Skip Ad

Men's Soccer

Generals Earn Max Points to Top ODAC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll

FOREST, Va. --- Reigning ODAC champion Washington and Lee University stands atop the ODAC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll for a fourth straight edition of the annual coaches' survey.

The Generals collected the maximum points possible with 144 markers powered by 12 first place votes. The University of Lynchburg collected the remaining top nod on the way to 131 tallies. Roanoke College and Virginia Wesleyan University both cleared the century mark with 123 and 102 points, respectively.

In the following sections, we take a quick look back at last season and get a feel for what to expect for the upcoming men's soccer campaign.

2022 ODAC SEASON AND TOURNAMENT
  • The 2022 league table was flush with evidence of the strength of ODAC men's soccer with eight of the conference's 13 teams with .500 or better overall records.
  • Lynchburg commanded the top seed in the ODAC Tournament with 25 points powered by an 8-1-1 league mark.
  • The tournament's quarterfinal round presented plenty of intrigue with 8th-seeded Hampden-Sydney topping #1 Lynchburg, 1-0, and 3rd-seeded Virginia Wesleyan advancing past #6 Randolph-Macon, 2-1, in extra-time.
  • Fourth-seeded Roanoke scored a 1-0 win over #5 Bridgewater in the quarters before downing H-SC, 2-0, to earn a place in the final for the first time since 2014.
  • Second-seeded W&L scored 13 goals in reaching the title match as the Generals defeated #7 Guilford, 7-0, in the quarterfinals and VWU, 6-1, in the semifinals.
  • Drama ensued in the championship with a long dry-spell snapped by W&L's Weyimi Agbeyegbe with his 74th minute tally, but RC's Harrison Kraus knotted the score just over 10 minutes later.
  • Charley Colby played hero for the Generals as he finished over the game-winner just 40-seconds from regulation to secure the Generals seventh ODAC trophy.
  • W&L tied an ODAC record for most goals scored in a single men's soccer tournament; their 15 goals matched the effort by the 1993 title-winning Roanoke squad.
2022 NCAA DIVISION III TOURNAMENT -- NCAA Bracket
  • Despite its early exit from the ODAC Tournament, Lynchburg's body of work earned the Hornets an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, joining automatic qualifiers W&L in the 64-team bracket.
  • Lynchburg traveled to Christopher Newport for early round play where the Hornets met Catholic in the first round; the Cardinals posted a 2-0 result to close Lynchburg's season.
  • W&L, which reached the national semifinals in 2021, were selected to host first and second round play; they welcomed Brevard, Case Western Reserve, and Muhlenberg to campus.
  • W&L's scoring bonanza continued as the Generals down Brevard, 5-1, and then took down Muhlenberg, 5-2, to advance to the round of 16.
  • the 22nd-ranked Generals traveled to Kenyon College and met the host Owls in the third round; all goals were scored in the second half as KC notched a 3-1 win to end W&L's campaign
THE NATIONAL SCENE ENTERING 2023
  • The United Soccer Coaches (USC) released its annual preseason rankings on August 1; Washington and Lee was the lone ODAC team to receive recognition with the Generals slotting in 11th on the top-25 chart; defending national champion University of Chicago and runner-up Williams College top the coaches-driven survey.
  • Barring any changes, the 2023 NCAA Tournament bracket will feature 64 schools; 43 will qualify by automatic bid from their conferences in "Pool A," with one possible spot reserved for "Pool B" as independent schools or those in conference's that do not qualify for an automatic berth; the remaining 20 squads will be chosen at-large from by the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship Committee from "Pool C," which includes all remaining teams not entered by Pool A or B processes.
RETURNING STATISTICAL LEADERS
The athletes listed below represent the top-three returning statistical leaders for each category from the 2022-23 season.
Save Pct./GAA Minimums | 33% of team goalkeeper minutes played
  • Points -- 38 - Weyimi Agbeyegbe (W&L) | 27 - Luke Mega (LYN) | 26 - Nathan Yared (SU)
  • Goals -- 16 - Weyimi Agbeyegbe (W&L) | 12 - Luke Mega (LYN) | 11 - Nathan Yared (SU)
  • Assists -- 9 - Park Bruner (W&L) | 6 - Weyimi Agbeyegbe (W&L) | 5 - Manzi Shalita (LYN) and Kyle Welch (SU)
  • Shots (on goal) -- 79 (49) - Weyimi Agbeyegbe (W&L) | 56 (34) - Luke Mega (LYN) | 50 (25) - Nathan Yared (SU)
  • GK Minutes Played -- 1,764:19 - Will Smith (W&L) | 1,303:39 - Travis Jett (SU) | 1,279:54 - Charles Schweinefuss (BC)
  • GK Saves -- 89 - Roman Robinson (GC) | 59 - Charles Schweinefuss (BC) | 57 - Andrew Arledge (EMU)
  • Save Pct. -- .756 - Charles Schweinefuss (BC) | .754 - Roman Robinson (GC) | .722 - Andrew Arledge (EMU)
  • Goals Against Avg. -- .867 - Will Joseph (W&L) | 1.336 - Charles Schweinefuss (BC) | 1.463 - Connor Kitson (HSC)
  • Shutouts -- 6 - Will Joseph (W&L) and Roman Robinson (GC) | 4 - Charles Schweinefuss (BC)
RETURNING ALL-ODAC TALENT -- 2022 All-ODAC Men's Soccer Awards
Last season, 25 repeat All-ODAC honorees dotting league rosters. This year, there is more room for new stars to emerge with 17-of-37 all-conference standouts returning to conference benches in 2023.

