CORTLAND, N.Y. - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) men's soccer coaches voted Oneonta No. 1 in the 2018 conference preseason poll with 79 points. Cortland was voted No. 2 with 75 points, while Plattsburgh was voted third with 57.
Iain Byrne returns for his 16th season as head coach at Oneonta, looking to defend last year's tournament championship victory for the Red Dragons. Oneonta has won five tournament championships under Byrne, and 10 overall. Last season, Oneonta took the Offensive Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards. Witman Hernandez, the 2017 Tournament MVP, returns for his junior season with the team, while Roberto Ventura, recipient of last year's Rookie of the Year Award, returns as a sophomore.
Cortland will seek to improve on last year's tournament finish. After winning the 2016 tournament championship under current head coach Steve Axtell, the Red Dragons placed first in the 2017 regular season standings, but fell short in the tournament semifinals against Plattsburgh, 3-1. Cortland has won 18 SUNYAC tournament championships overall.
Chris Taylor enters his first season as head coach at Plattsburgh, looking to bring the Cardinals a championship for the first time since 2013. Plattsburgh has eight championships under its belt. In 2017, the Cardinals placed fifth in the regular season standings. In last year's SUNYAC tournament, Plattsburgh defeated Brockport 2-1 in the first round, and then went on to beat Cortland 3-1 in the semifinals. The team fell short in the championship game to Oneonta, 2-1.
2018 SUNYAC Men's Soccer Bracket
1. Oneonta, 79
2. Cortland, 75
3. Plattsburgh, 57
4. Buffalo State, 54
5. Geneseo, 51
6. Brockport, 39
7. New Paltz, 33
8. Oswego, 22
9. Potsdam, 21
10. Fredonia, 19
