The Boston College men's soccer team will look to build on last year's ACC Championship final appearance and 14-6-1 record. Expectations are fairly high for the Eagles who will start the season ranked 14th in the 2012 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Continental Tire preseason rankings released on Tuesday. The Eagles are one of three ACC clubs ranked in the top 25, joining defending National Champion North Carolina at no. 1 and Maryland at no. 9.
Virginia, Duke and Wake Forest were among the teams receiving votes, putting them just outside the preseason Top 25.
The season is right around the corner with an exhibition game against Syracuse on Monday, August 13 at 11 AM in Newton. BC opens on the road at Quinnipiac on August 24 before hosting Boston University on August 27 in the hope opener.
The women's team earned the No. 11 spot in the NSCAA preseason poll, which is actually low for an ACC club. ACC women's soccer is absolutely stacked this season with eight programs ranked in the preseason Top 25. Duke, Wake Forest and Florida State are ranked 2nd, 3rd and 4th, respectively. Virginia comes in at no. 7 and North Carolina at no. 8. Maryland earned a no. 13 preseason ranking, while Virginia Tech is ranked 22nd. Miami was among the teams receiving votes.
Per usual, the women's program plays a brutal schedule that will see BC take on nine of the top 13 programs ranked in the preseason Top 25. In addition to the ACC slate, BC faces top-ranked Stanford in Palo Alto (August 26), #23 Boston University (August 26), #12 Central Florida (September 10) and #10 Pepperdine (September 29).
Boston College hosts UMass in an exhibition this Friday at 5:30 PM, before opening the season a week later against Providence (7 PM at Newton). If you haven't gotten to a Boston College soccer game and you live in the area, consider heading on over to Newton Soccer Complex and cheering on the Eagles.