Courtesy of MPSF

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – New Mexico received 46 points and four of eight first-place votes in earning the No. 1 spot in the 2010 MPSF Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Lobos are coming off their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last nine years, after a second-place MPSF regular season and tournament outcome. They return four all-conference players from last year in seniors Ryan Farquharson and Michael Reed, and juniors Lance Rozeboom and Michael Green. Defending MPSF Champion Sacramento State collected 43 points and three top votes in taking second in the poll. The Hornets turned in an unbeaten MPSF season in 2009 and reached their first-ever NCAA Tournament, advancing to the second-round. Senior midfielder and conference player of the year Ernesto Carranza returns from an 18-point season, as does the '09 MPSF assist leader and first teamer Fernando Cabadas. Denver was picked third with 31 points following a sixth-place season. Back for the Pioneers is reining MPSF Newcomer of the Year Alex Tarnoczi as well as first-team goalkeeper Joe Willis. CSU Bakersfield finished fourth with one first-place vote, coming off its first season in the MPSF which also resulted in fourth-place. Rounding out an extremely tight middle of the pack preseason poll was San Jose State with 29 points. Seattle, UNLV, and Air Force checked in at sixth, seventh, and eighth, respectively. The official 2010 season kicks off Wednesday, September 1 with non-conference play, while MPSF action begins October 1. There are two divisions in the MPSF this year, as New Mexico, UNLV, Denver, and Air Force compete in the Mountain, while Seattle, CS Bakersfield, San Jose State, and Sacramento State compete in the Pacific. Six teams advance to the conference tournament, hosted by Sacramento State November 11-14, the top-two from each division along with the next two with the highest point totals from the regular conference schedule.