OBU voted GAC men’s soccer preseason favorite
ARKADELPHIA — Great American Conference head men’s soccer coaches installed the reigning league tournament champion Ouachita Baptist as the preseason favorite this week.
The GAC office in Russellville announced this week Ouachita was picked as the conference favorite for the second time in three years. It is the first time the men’s soccer program has been picked as the outright favorite in the GAC.
“Being voted as the top team in the conference for the second time in three years is a great way to recognize the success that our team has had in the previous years,” said Ouachita men’s soccer coach Wilson Jones. “However, past success doesn’t necessarily lead to future success. We have a lot of new faces that will need to contribute in different ways this year.”
The Tigers earned the first-place vote from each of the league’s other three head coaches. They posted a 9-7-1 record en route to claiming their second GAC Championship crown in three seasons.
In-state rival Harding finished second in the poll with seven total votes and was given the only other first place vote. Oklahoma Baptist sits in third place and received five total points, while Southern Nazarene rounds out the poll in fourth place with three total points.
Ouachita must replace GAC Player of the
Year Tinashe Chigede and Goalkeeper of the Year Edward Pacheco. The team will return a quartet of All-GAC performers in midfielders Noa Cuellar and Blain Hickman and defenders Jakob Cuellar and Hector Duron.
Chigede, of Tulsa, Okla., became just the second player in GAC Championship history to record a hat trick. The goals propelled the Tigers to a 4-3 come-from-behind semifinal victory over Oklahoma Baptist. In the championship game, Ouachita defeated Harding, 3-1, to earn the program’s second GAC title in three years.
“We have developed a new team-centered culture this year, understanding that everyone plays their individual role in the groups success,” Jones said. “No one person is more important than the other.”
The Tigers returned a large group of upperclassmen. The eight-member senior class enters the season with an overall record of 26-25-2 with two GAC championships.
“I feel like the minimum standard the guys set for themselves is to win the conference,” Jones said. “That was one of the five goals set this past spring. In the end, if we win the conference but don’t achieve our other four academic and athletic-related goals, then we haven’t lived up to the standards we have created.”
Ouachita is scheduled to scrimmage Hendrix today at 4 p.m. The 2018 season begins for all four GAC teams on Aug. 30.
Oklahoma Baptist is scheduled to open at home against Adams State, while the other three teams begin on the road. Ouachita is scheduled to meet Dallas Baptist. The Crimson Storm will visit Eastern New Mexico, while Harding is set to take on Texas A&M International at a neutral site, FC Dallas’ Toyota Soccer Center in Frisco, Texas.