SYRACUSE, N.Y. (SYRACUSE ATHLETICS) –
Coming off the program’s first National Championship, Syracuse opens the 2023 campaign ranked No. 1 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Preseason Poll.
The Orange won a program-best 19 matches, capping off a 19-2-4 season that saw the squad become the fourth ever ACC program to win its regular season division, conference tournament and NCAA National Championship in the same year.
Syracuse is one of three teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference ranked in the top five, earning four first-place votes and 188 total points. National Runner-up Indiana is No. 2 after picking up 180 points and one first-place vote, while Kentucky is third with one first-place vote and 172 points. Duke (167) and Pittsburgh (154), round out the top-five.
Following last season’s National Championship, Syracuse Head Coach Ian McIntyre’s squad saw a program-record five members get drafted in the 2023 MLS SuperDraft, along with 2022 NCAA College Cup Most Outstanding Offensive Player Nathan Opoku signing with Leicester City F.C.
Syracuse will face five of the preseason top 20 teams this season. The Orange open the 2023 campaign against Providence at the SU Soccer Stadium on Thursday, August 24 at 7 p.m. before hosting Binghamton at home on Monday, August 28 at 7 p.m.