Lynchburg and Virginia Wesleyan lead the way with four all-league returners each. The Hornets contingents includes a pair of fifth-year returners in forward Luke Mega and midfielder Carter Averette. Reigning ODAC Coach of the Year Mike Singleton graduated four of his seven All-ODAC, but first team forward Weyimi Agbeyegbe leads a strong crew of Generals ready to replenish their ranks of honored players. Roanoke features the return of 2022 ODAC Rookie of the Year, 6-foot-5 forward Harrison Kraus.

Listed below are the All-ODAC players from 2022 back to another run in 2023.
 
   FORWARDS (6)
  • Luke Mega (LYN) -- 1st Team
  • Nathan Yared (SU) -- 1st Team
  • Weyimi Agbeyegbe (W&L) -- 1st Team
  • Harrison Kraus (RC) -- 2nd Team
  • Juan Tovar (VWU) -- 2nd Team
  • Noah Carney (RAND) -- 3rd Team
   MIDFIELDERS (7)
  • Carter Averette (LYN) -- 1st Team
  • Dylan Berk (RC) -- 1st Team
  • Declan Shaw (H-SC) -- 2nd Team
  • Manzi Shalita (LYN) -- 2nd Team
  • Alex Moody (VWU) -- 2nd Team
  • Brandon John (RAND) -- 3rd Team
  • Nate Mitchell (VWU) -- 3rd Team
   DEFENSE (5)
  • Leo Galpin (FC) -- 2nd Team
  • Seth Dale (LYN) -- 2nd Team
  • Stefan Ngoh (H-SC) -- 3rd Team
  • Caleb Jackson (VWU) -- 3rd Team
  • PJ Ryan (W&L) -- 3rd Team
   GOALKEEPERS (1)
  • Will Joseph (W&L) -- 2nd Team
ODAC HEAD COACHES
The ODAC features some of the best coaches in the business with five coaches boasting better than .600 career winning percentages. Lynchburg's Chris Yeager leads active coaches with 241 wins, while Mike Singleton has won at a blistering .771 clip in nine seasons at Washington and Lee. This year's group features two new head coaches, both with ODAC coaching experience. Sheldon Blue takes the reins at Randolph College for his first collegiate season in the lead chair. He served as an assistant coach at Roanoke for four seasons. The profile is similar for Shane Kohler as he takes over as head coach for Virginia Wesleyan. This is his fourth season with the Marlins program as he served as an assistant coach from 2020-22.
  • Philip Wilson (AU) -- Overall: 51-87-15 (.382)/9 | at AU: 51-87-15 (.382)/9
  • Ryan Bennison (BC) -- Overall: 87-107-17 (.453)/12 | at BC: 87-107-17 (.453)/12
  • Justin Carey (EMU) -- Overall: 1-10-6 (.235) | at EMU: 1-10-6 (.235)
  • Matt Cureton (FC) -- Overall: 6-23-3 (.234)/2 | at FC: 6-23-3 (.234)/2
  • Mike Bair (GC) -- Overall: 19-33-7 (.381)/4 | at GC: 6-8-4 (.444)/1
  • Tommy DiNuzzo (H-SC) -- Overall: 67-86-15 (.443)/10 | at H-SC: 52-36-10 (.582)/6
  • Chris Yeager (LYN) -- Overall: 241-117-52 (.651)/21 | at LYN: 241-117-52 (.651)/21
