University of Connecticut Athletics
Huskies ranked 10th, 12th in preseason polls
8/16/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
STORRS, CT—A pair of preseason polls released yesterday has the 2001 Connecticut women’s soccer team ranked among the nation’s best. The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Preseason Poll tabbed the Huskies 10th while the Soccer Buzz Preseason Poll had them 12th in the nation and first in the Northeast ahead of Boston College, Harvard and Hartford.
Last season, Connecticut captured its second straight BIG EAST Northeast Division title and advanced to the BIG EAST Tournament championship game for the sixth straight year. UConn finished its season 17-7-2 after bowing to North Carolina in the quarterfinals of the 2000 NCAA Women’s College Cup Tournament.
Senior defender Casey Zimny (Rochester, NY), a 2001 Preseason All-BIG EAST and Co-Defensive Player of the Year selection, heads a talented defensive unit that allowed only .8 goals and 7.7 shots per game last season. Senior forward Mary-Beth Bowie (Dartmouth, Nova Scotia) also returns after leading the team last season with 31 points on a team-best 12 goals and seven assists.
UConn will be tested early and often in its challenging 2001 schedule. The Huskies kick of the season at the Notre Dame Classic, where they will take on No. 25 Nationally Ranked Hartford on August 31 and No. 8 Nationally Ranked Penn State on September 2. Connecticut also closes the season with contests against three nationally ranked teams–Notre Dame, Harvard and Dartmouth–in its last four games.
2001 NSCAA/adidas Preseason Poll
Rank
School
2000 Record
Final 2000 Rank
1
North Carolina
21-3-0
1
2
UCLA
19-4-1
2
3
Portland
18-4-0
4
4
Notre Dame*
23-1-1
3
5
Nebraska
22-2-0
9
6
Santa Clara
16-7-1
7
7
Washington
18-3-0
11
8
Penn State*
22-3-1
6
9
Virginia
11-8-1
13
10
Connecticut
17-7-2
8
11
Texas A&M
18-7-0
12
12
Clemson
19-3-1
5
13
Brigham Young
21-4-0
10
14
California-Berkeley
17-3-1
15
15
Stanford
14-6-1
20
16
Florida State
14-8-2
14
17
Duke
14-8-1
17
18
Florida*
16-8-0
19
19
Southern California
14-6-2
21
20
Texas
12-7-0
NR
21
Dartmouth*
13-4-0
16
22
Wake Forest
11-8-2
23
23
Harvard*
17-3-0
18
24
Marquette
20-3-1
24
25
Hartford*
17-3-0
22
Also receiving votes: William & Mary*, Richmond, Arizona State,
Michigan*, Southern Methodist, Boston College*, Tennessee,
Georgia*, Illinois, Dayton, West Virginia*
*­UConn 2001 opponents
2001 Soccer Buzz Preseason Poll
Rank
School
2000 Record
Final 2000 Rank
1
North Carolina
21-3-0
1
2
UCLA
19-4-1
3
3
Portland
18-4-0
4
4
Virginia
11-8-1
15
5
California
17-3-1
13
6
Notre Dame*
23-1-1
2
7
Penn State*
22-3-1
7
8
Nebraska
22-2-0
8
9
Stanford
14-6-1
20
10
Washington
18-3-0
6
11
Santa Clara
16-7-1
9
12
Connecticut
17-7-2
10
13
Florida State
14-8-2
12
14
Clemson
19-3-1
5
15
Texas A&M
18-7-0
14
16
Florida*
16-8-0
21
17
Wake Forest
11-8-2
24
18
Texas
12-7-0
NR
19
William & Mary*
15-6-0
NR
20
Duke
14-8-1
17
21
Arizona State
14-7-1
RV
22
Boston College*
14-7-0
NR
23
Illinois
14-8-0
NR
24
Richmond
13-7-0
23
25
Kentucky
15-6-0
NR
Also receiving votes: Brigham Young, Hartford*, Harvard*,
North Carolina State, Purdue, Southern Methodist, West Virginia*
*­UConn 2001 opponents
