PITMAN—After claiming the 2014 NJAC Championship en route to a 17-5 overall record, Montclair State University has been selected as the 2015 men’s soccer preseason favorite in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. The Red Hawks will be seeking their 12th NJAC title since 1961.

MSU was selected to finish first on 6-of-the-10 ballots submitted by the league head coaches. The 2014 Red Hawks claimed the NJAC regular season title with a league-best 8-1 conference record and then claimed the conference crown by winning the NJAC Tournament and claiming the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Led by the 2014 NJAC Coach of the Year in Todd Tumelty, Montclair has posted an overall mark of 72-16-7 during his first four seasons. In addition to Tumelty, the defending NJAC champion Red Hawks return four other of the league’s 2014 major award winners, including the reigning Offensive Player of the Year in senior forward Lucas Terci; the reigning NJAC Co-Midfielder of the Year in senior Damian Bziukiewicz; the reigning David Logar Leadership Award recipient in junior back John Starner; and the 2014 NJAC Rookie of the Year in sophomore midfielder Kyle Goodwin.

Rutgers University-Camden, which claimed the 2014 ECAC Metro/Upstate Tournament Championship, was selected to place second and received two first-place votes. One season removed from their national runner-up finish, the 2014 Scarlet Raptors defeated NJAC rival Stockton in the ECAC Tournament Championship Match en route to a 16-8-1 overall record. Led by 10th-year head coach Tim Oswald, Camden has produced an overall record of 138-47-23 during his tenure. The Scarlet Raptors return a trio of all-conference players from a 2014 squad which finished third in the NJAC regular season with a 6-2-1 league mark, including senior forward Mike Ryan, senior midfielder Connor Hurff, and senior midfielder Grant Taylor.

Rutgers University-Newark, which earned an at-large bid to the 2014 NCAA Tournament en route to a 16-6 overall record, was selected to place third and received one first-place vote. The 2014 Scarlet Raiders defeated Babson in the NCAA Tournament first round before falling to Cortland in a second round match. Now in his ninth season at the helm of the Rutgers-Newark program, head coach Kevin East has guided the Scarlet Raiders to an overall record of 104-62-13, while his career collegiate coaching record stands at 222-128-24. Newark returns a trio of all-conference performers from a 2014 NCAA Tournament squad which finished as the NJAC regular season runner-up with a 7-2 record in league play, including junior forward Charlie O’Connell, junior midfielder Hubert Dul, and the reigning NJAC Goalkeeper of the Year in senior Matt Broomall.

Kean University, which finished fourth in the 2014 NJAC regular season race with a 5-4 mark in league play despite being predicted to finish ninth in the 2014 preseason coaches’ poll, was again selected to finish fourth. In his first season at the helm of the Cougars program, head coach Rob Irvine guided Kean to an overall mark of 12-8-1, improving his overall career collegiate coaching record to 34-22-1. The Cougars return a trio of all-conference players from their 2014 squad, including sophomore forward Sevag Kherlopian, junior midfielder Robert Barrera, and junior midfielder Kevin Olaya.

Rowan University was selected to place fifth and received one first place vote. The 2014 Profs finished 10-9 in their first season under the direction of head coach Scott Baker, giving Baker 16 career collegiate coaching victories. Rowan returns a pair of all-conference players from its 2014 squad in junior forward Vinny Ignatowicz and sophomore midfielder Travis Wards.

Stockton University, which will be led by new first-year head coach Greg Ruttler, was selected to place sixth. The 2014 Ospreys advanced to the ECAC Metro/Upstate Tournament Championship Match en route to a 13-6-5 overall record. Ruttler inherits a squad which features four returning all-conference players from the 2014 season, including senior back Clevon McPherson, junior forward Anthony Colofranson, senior midfielder Bobby Spracklin, and senior goalkeeper Bobby Varga.

The coaches’ dark horse selection, William Paterson University was selected to place seventh. The 2014 Pioneers earned a berth in the ECAC Metro/Upstate Tournament en route to a 9-8-3 overall record. The longest-tenured NJAC men’s soccer coach in his 24th season, Brian Woods has guided the Pioneers to an overall mark of 190-198-41. WPU returns one all-conference player from its 2014 ECAC Tournament squad in senior back Aken Pierre.

The College of New Jersey, led by 21st-year head coach George Nazario, was selected to place eighth. Nazario has guided TCNJ to an overall record of 199-143-41, including a mark of 7-9-2 in 2014. The Lions return one all-conference player from the 2014 season in junior midfielder Nick Costelloe.

Ramapo College, which finished 8-9-2 overall in 2014, was selected to place ninth. Head coach DJ Pinton has guided the Roadrunners to an overall record of 106-75-22 in his 11 seasons in Mahwah. Ramapo returns a pair of all-conference players from its 2014 squad in junior back Kevin Monaghan and junior back Bayley Young. 

New Jersey City University, under the leadership of fourth-year head coach Patrick Snyder, was selected to place 10th. The 2014 Gothic Knights finished 1-15-4 overall, giving Snyder 32 career collegiate coaching victories. NJCU returns one all-conference player from the 2014 season in junior back Gabriel Freitas.

The 57th season of NJAC men’s soccer will kick off on Tuesday, September 1 with seven league teams in non-conference action. Conference play will begin just 18 days later on Saturday, September 19 with the first three league matches of the season.

The top six regular season finishers will advance to the NJAC Championship Tournament which will begin with first round action on Saturday, October 31. The NJAC Tournament semifinals will be conducted on Wednesday, November 4, and the 2015 NJAC Championship Match will be played at the site of the highest remaining seed on Saturday, November 7. The winner of the NJAC Tournament receives the conference’s automatic qualification to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament.

2015 NJAC Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Montclair State (6)

2. Rutgers-Camden (2)

3. Rutgers-Newark (1)

4. Kean

5. Rowan (1)

6. Stockton

7. William Paterson (dark horse)

8. TCNJ

9. Ramapo

10. New Jersey City

First Place Votes In Parentheses