    • 7x ODAC Coach of the Year: 2004, 06, 09-10, 16-17, 21
  • Sheldon Blue (RAND) -- First Season
  • Josh Laux (R-MC) -- Overall: 176-126-32 (.575)/19 | at R-MC: 72-47-12 (.595)/8
    • 1x ODAC Coach of the Year: 2007
  • Ryan Pflugrad (RC) -- Overall: 104-46-29 (.662)/10 | at RC: 104-46-29 (.662)/10
    • 1x ODAC Coach of the Year: 2014
  • Brandon Kates (SU) -- 4-6-6 (.438)/1 | at SU: 4-6-6 (.438)/1
  • Shane Kohler (VWU) -- First Season
  • Mike Singleton (W&L) -- Overall: 173-75-25 (.679)/14 | at W&L: 128-31-20 (.771)/9
    • 5x ODAC Coach of the Year: 2015, 18-19, 21-22
THE SCHEDULE AND TOURNAMENT
  • The 13-team ODAC contingent will play an unbalanced 10-game schedule in addition to each school's non-league slate.
  • The top eight teams in the ODAC standings from conference play will qualify for the ODAC Men's Soccer Tournament; the winner of the tournament will earn the conference's automatic entry to the NCAA postseason.
  • The 2023 ODAC Men's Soccer Tournament Schedule features:
    • Quarterfinals: Saturday, October 28 at the #1-4 Seeds
    • Semifinals: Wednesday, November 1 at the two highest remaining seeds (bracket progression)
    • Championship: Saturday, November 4 at the highest remaining seed
    • All game times are TBD
  • The NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament field will be finalized on Sunday, November 5, with announcement on NCAA.com on Monday, November 6.
  • For the second straight year, the City of Salem, Va., the ODAC, and Roanoke College will serve as hosts of the men's and women's national semifinals and championships; the men's semifinals will be Friday, December 1, with the championship on Sunday, December 3.
Listed below is the 2023 ODAC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll. For more information on ODAC men's soccer, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC's home on the Internet at odaconline.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow @odacathletics on Twitter and Instagram.
 
2023 ODAC MEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL
(#) denotes 1st place votes
1 Washington and Lee University (12) 144 pts.
2 University of Lynchburg (1) 131 pts.
3 Roanoke College 123 pts.
4 Virginia Wesleyan University 102 pts.
5 Hampden-Sydney College 95 pts.
6 Randolph-Macon College 91 pts.
7 Bridgewater College 75 pts.
8 Averett University 67 pts.
9 Guilford College 53 pts.
10 Shenandoah University 48 pts.
11 Randolph College 39 pts.
12 Ferrum College 30 pts.
13 Eastern Mennonite University 16 pts.