Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons Ranked No. 18 in NSCAA Preseason Poll
8/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Aug. 9, 2011
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The defending ACC champion Wake Forest women's soccer team was ranked 18th nationally by the NSCAA in its 2011 preseason poll, which was released Tuesday.
The Demon Deacons return eight starters from last year's squad that made a run through the ACC Tournament to capture the program's first conference crown. By virtue of winning the championship, the 2010 Deacs earned the school's 16th consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament, the sixth-longest active streak in the country, reaching the second round for the fifth year in a row. Wake ended 2010 ranked 25th in the NSCAA rankings.
Wake Forest brings back 85 percent of its scoring from last season, including sophomore Katie Stengel who set new school records with 16 goals and 37 points last year and sophomore Rachel Nuzzolese who scored nine goals in 11 games before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe, last year's ACC Championship MVP, will also return.
The Demon Deacons will take the field for the first time this season on Thursday when they host Radford in an exhibition match at 7 p.m. at Spry Stadium. After traveling for an exhibition at VCU on Sunday, Wake Forest will open the regular season on the road at Auburn on Aug. 19. The Deacs' first regular season home match will come against Connecticut on Sept. 2.
Five other ACC teams were represented in the NSCAA preseason poll - No. 3 North Carolina, No. 4 Boston College, No. 5 Florida State, No. 6 Maryland and No. 10 Virginia. Defending NCAA champion Notre Dame occupied the top spot in the rankings with NCAA runner-up Stanford being ranked No. 2.
