Kansas City, Mo. - The University of Maine at Fort Kent Men's Soccer team will begin defense of their Sunrise Conference and Region X Championship as the pre-season number twenty two ranked team as the 2008 NAIA Men's Soccer Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll was released late yesterday by the NAIA national office in Kansas City, Missouri.
Defending NAIA National Champion Azusa Pacific (Calif.) received all 18 first place votes in the poll to begin the year at #1.
Coach Bill Ashby's Bengals broke into the top 25 last season (21-1-0) for the first time in school history and were ranked #19 in the final regular season poll of 2007.They now begin 2008 with hopes of climbing even higher into the national scene and deeper into the National Tourney having advanced to last year's Sweet 16.However, UMFK will be tested early as they face NCAA III schools Thomas College and Lyndon State at the Maine Presque Isle Classic Sept 5&6 and then host NAIA Pre-Season #25 Savannah College of Art & Design (Ga.) out of the Florida Sun Conference in Fort Kent on Wednesday Sept 10.It could be the first time in school history that two teams in the NAIA Top 25 play at Alumni Memorial Field if both teams remain in the top 25 following the release of the Sept 9 ratings.2007 UMFK Hall of Fame inductee and alumni Coach Wulf-Dieter Koch's Auburn University Montgomery (Ala.) team begins the year as preseason #3. For the NAIA release of this story please visit their website.
