COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Aug. 9, 2018) – The University of Wyoming women's soccer team was picked to finish eighth in the preseason Mountain West Coaches' Poll, the conference announced Thursday.
San Diego State sits atop the preseason poll with 112 total points and received four first-place votes. Last season, the Aztecs finished in a tie for second with a 7-2-2 record and eventually went on to take the Mountain West Championship title. San Jose State was closely behind with 111 points and the most first-place votes to place second. Boise State came in third with two-first place votes and 99 points. The Broncos finished tied with the Aztecs a year ago with a 7-2-2 mark. UNLV was picked fourth with 83 points followed by New Mexico in the fifth spot. Fresno State received a first-place vote and a combined 65 points followed by Utah State with 64 points in the seventh slot. The Cowgirls landed in the eighth place spot with 51 points. Just behind Wyoming are Air Force and Colorado College in nine and tenth, respectively. Colorado State was picked to finish 11th while the Nevada Wolfpack were selected last.
Wyoming returns six starters and 16 letterwinners from last season's squad that went 8-9-2 overall and 4-6-1 in the Mountain West. In all, the squad consists of six seniors, five juniors and sophomore and 13 freshmen.
Entering his seventh season at the helm, Cuadrado has an overall record of 54-51-15 during his tenure at UW and a 29-26-6 mark in league play. Senior
Brittney Stark was selected to the All-Newcomer team a season ago.
Several individuals will be looked upon to contribute during the 2018 campaign, including the six returning starters. Stark completed her junior campaign with a team-high eight goals, 18 points and three game winning goals. Fellow senior
Taylor Burton recorded three goals and had two game winning goals, while senior
Morgan McDougal finished with one goal and one assist in her first season with the program. Junior
Michaela Stark added two goals and one assist followed by senior
Jessie Gentle with two assists and three shots.
The Cowgirls will play one exhibition match before the official start of the season, traveling to Orlando, Fla., to take on the Central Florida Knights. Wyoming will then open the 2018 season with a road matchup against South Dakota on Aug. 16. The Thursday night contest will be the first meeting with the Coyotes since a 2016 preseason match that the Cowgirls won, 1-0. Utah Valley will then come to Laramie on Aug. 19 for UW's first home game of the season. The Cowgirls carry the longest non-conference home unbeaten streak among D-I programs into 2018, holding an 11-0-2 record dating back to the 2013 season.
2018 MW PRESEASON WOMEN'S SOCCER COACHES' POLL
Pl. Team (1st place votes) Points
1. San Diego State (4) 112
2. San José State (5) 111
3. Boise State (2) 99
4. UNLV 83
5. New Mexico 80
6. Fresno State (1) 65
7. Utah State 64
8. Wyoming 51
9. Air Force 47
10. Colorado College 42
11. Colorado State 26
12. Nevada 12
