MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Aug. 14, 2024) – The West Virginia University men’s soccer team was tabbed to finish second in the 2024 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Preseason Poll, as announced by the conference on Wednesday.
Junior Marcus Caldeira was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year while seniors Max Broughton, Ryan Baer, and Frederik Jorgensen joined him on the Preseason All-Conference Team.
The Mountaineers tallied 132 points, including two first-place votes in the coaches poll. Marshall was picked to repeat as champions with 138 points and eight first-place votes. UCF was slotted in third behind WVU with 111 points while Kentucky (108) and James Madison (106) were fourth and fifth, respectively.
South Carolina was voted sixth (83), narrowly ahead of seventh-place Georgia State (80) while Old Dominion (70), Coastal Carolina (62), and Georgia Southern (60) rounded out the poll.
It is shaping up to be a strong season for the Sun Belt as four teams are in the preseason Top 25 – No. 3 West Virginia, No. 8 Marshall, No. 18 James Madison, and No. 19 UCF – while Kentucky is receiving votes.
Caldeira is the first Mountaineer to be named Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in WVU’s third season in the conference. In 2023, he was a First Team All-American by College Soccer News and Second Team All-American by United Soccer Coaches after tallying 27 points on 12 goals and three assists.
Baer returns to WVU for his fifth season with the Mountaineers. A captain, he has played in 72 games in the midfield for the Mountaineers and tallied six assists while contributing to one of the best defenses in the country a season ago.
Jorgensen is back for his fourth season on the back line for West Virginia after playing in 63 games with 55 starts for the Mountaineers. An All-Sun Belt second-team selection in 2023, Jorgensen helped anchor a defense that allowed just 0.96 goals per game to go along with nine shutouts, while also contributing with a goal and four assists.
Broughton led Mountaineers in with 1,895 minutes played in 2023 at center back and was a key component of WVU’s strong defense. He also contributed on the offensive end with a pair of goals, including a game-winner against Vermont in the NCAA Round of 16, and three assists.
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year:
Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Jr., F, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year:
Anderson Rosa, UCF (5th yr., D, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
F – Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Jr., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
F – Lucca Dourado, UCF (5th Yr., Sao Paulo, Brazil)
F – Lineker Rodrigues dos Santos, Marshall (Sr., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
F – Isaiah Chisholm, Kentucky (So., Yorktown, Va)
M – Kevin Larsson, JMU (Jr., Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland)
M – Taimu Okiyoshi, Marshall (5th Yr., Kobe, Japan)
M – Ryan Baer, West Virginia (Gr., Hunterville, N.C.)
M – Marco Silva, Marshall (R-So., Coopersburg, Pa)
D – Anderson Rosa, UCF (5th Yr., Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
D – Luca Nikolai, JMU (So., Kaarst, Germany)
D – Frederik Jorgensen, West Virginia (Sr., Aarhus, Denmark)
D – Max Broughton, West Virginia (Gr., Rawtenstall, England)
GK – Mols Casper, Kentucky (So., Aabenraa, Denmark)
*Ties were not broken.
2024 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Marshall (8) – 138
2. West Virginia (2) – 132
3. UCF - 111
4. Kentucky - 108
5. JMU - 106
6. South Carolina - 83
7. Georgia State - 80
8. Old Dominion - 70
9. Coastal Carolina - 62
10. Georgia Southern - 60
Parentheses indicate first-place votes
Junior Marcus Caldeira was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year while seniors Max Broughton, Ryan Baer, and Frederik Jorgensen joined him on the Preseason All-Conference Team.
The Mountaineers tallied 132 points, including two first-place votes in the coaches poll. Marshall was picked to repeat as champions with 138 points and eight first-place votes. UCF was slotted in third behind WVU with 111 points while Kentucky (108) and James Madison (106) were fourth and fifth, respectively.
South Carolina was voted sixth (83), narrowly ahead of seventh-place Georgia State (80) while Old Dominion (70), Coastal Carolina (62), and Georgia Southern (60) rounded out the poll.
It is shaping up to be a strong season for the Sun Belt as four teams are in the preseason Top 25 – No. 3 West Virginia, No. 8 Marshall, No. 18 James Madison, and No. 19 UCF – while Kentucky is receiving votes.
Caldeira is the first Mountaineer to be named Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in WVU’s third season in the conference. In 2023, he was a First Team All-American by College Soccer News and Second Team All-American by United Soccer Coaches after tallying 27 points on 12 goals and three assists.
Baer returns to WVU for his fifth season with the Mountaineers. A captain, he has played in 72 games in the midfield for the Mountaineers and tallied six assists while contributing to one of the best defenses in the country a season ago.
Jorgensen is back for his fourth season on the back line for West Virginia after playing in 63 games with 55 starts for the Mountaineers. An All-Sun Belt second-team selection in 2023, Jorgensen helped anchor a defense that allowed just 0.96 goals per game to go along with nine shutouts, while also contributing with a goal and four assists.
Broughton led Mountaineers in with 1,895 minutes played in 2023 at center back and was a key component of WVU’s strong defense. He also contributed on the offensive end with a pair of goals, including a game-winner against Vermont in the NCAA Round of 16, and three assists.
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year:
Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Jr., F, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year:
Anderson Rosa, UCF (5th yr., D, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
F – Marcus Caldeira, West Virginia (Jr., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
F – Lucca Dourado, UCF (5th Yr., Sao Paulo, Brazil)
F – Lineker Rodrigues dos Santos, Marshall (Sr., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
F – Isaiah Chisholm, Kentucky (So., Yorktown, Va)
M – Kevin Larsson, JMU (Jr., Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland)
M – Taimu Okiyoshi, Marshall (5th Yr., Kobe, Japan)
M – Ryan Baer, West Virginia (Gr., Hunterville, N.C.)
M – Marco Silva, Marshall (R-So., Coopersburg, Pa)
D – Anderson Rosa, UCF (5th Yr., Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
D – Luca Nikolai, JMU (So., Kaarst, Germany)
D – Frederik Jorgensen, West Virginia (Sr., Aarhus, Denmark)
D – Max Broughton, West Virginia (Gr., Rawtenstall, England)
GK – Mols Casper, Kentucky (So., Aabenraa, Denmark)
*Ties were not broken.
2024 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Marshall (8) – 138
2. West Virginia (2) – 132
3. UCF - 111
4. Kentucky - 108
5. JMU - 106
6. South Carolina - 83
7. Georgia State - 80
8. Old Dominion - 70
9. Coastal Carolina - 62
10. Georgia Southern - 60
Parentheses indicate first-place votes
