# 2019 Southern Conference men's soccer season

The 2019 Southern Conference men's soccer season wias the 24th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The season began in late August 2019 and concluded in mid-November 2019.
UNCG won the regular season and Mercer won the tournament.

## Background
### Previous season

The 2018 season saw Mercer win the regular season championship, posting a 12-4-2 overall record and a 5-1-0 record in SoCon play.

## Head coaches

    As of the 2018 season
| Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years at school | Overall record | Record at school | SoCon record | NCAA Tournaments | NCAA College Cups | NCAA Titles |
| Belmont | David Costa | Xavier (asst.) | 1 | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| East Tennessee State | David Casper | Kentucky (asst.) | 2 | 9–7–1 (.559) | 9–7–1 (.559) | 4–1–1 (.750) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Furman | Doug Allison | South Carolina (asst.) | 24 | 285–131–54 (.664) | 285–131–54 (.664) | 114–43–18 (.703) | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Mercer | Brad Ruzzo | Bradley (asst.) | 12 | 110–90–26 (.544) | 110–90–26 (.544) | 29–13–4 (.674) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| UNC Greensboro | Chris Rich | Duke (asst.) | 1 | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VMI | Charlie Hubbard | VMI (asst.) | 1 | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wofford | Joel Tyson | Charlotte Independence (asst.) | 1 | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0–0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Preseason
### Preseason poll

The preseason poll was released on August 21, 2019.
| | Team Ranking | Points | First Place Votes |
| 1. | Mercer | 35 | 5 |
| 2. | Furman | 31 | 2 |
| 3. | ETSU | 27 | 0 |
| 4. | UNCG | 20 | 0 |
| 5. | Belmont | 15 | 0 |
| 6. | Wofford | 13 | 0 |
| 7. | VMI | 6 | 0 |

### Preseason national polls

The preseason national polls will be released in July and August 2019.
| | United Soccer | CSN | Soccer America | Top Drawer Soccer |
| Belmont | — | — | — | — |
| ETSU | — | — | — | — |
| Furman | RV | RV | — | — |
| Mercer | — | — | — | — |
| UNCG | — | — | — | — |
| VMI | — | — | — | — |
| Wofford | — | — | — | — |

## Regular season
### Early season tournaments

Early season tournaments will be announced in late Spring and Summer 2019.
| Team | Tournament | Finish |
| ETSU | VCU Tournament | 3rd |

### Results

* Index to colors and formatting
* SoCon member won
* SoCon member lost
* SoCon member tied
* SoCon teams in bold
All times Eastern time.† denotes Homecoming game

### Week 1 (Aug. 25–31)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| August 30 | 4:00 p.m. | Winthrop | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | | L 0–2 | 63 | Report |
| August 30 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | VCU | Sports Backers Stadium • Richmond, VA | ESPN+ | L 0–1 | 827 | Report |
| August 30 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | Cincinnati | Gettler Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | | W 2–0 | 438 | Report |
| August 30 | 7:00 p.m. | George Washington | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | | W 2–0 | 377 | Report Archived 2019-09-04 at the Wayback Machine |
| August 30 | 7:30 p.m. | Furman | Duke | Koskinen Stadium • Durham, NC | ACCN+ | L 0–1 | 1,173 | Report |
| August 30 | 8:00 p.m. | Belmont | Bradley | Shea Stadium • Peoria, IL | | T 0–0 $^{2OT}$ | 1,233 | Report |
| August 30 | 8:30 p.m. | Wofford | Houston Baptist | Sorrels Field • Houston, TX | | L 0–2 | Not reported | Report |

### Week 2 (Sep. 1–7)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| September 1 | 12:00 p.m. | Furman | Elon | Koskinen Stadium • Durham, NC | ACCN+ | T 3–3 $^{2OT}$ | 547 | Report |
| September 1 | 8:00 p.m. | Wofford | UTRGV | Sorrels Field • Houston, TX | | L 1–2 | Not reported | Report |
| September 2 | 6:00 p.m. | Belmont | Georgia State | GSU Soccer Field • Decatur, GA | | L 1–3 | 176 | Report |
| September 2 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | Old Dominion | ODU Soccer Complex • Norfolk, VA | CUSA.tv | W 3–2 $^{2OT}$ | 222 | Report |
| September 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Presbyterian | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | SDN | W 2–1 | 336 | Report |
| September 2 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | Radford | Patrick Cupp Stadium • Radford, VA | ESPN3 | L 3–4 $^{OT}$ | 297 | Report Archived 2019-09-08 at the Wayback Machine |
| September 4 | 3:00 p.m. | VMI | UNC Asheville | Greenwood Field • Asheville, NC | | L 1–2 | 407 | Report |
| September 6 | 6:00 p.m. | Furman | Gardner–Webb | Greene–Harbison Stadium • Boiling Springs, NC | ESPN+ | W 5–4 $^{OT}$ | 427 | Report |
| September 6 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | #19 Clemson | Riggs Field • Clemson, SC | ACCN | L 1–2 | 2,718 | Report Archived 2019-09-09 at the Wayback Machine |
| September 6 | 7:00 p.m. | Winthrop | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN | W 1–0 | 200 | Report |
| September 6 | 8:00 p.m. | Mercer | UAB | BBVA Field • Birmingham, AL | CUSAtv | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 479 | Report |
| September 6 | 10:00 p.m. | Belmont | San Diego State | SDSU Sports Deck • San Diego, CA | | L 1–2 | 244 | Report |
| September 7 | 1:00 p.m. | VMI | Duquesne | Rooney Field • Pittsburgh, PA | ESPN+ | L 0–1 | 121 | Report |
| September 7 | 3:00 p.m. | Lipscomb | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | | L 0–3 | 312 | Report |

