TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - The Grove City College men's soccer program was voted as the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) favorite this fall, according to the league's annual preseason coaches' poll. Voted on by the conference's 11 head coaches, the results of this year's poll were revealed with the PAC's Players to Watch List Wednesday. 

Led by 18th-year head coach Mike Dreves, the 2022 PAC Coach of the Year, Grove City secured nine first-place votes and 99 total points to earn the top spot in the coaches' poll. The Wolverines earned the No. 1 seed in last year's six-team championship tournament after posting a perfect 10-0 conference mark in the regular season, but were upended in the tournament semifinals by Bethany College in PKs. Grove City owns a pair of PAC men's soccer titles (1996, 2005) and has made 15 straight trips to the league’s championship tournament. 

This marks the fifth straight year Grove City has been selected as the preseason favorite. 

Defending champion Franciscan University ranked second in this year's preseason poll after gathering two first-place votes and totaling 85 points. The Barons, led by third-year head coach Brett Ridenour, hosted the PAC Tournament title match for the second consecutive year last season and came away with their first PAC title with a 2-1 win over Bethany. The win sent Franciscan to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.

Geneva College totaled 75 points to finish third and was followed by Bethany in fourth with 72 points. Ranking fifth in the balloting was Allegheny College with 62 points, with Westminster College coming in sixth with 55 points, followed by Washington & Jefferson College (54), Chatham University (42), Saint Vincent College (27), Waynesburg University (22) and Thiel College (12)

A total of 23 All-PAC players from 2022 return to their respective programs this fall, including four First Team selections, four Second Team selections and 15 Honorable Mention choices.

Geneva rising sophomore Wil Dunda (Sewickley, Pa./Quaker Valley) and Franciscan rising junior Jonathan Schriner (Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton), the last two PAC Newcomers of the Year, highlight the list of Players to Watch in 2023.

Dunda had a terrific first season for Geneva, earning starts in all 21 of the Golden Tornadoes' matches last fall on his way to the league's top newcomer award. His 10 assists were the most in the PAC and tied for the 17th-most in NCAA Division III. Geneva's first-ever PAC Newcomer of the Year, Dunda finished the year with 16 points on three goals and 10 assists, with eight of those coming during the league's regular season. 

Schriner, who totaled eight goals and 18 points to earn the PAC Newcomer of the Year in 2021, followed that with a strong sophomore campaign. His seven assists were third in the conference, while Schriner's seven goals and 21 points were both fourth in the PAC, as he earned First Team All-PAC after helping the Barons capture the PAC championship. 

The Players to Watch list also includes 19 student-athletes who earned a spot on the Fall 2022 PAC Academic Honor Roll, which recognizes student-athletes on varsity sports teams who have earned a grade-point average (GPA) of 3.6 or higher on a 4.0 scale during their semester of competition. 

The conference's regular season concludes Wednesday, October 25 with the six-team PAC Championship Tournament scheduled to get underway Saturday, Oct. 28. The title match is slated for Saturday, November 4.

This year’s tournament champion will secure the PAC’s automatic-qualifying bid to the Division III Championship. Team selections for the Division III Championship will be announced Sunday, Nov. 5, with the first and second rounds slated for Saturday-Sunday, Nov. 12-13.
 

2023 PAC Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll (Predicted order of finish)
School (first-place votes)	Points	2022 record (conference)
1. Grove City College (9)	99	12-5-1 (10-0 PAC)
2. Franciscan University (2)	85	13-4-4 (7-2-1 PAC)
3. Geneva College	75	10-4-7 (6-1-3 PAC)
4. Bethany College	72	9-7-5 (4-3-3 PAC)
5. Allegheny College	62	5-8-4 (4-2-4 PAC)
6. Westminster College	55	9-6-3 (4-3-3 PAC)
7. Washington & Jefferson College	54	6-8-2 (3-5-2 PAC)
8. Chatham University	42	3-10-3 (2-6-2 PAC)
9. Saint Vincent College	27	5-9-4 (1-6-3 PAC)
10. Waynesburg University	22	3-9-5 (1-6-3 PAC)
11. Thiel College	11	1-15-2 (1-9 PAC)

