West Babylon, N.Y. – Three teams earned first place votes but Mercy claimed the top spot in the East Coast Conference women’s soccer preseason coaches’ poll released on Friday. In addition, Molloy standouts, Dana Poetzsch (Hicksville, N.Y.) and Jackie Carty (East Islip, N.Y.), were selected as the ECC Preseason Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year, respectively.
After a year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, women’s soccer returns to the ECC this fall with Mercy slated as the preseason favorite. The Mavericks, who earned four first place votes and 93 points to top the poll, have been one of the conference’s strongest programs in recent history with seven straight ECC Championship appearances and five NCAA Championship bids. The Mavericks return 10 players and six starters from a team that finished 13-3-4 and earned a spot in the NCAA Championship for a third straight season. Among the key returnees are three All-Conference First Team selections in Fernanda Castro, Sydney Cooper, and reigning ECC Goalkeeper of the Year, Melissa Torres.
Defending ECC Champion, Molloy, is the poll’s runner-up. The Lions, who also advanced to the NCAA East Region Final in 2019, earned four first place votes and 90 points to finish just behind Mercy. Molloy returns 13 players and seven starters from the most successful team in program history, including Poetzsch, Carty, and fellow All-ECC honoree, Sabrina Bell.
Poetzsch was selected as the ECC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year after being named a consensus Second Team All-American in 2019. The senior midfielder led the ECC with 25 goals and 55 points. Her goal total was good for second in all of Division II, while her points total ranked sixth. She ranked third in the nation with eight game-winning goals and fourth with 1.09 goals per game, as well.
Carty, the ECC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, was another key factor in the Lions’ 2019 success. The senior goalkeeper was a Second Team All-Conference selection after leading the ECC with an .873 save percentage and 11 shutouts. She also ranked second in the conference with 117 saves and an 0.73 goals-against average. Carty also stepped up when it mattered most, winning the Most Outstanding Player honor in the ECC Championship after compiling 14 saves in the Lions’ two tournament contests.
Bridgeport earned the final two first-place votes to finish third in the poll with 82 points. Six starters and 11 returners are back from the Purple Knights’ 2019 squad that won the program’s ninth ECC Regular Season Championship in the past 14 seasons.
Daemen is the final expected playoff team with a No. 4 ranking in the poll. The Wildcats secured an NCAA Championship berth in 2019, despite missing the ECC Championship.
Roberts Wesleyan is next in the poll at No. 5, followed by Queens and St. Thomas Aquinas in a tie for sixth. Staten Island, D’Youville, and Lincoln round out the remainder of the poll. ECC newcomers, Staten Island and D'Youville, will both be competing in the ECC and at the Division II level for the first time this season.
2021 ECC Women’s Soccer Preseason Poll
| School | Pts. | 2019 Record |
| 1. Mercy (4) | 93 | 13-3-4 (5-1-2 ECC) |
| 2. Molloy (4) | 90 | 15-5-3 (5-3-0 ECC) |
| 3. Bridgeport (2) | 82 | 9-7-3 (6-1-1 ECC) |
| 4. Daemen | 63 | 11-4-3 (4-2-2 ECC) |
| 5. Roberts Wesleyan | 59 | 10-6-3 (3-3-2 ECC) |
| T6. Queens | 49 | 7-9-1 (1-6-1 ECC) |
| T6. St. Thomas Aquinas | 49 | 2-13-2 (1-5-2 ECC) |
| 8. Staten Island | 27 | 6-7-1 (n/a) |
| 9. D'Youville | 24 | 10-6-2 (n/a) |
| 10. Lincoln (Pa.) | 11 | 1-14-0 (0-8-0 ECC) |
( ) – first place votes
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Dana Poetzsch, Sr., M, Molloy
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Jackie Carty, Sr., GK, Molloy
