BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Gulf South Conference has released its 2023 Preseason Coaches Poll as well as the 2023 Preseason All-GSC team and Newcomer watchlist. Montevallo enters the season picked to finish fourth in the league with 2022 Freshman of the Year
Angelina Rivas tabbed as a Preseason all-conference forward.
The Falcons were voted fourth in the league with a total of 125 points after a season that saw UM host the first round of the conference tournament as a four seed. Montevallo tallied a 12-3-3 overall record throughout the 2022 campaign with an 8-2-3 GSC mark and an impressive 7-1-2 home record. The Falcons boasted one of the top defenses in the league allowing just 20 goals while posting nine shutouts over the entire season. Montevallo's offense was one of the league's best with a 2.0 scoring average and an average margin of victory of 0.89.
"I think the 4
th place preseason pick is fair based on where we finished last year, but a lot will have changed throughout the league since last November," said Head Coach
Jake Wyman. "There is no real way to tell who's who before the season and I think it's a fool's game getting caught up in that before we've even played anyone. So, we are going to take it one day at a time and focus on ourselves"
Rivas earned her way onto the 2023 Preseason All-GSC team after receiving a Second Team All-GSC nod and earning the title of GSC Freshman of the Year after scoring a team-high seven goals and 14 points on 27 shots on goal with 47 total shots.
"We nominated quite a few people for pre-season awards," said Wyman, "so I was pleased to see Angelina honored from the season she had a year ago. The kid has been battling some injuries since the end of last year, so our focus is to get her healthy, then, hopefully, she can find her form again."
Montevallo saw four fresh faces named to the Newcomer Watchlist;
Raylene Alcaraz,
Morgan Goehring,
Jordan Hood, and
Isabel Dillehay. Alcaraz makes her way to Montevallo out of Poly High School in Riverside, Calif. The freshman forward earned first team All-League and Scholar Athlete awards her senior year of high school. Goehring hails from Yorba Linda, Calif. and was a two-time offensive MVP for Orange Lutheran High School. Hood, another California product, spent the last three seasons as captain for Valley View High School. Dillehay, a two-sport athlete at Grandview High School, comes to Montevallo from Centennial, Colo. The forward was named Academic All-State as well as 2022 Scholar Athlete.
"Our freshman class will have a big impact for us this year and we need them to," said Wyman. "I am happy to see these four honored. Great kids, from great families that will certainly help boost our program as a whole"
The Falcons will start the 2023 campaign on Thursday, August 26 in Owensboro, Ky. to take on Kentucky Wesleyan.
2023 GSC WOMEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON COACHES POLL
First-place votes in parentheses ( )
1. Mississippi College - 159 (4)
2. West Florida - 153 (7)
3. Lee - 144 (1)
4. Montevallo - 125
5. West Georgia - 112 (2)
6. West Alabama - 106
7. Delta State - 93
8. Valdosta State - 86
9. Christian Brothers - 82
10. Alabama Huntsville - 77
11. Auburn Montgomery - 52
12. Union - 44
13. Spring Hill - 28
14. Shorter - 13