2023 PAC Men's Soccer Players to Watch
1=2022 1st Team All-PAC / 2=2nd Team All-PAC / HM = Honorable Mention

Allegheny College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Brady Napoleon (1)	Jr.	D	Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon
Henry Rosenberg (2)	Sr.	F	Pittsburgh, Pa./Allderdice
Matt Taliani (HM)	Sr.	D	Cheswick, Pa./Springdale
Cliff Weaver	Jr.	F	Silver Spring, Md./Albert Einstein

 

Bethany College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Sebastian Arrocain (HM)	Sr.	M	Chivilcoy, Buenos Aires, Argentina/Campus Lincoln
Ousainou Conateh	Fr.	F	Banjul, The Gambia - Oakton, Va./Oakton
Issa Dieng	Fr.	M	Dakar, Senegal/Jean Mermoz de Dakar
Gregorio Lopez Ogawa	Jr.	M	Del Viso, Buenos Aires, Argentina/Del Viso Day School
Matteo Pintus	Jr.	GK	Cagliari, Italy/Liceo Euclide

 

Chatham University
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Charles Archer	Sr.	M	Etters, Pa./Red Land
Stephen Comeaux	Jr.	D	Frisco, Texas/Rick Reedy
Anthony Quidachay	Sr.	D	Broomfield, Colo./Legacy

 

Franciscan University
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Jax Mautone (HM)	Gr.	GK	Kingston, N.Y./John A. Coleman
Ryan Miller (HM)	Jr.	M	Galena, Ohio/Olentangy Berlin
Augustine Rubino (2)	So.	M	Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge
Jonathan Schriner (1)	Jr.	F	Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton
Joe St. George (HM)	Jr.	D	Ashburn, Va./Bishop O'Connell

 

Geneva College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Blaise Burns	So.	D	Ambridge, Pa./Quaker Valley
Wil Dunda (2)	So.	M	Sewickley, Pa./Quaker Valley
Antonio Fiodilino (2)	Sr.	M	McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny
Carnel Kerr	Sr.	F	Flankers, Jamaica/Carlynton (Pa.)

 

Grove City College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
John-Luc Harbour (HM)	Jr.	M	Broomfield, Colo./Broomfield
Hunter Hardin (1)	Sr.	F	North Ridgeville, Ohio/Freeport
Matt Herrmann (HM)	So.	M	Madison, Ala./Paul V. Moore
Clay Meredith (1)	Sr.	D	Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Park

 

Saint Vincent College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Ethan Bridges	So.	D	Peoria, Ariz./Sandra Day O'Connor
Jose Hurtado (HM)	Sr.	M/D	Santa Cruz, Bolivia/St. Benedict's Prep
Marko Kasiyan	So.	D	Buffalo, N.Y./St. Francis
Andres Mateos-Carrion	Sr.	M	Alicante, Spain/Saint Benedict's Prep
Eduarda Richa (HM)	Jr.	M	Juiz de Flora, Brazil/St. Benedict's Prep

   

Thiel College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Nick Kristian	So.	GK	Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell
Jonah Lentz (HM)	Jr.	D	Greenville, Pa./Greenville
AJ Trobeck (HM)	Sr.	F	Hubbard, Ohio/Hubbard
Evan Young	Sr.	F	Suitland, Md./Henry E. Lackey

   

Washington & Jefferson College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Nolan Agostoni	Jr.	M	Greensburg, Pa./Greater Latrobe
Ethan Bowser (HM)	So.	M	McKeesport, Pa./Elizabeth Forward
McKinley Joseph	Sr.	M	Stamford, Conn./King School
Jacob Lee	Sr.	M	Honolulu, Hawaii/Iolani School
Aontonio Romero	Jr.	D	Bowie, Md./Bowie

 

Waynesburg University
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Michael Francus	Jr.	GK	Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park
Logan Gonzalez	Sr.	M	Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk
Tyler Martin	So.	M	Parker, Colo./Lutheran
Seth Massotti	Jr.	F	Douglass, Mass./Whitinsville Christian
Tyler Mohrbacher (HM)	Sr.	M	Freedom, Pa./Freedom

 

Westminster College
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown/High School
Brendan Callahan	Jr.	M	Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem
Marc Esqueda (HM)	Gr.	F	San Bruno, Calif./Junipero Serra
Jad Jadallah (HM)	Gr.	GK	Canfield, Ohio/Canfield
Connor Schmidt	Jr.	F	Evans City, Pa./Seneca Valley