TAMPA WOMEN'S SOCCER NAMED SEVENTH IN SSC PRESEASON POLL

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Sunshine State Conference women's soccer coaches select Nova Southeastern University as the preseason favorite to win the 2023 regular-season championship. With 95 points and five first-place votes in the poll, the Sharks are expected to win the program's third regular-season championship. 
 
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University lands in second place with 91 points and three first-place votes. Florida Tech comes in third with 76 points, while Florida Southern College ranks fourth following 74 points and the final three first-place votes. Saint Leo University rounds out the Top-5 with 61 points from the coaches.
 
2023 SSC WOMEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
 
Barry University touches down in the center of the poll with 53 points and is followed in the voting by the University of Tampa (46 points) and Rollins College (37 points). Eckerd College (31 points), Lynn University (30 points), and Palm Beach Atlantic University (11 points) hold the final three positions in the poll.
 
Florida Southern won the regular-season title in 2023 following 25 points in conference play. It is the first SSC title for FSC women's soccer and came after last place preseason ranking. The Moccasins fell in PK's during the SSC semifinals, leaving the door open for Embry-Riddle to repeat as league tournament champions.
 
ERAU, NSU, and FSC represented the SSC in the 2022 NCAA Postseason Tournament. Embry-Riddle bested Florida Southern in the second round, 3-0, while Nova Southeastern fell to West Florida, 2-1. The Eagles' season came to an end with a 2-1 loss to West Florida in the third round. Since administrators added women's soccer as a league sport in 1998, SSC teams have reached the national quarterfinals 12 times, the semifinals seven times, and the national title game three times, winning it all twice: Lynn in 1998 and Tampa in 2007.
 
The 2023 season opens on August 31st with five teams in action, while five more teams get underway the next day. Conference play begins Saturday, September 9th, with Palm Beach Atlantic hosting Barry. Embry-Riddle ranks 10th, NSU is 25th, and Florida Southern is receiving votes in the 2023 United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II preseason women's poll, which was released on Tuesday, August 1st.
 
Below are the full results of the 2023 SSC preseason coaches' poll. Coaches cannot vote for their teams (points: 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).

2023 SSC WOMEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON COACHES POLL

See Also: SSC All-Americans | All-SSC Teams | SSC Champions | 2022 Standings
 

Previous SSC Women's Soccer Polls