Former player making some predictions for the season here. Sorry if they are a little biased.
1) CWRU - Return most of a strong team that made it to the Elite Eight last year. They will have to replace all-UAA Alex Besl, but F Seldon Magruder will be up to the task. They know if they are gonna win the UAA with this core, this is their year.
2) NYU - An extremely young and talented side that plays very stylistically pleasing soccer. Oliver Kleban should have another big year along with a returning sophomore-lead defense. Also, hearing that they added a former D1 striker transfer from American University. Goalkeeping is a question mark.
3) Rochester - Although they lost a lot, particularly their midfield engine Bryce Ikeda, Coach Chris Apple manages to find an upperclassmen to step up time and time again. Look for them to make the tournament on the back of their seniors this year including Aidan Miller.
4) Chicago - Losing one UAA POY is tough, imagine losing three in the same class. UC will have to rely on the talents of Kyle Ziegler and Vicente Mateus to carry a completely new side through the season. Coach Flinn will have a tough task keeping them in the tournament, but with the level of recruiting done in recent years, the talent is there.
5) CMU - CMU lost a lot this year, but they maintain a potent attack. Look for Elliot Cohen to put up 13+ goals this season as this CMU team seems like they can beat almost anybody, but also lose to almost anybody.
6) Brandeis - Brandeis will be better than last year, but thats not saying too much. A year of maturation should help Brandeis' midfield, but the big question was and will continue to be goalkeeping. Was Brandeis up to their expected level last year? No. Could they have made the tournament with better goalkeeping? Possibly. Finding consistency between the sticks will be key for a successful season.
7) Emory - I'm picking Emory to score more UAA goals than last year and win a game (LOL). Emory returns a solid backline/GK and Jun Tsuru up top, a bright spot in an otherwise dreadful UAA showing. Losing Mustapha Khattab hurts, but Emory could have an ace in their sleeve with a couple talented freshmen.
8) WashU - The epitome of inconsistency last year, WashU had the ability to beat or lose to anyone. This year I actually expect worse. They lose all three of their all-UAA performers including striker R Sproule. They will need their underclassmen to show up big time. This team will grind out a couple good results, but lose a lot of tight games.
Thanks and I expect to be way off considering the unpredictability of the UAA every year.
1) CWRU - Return most of a strong team that made it to the Elite Eight last year. They will have to replace all-UAA Alex Besl, but F Seldon Magruder will be up to the task. They know if they are gonna win the UAA with this core, this is their year.
2) NYU - An extremely young and talented side that plays very stylistically pleasing soccer. Oliver Kleban should have another big year along with a returning sophomore-lead defense. Also, hearing that they added a former D1 striker transfer from American University. Goalkeeping is a question mark.
3) Rochester - Although they lost a lot, particularly their midfield engine Bryce Ikeda, Coach Chris Apple manages to find an upperclassmen to step up time and time again. Look for them to make the tournament on the back of their seniors this year including Aidan Miller.
4) Chicago - Losing one UAA POY is tough, imagine losing three in the same class. UC will have to rely on the talents of Kyle Ziegler and Vicente Mateus to carry a completely new side through the season. Coach Flinn will have a tough task keeping them in the tournament, but with the level of recruiting done in recent years, the talent is there.
5) CMU - CMU lost a lot this year, but they maintain a potent attack. Look for Elliot Cohen to put up 13+ goals this season as this CMU team seems like they can beat almost anybody, but also lose to almost anybody.
6) Brandeis - Brandeis will be better than last year, but thats not saying too much. A year of maturation should help Brandeis' midfield, but the big question was and will continue to be goalkeeping. Was Brandeis up to their expected level last year? No. Could they have made the tournament with better goalkeeping? Possibly. Finding consistency between the sticks will be key for a successful season.
7) Emory - I'm picking Emory to score more UAA goals than last year and win a game (LOL). Emory returns a solid backline/GK and Jun Tsuru up top, a bright spot in an otherwise dreadful UAA showing. Losing Mustapha Khattab hurts, but Emory could have an ace in their sleeve with a couple talented freshmen.
8) WashU - The epitome of inconsistency last year, WashU had the ability to beat or lose to anyone. This year I actually expect worse. They lose all three of their all-UAA performers including striker R Sproule. They will need their underclassmen to show up big time. This team will grind out a couple good results, but lose a lot of tight games.
Thanks and I expect to be way off considering the unpredictability of the UAA every year.