University of Connecticut Athletics
CONNECTICUT TO CAPTURE 2001 BIG EAST TITLE IN PRESEASON POLL
7/25/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
STORRS, CT ­ The University of Connecticut men’s soccer team,
the defending 2000 NCAA Champion, has been chosen to capture
the 2001 BIG EAST men’s soccer regular season title by the vote of
the league’s 13 coaches. Each coach votes for every team except
his own, with 12 points given for a first-place vote, 11 for second,
etc.
Last season, UConn finished the season with a 20-3-2 record and
the conference’s second NCAA title in the last five years. The
Huskies won the BIG EAST Regular season title with an 8-1-2 mark.
UConn, under the direction of fifth-year head coach Ray Reid,
earned 143 points in the preseason poll and garnered 11 first-place
votes.
Connecticut senior defender Chris Gbandi (Houston, TX), the 2001
Hermann Trophy winner, is the unanimous selection as the BIG
EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Gbandi was the
2000 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, for the second
consecutive season, and was selected to the All-BIG EAST First
Team for the third straight year. Teammate, senior Bryheem
Hancock (Middletown, DE), is also an unanimous choice for
Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. Hancock posted 15 shutouts in
25 games and led all league goalkeepers with a 0.50 goals against
average. UConn’s Cesar Cuellar (New York, NY) joins Gbandi and
Hancock as Preseason All-BIG EAST Team selections.
Boston College junior Casey Schmidt, the 2000 Offensive Player of
the Year, was chosen as the 2001 Preseason Offensive Player of
the Year. Schmidt posted eight goals and three assists to help lead
the Eagles to their first BIG EAST Tournament title since 1990.
St. John’s finished third in the voting earning 129 points, while
Rutgers finished third in the voting with 123 points and receiving the
two remaining first-place votes. Rutgers’ junior Guy Abrahamson
was the only other unanimous choice on the Preseason All-BIG
EAST Team.
Connecticut opens it season on Sunday, August 19 against Fairfield
University in exhibition play at Morrone Stadium in Storrs. The
game is slated to begin at 1:00 p.m.
2001 BIG EAST MEN’S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL ‘00 Record ‘00 Finish Points BIG EAST Overall Regular Season 1. Connecticut (11) 143 8-1-2 20-3-2 1st 2. St. John’s 129 8-2-1 14-5-2 2nd 3. Rutgers (2) 123 5-5-1 10-9-1 tied 6th 4. Boston College 99 7-3-1 12-7-1 3rd 5. Seton Hall 98 6-5-0 13-7-0 5th 6. Notre Dame 94 4-7-0 7-8-2 9th 7. Gerogetown 89 5-5-1 9-8-1 tied 6th 8. Syracuse 66 4-5-2 8-9-2 8th 9. Pittsburgh 54 7-4-0 13-5-0 4th 10. West Virginia 44 1-1- 4-13-1 12th 11. Providence 32 3-7-1 4-13-1 10th 12. Virginia Tech 22 n/a 8-9-2 n/a 13. Villanova 21 2-7-2 6-9-2 11th first-place votes in parentheses
PRESEASON AWARDS
Offensive Player of the Year
Casey Schmidt, Jr., Boston College
Defensive Player of the Year
Chris Gbandi, Sr., Connecticut*
Goalkeeper of the Year
Bryheem Hancock, Sr., Connecticut*
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Guy Abrahamson, Jr., M, Rutgers*
David Boutillier, Sr., B, Rutgers
Erich Braun, Jr., F, Notre Dame
Cesar Cuellar, So., F, Connecticut
Chris Gbandi, Sr., B, Connecticut*
Bryheem Hancock, Sr., GK, Connecticut*
Shalrie Joseph, Sr., M, St. John’s
Dennis Ludwig, Sr., F, Rutgers
Jeff Matteo, Sr., M, St. John’s
Kenny Owens, Sr., M/B, Georgetown
Casey Schmidt, Jr., F, Boston College
Greg Strohmann, Sr., F, Seton Hall
Note: a tie vreated 12 spots on the preseason team
* - unanimous selection
