2016 after taking the CCAA regular-season and tournament crowns. The team starts the season with a 10-game homestand that includes four conference matches and spans the full month of September.
Other teams garnering at least one vote to take the top spot in 2018 include 2017 Coach of the Year Javier Ayala-Hil’s San Francisco State squad. Cal State Dominguez Hills also nabbed two first-place votes from the league’s coaches after a 13-5-3 season that was marred by an infraction that vacated their CCAA title and dropped the Toros to seventh in the final standings.
Should the predictions come to fruition, the six tournament teams will mirror the top six in the revised 2017 CCAA standings, putting Cal State San Bernardino in the mix for 2018. 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 nine squads take to the pitch with the remaining four teams kicking off over the weekend. CCAA play begins on Wednesday, Sept. 12, as Sonoma State hosts Humboldt State for an afternoon men’s and women’s soccer double-header in Rohnert Park.
| 2018 CCAA Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll |
| Rank |
Institution |
Points (First place votes) |
| 1. |
Cal Poly Pomona |
129 (4) |
| 2. |
Cal State LA |
126 (5) |
| 3. |
UC San Diego |
125 (1) |
| 4. |
Chico State |
106 |
| 5. |
San Francisco State |
101 (1) |
| 6. |
Cal State San Bernardino |
83 |
| 7. |
Cal State Dominguez Hills |
78 (2) |
| 8. |
Sonoma State |
68 |
| 9. |
Stanislaus State |
55 |
| t-10. |
Cal State Monterey Bay |
46 |
| t-10. |
Humboldt State |
46 |
| 12. |
Cal State San Marcos |
32 |
| 13. |
Cal State East Bay |
19 |