Huskers Ranked 12th in Preseason Poll

<?xml:namespace prefix="st1"?>Lincoln - The University of Nebraska soccer team is ranked No. 12 in the National Soccer Coaches of America/adidas preseason national rankings released Monday afternoon.

John Walker's Huskers finished the 2002 season ranked 13th with a 16-6-3 record and their seventh consecutive trip to the NCAA Sweet 16.

Senior Christy Harms will lead the Huskers as they face four opponents ranked in the preseason top 25, including North Carolina, Texas A&M, Texas and Michigan.

NU has proven its preseason records, finishing in the final NSCAA Top 15 for the last seven seasons. The Huskers replaced seniors Christine Latham, Breanna Boyd, Kori Saunders and Leah Lamale with a class of 10 freshmen who make up the No. 8 recruiting class in the country for the 2003 season.

Nebraska was picked third in the Big 12 coaches poll that was also released Monday by the conference office. NU received 88 points and two first-place votes.  The Huskers have won three conference titles and five of the seven Big 12 Tournament crowns, including the tournament championship in 2002.

Texas was picked to win the 2003 Big 12 soccer title with 96 points and seven first-place votes, while Texas A&M was chosen second with 89 points and two first-place votes. Missouri and Colorado rounded out the top five with 63 and 62 points, respectively.

Nebraska will host its annual Meet N Beat the Huskers Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Abbott Sports Complex. The Huskers also play host to Denver Friday at 7 p.m. in the final exhibition contest before beginning the regular season with DePaul, on Friday, Aug. 29.

NSCAA/adidas National Rankings

Rank

School

W-L-T

1.

Santa Clara

20-5-1

2.

North Carolina

21-2-4

 

Portland

20-4-2

4.

Stanford

21-2-0

5.

UCLA

18-4-0

6.

Texas A&M

20-5-1

7.

Penn State

19-4-1

8.

Connecticut

21-3-1

9.

Texas

15-5-1

10.

Notre Dame

13-8-0

11.

Virginia

13-7-2

12.

Nebraska

16-6-3

13.

Pepperdine

18-2-2

14.

Tennessee

18-6-1

15.

Florida State

13-7-3

16.

California

12-8-1

17.

Michigan

16-6-2

18.

West Virginia

18-3-1

19.

Southern California

11-8-3

20.

Clemson

14-7-0

21.

Florida

10-10-2

22.

Southern Methodist

13-6-4

23.

Maryland

13-8-1

24.

Brigham Young

16-6-0

25.

Purdue

14-5-3

Big 12 Coaches Preseason Poll

No.

Team

Points

1.

Texas (7)

96

2.

Texas A&M (2)

89

3.

Nebraska (2)

88

4.

Missouri

63

5.

Colorado

55

6.

Oklahoma

55

7.

Kansas

53

8.

Oklahoma State

35

9.

Iowa State

29

10.

Baylor

25

11.

Texas Tech

10

First place votes in parentheses; coaches not allowed to vote for own team or players