MELBOURNE, Fla. – Sunshine State Conference men’s soccer coaches have chosen Palm Beach Atlantic University as the preseason favorite in 2018. The Sailfish received 92 total votes and four first-place votes in the poll. Defending SSC tournament champion University of Tampa received an equal number of first-place votes and came in second in the preseason poll.

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The University of Tampa earned second in the poll by the narrowest of margins, tallying 91 total votes and four first-place votes. Lynn University came in a close third with 90 total votes and the final three first-place votes. The Sailfish, Spartans, and Fighting Knights were ranked top three by on every ballot. Rounding out the top five in the poll are Rollins College and Florida Tech with 66 and 64 total votes, respectively.

Palm Beach Atlantic claimed the 2017 SSC regular season championship, a first for the Sailfish program. Tampa earned the conference tournament crown for the first time in a decade and third time overall. The Spartans own the most regular-season titles at 14, while Lynn and Rollins share the league lead in SSC tournament championships at five.

Lynn bested Palm Beach Atlantic in the opening round of the NCAA tournament and then took down the University of West Alabama in the regional championship following its win over Tampa. The Fighting Knights reached the national championship match by dispatching Young Harris College in the national quarterfinals and Rockhurst University in the national semifinals. Lynn then faced the University of Charleston in a tense national title game. Lynn fell in penalty kicks following 110 minutes of scoreless play. Lynn (3), Tampa (3), and Florida Tech (2) boast all eight of the SSC’s men’s soccer national championships. The most recent national title came by way of the Fighting Knights in 2014.

Lynn (No. 2), PBA (No. 9), and Tampa (No. 23) represent the SSC in the 2018 United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II preseason men’s poll. The ranking was announced Tuesday, August 7th.

SSC teams open up with non-conference matches on Thursday, August 30th with seven squads in action. The conference schedule begins on September 12th when Nova Southeastern University travels to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

2018 SSC MEN’S SOCCER PRESEASON COACHES POLL

Rank	School	Total (FPV*)
1	Palm Beach Atlantic	92 (4)
2	Tampa	91 (4)
3	Lynn	90 (3)
4	Rollins	66
5	Florida Tech	64
6	Nova Southeastern	53
T7	Barry	44
T7	Florida Southern	44
9	Eckerd	28
10	Saint Leo	20
11	Embry-Riddle	13

*First Place Votes