### Week 3 (Sep. 8–14)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| September 8 | 3:30 p.m. | Mercer | Memphis | BBVA Field • Birmingham, AL | | W 1–0 | 258 | Report |
| September 8 | 5:00 p.m. | Belmont | San Diego | Torero Stadium • San Diego, CA | | L 0–3 | Not reported | Report |
| September 8 | 7:00 p.m. | Furman | Winthrop | Eagle Field • Rock Hill, SC | ESPN+ | W 3–0 | 162 | Report |
| September 8 | 7:00 p.m. | Gardner–Webb | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN | L 0–1 | 162 | Report |
| September 9 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | #20 North Carolina | UNC Soccer and Lacrosse Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC | ACCN+ | L 0–1 | 1,085 | Report Archived 2019-09-13 at the Wayback Machine |
| September 10 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | Marshall | Veterans Memorial Soccer Complex • Huntington, WV | CUSA.tv | L 1–2 | 288 | Report |
| September 11 | 7:00 p.m. | UNC Asheville | Furman | Eugene Stone Stadium • Greenville, SC | SDN | W 2–1 | 589 | Report |
| September 11 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | South Carolina | Eugene Stone Stadium • Columbia, SC | SECN | L 0–1 $^{OT}$ | 1,929 | Report |
| September 11 | 7:00 p.m. | VMI | Longwood | Longwood Athletics Complex • Farmville, VA | ESPN+ | L 1–5 | 208 | Report |
| September 13 | 5:00 p.m. | Belmont | Purdue Fort Wayne | Hefner Soccer Complex • Fort Wayne, IN | | L 1–2 | Not reported | Report |
| September 13 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | Campbell | Eakes Athletics Complex • Buies Creek, NC | | L 0–2 | 255 | Report |
| September 14 | 12:00 p.m. | Gardner–Webb | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | SDN | L 1–2 | 74 | Report |
| September 14 | 7:00 p.m. | Davidson | Furman | Eugene Stone Stadium • Greenville, SC | SDN | W 3–2 | 434 | Report |

### Week 4 (Sep. 15–21)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| September 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Presbyterian | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | | W 3–0 | Not reported | Report |
| September 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Jacksonville | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | SDN | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 312 | Report |
| September 17 | 7:00 p.m. | VMI | Liberty | Osborne Stadium • Lynchburg, VA | | L 0–1 | 329 | Report |
| September 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Wofford | High Point | Vert Stadium • High Point, NC | ESPN+ | L 0–1 | Not reported | Report |
| September 17 | 8:00 p.m. | Memphis | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | L 0–2 | 235 | Report |
| September 18 | 6:00 p.m. | UNCG | UNC Asheville | Greenwood Field • Asheville, NC | ESPN+ | W 5–1 | 402 | Report Archived 2019-09-22 at the Wayback Machine |
| September 18 | 7:00 p.m. | Furman | South Carolina | Eugene Stone Stadium • Columbia, SC | SECN | L 0–3 | 2,545 | Report |
| September 21 | 12:00 p.m. | Saint Peter's | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | | L 0–5 | 88 | Report |
| September 21 | 3:00 p.m. | Presbyterian | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | W 2–0 | 195 | Report |
| September 21 | 6:00 p.m. | Wofford | UNC Asheville | Greenwood Field • Asheville, NC | | W 4–0 | 602 | Report |
| September 21 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | High Point | Vert Stadium • High Point, NC | | W 2–0 | Not reported | Report |
| September 21 | 7:00 p.m. | USC Upstate | Furman | Eugene Stone Stadium • Greenville, SC | SDN | W 4–1 | 889 | Report |
| September 21 | 7:00 p.m. | Appalachian State | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | SDN | L 2–4 | 712 | Report Archived 2019-09-25 at the Wayback Machine |

### Week 5 (Sep. 22–28)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| September 24 | 4:00 p.m. | Belmont | Eastern Illinois | Lakeside Field • Charleston, IL | | L 2–3 | 115 | Report |
| September 24 | 7:00 p.m. | #4 Clemson | Furman | Eugene Stone Stadium • Greenville, SC | ESPN+ | L 0–2 | 2,712 | Report |
| September 24 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | USC Upstate | County University Soccer Stadium • Spartanburg, SC | ESPN+ | W 3–2 $^{2OT}$ | 220 | Report |
| September 24 | 7:00 p.m. | #10 Charlotte | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN | L 2–3 $^{OT}$ | 415 | Report |
| September 25 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | Elon | Rudd Field • Elon, NC | CAAtv | L 0–3 | 729 | Report |
| September 28 | 12:00 p.m. | Howard | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | | L 2–4 | 75 | Report |
| September 28 | 7:00 p.m. | Georgia State | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | | T 2–2 $^{2OT}$ | 382 | Report |
| September 28 | 7:00 p.m. | Furman | Presbyterian | Martin Stadium at Edens Field • Clinton, SC | | L 0–3 | 95 | Report |
| September 28 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | Georgia Southern | Eagle Field at Erk Russle Park • Statesboro, GA | | W 3–2 | Not reported | Report |
| September 28 | 7:30 p.m. | Faulkner | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | W 4–1 | 531 | Report |

### Week 6 (Sep. 29–Oct. 5)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| October 1 | 4:00 p.m. | Regent | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | ESPN3 | W 4–0 | 87 | Report |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | Belmont | #24 Louisville | Lynn Stadium • Louisville, KY | ACCN | L 0–3 | 851 | Report |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | #9 Charlotte | Furman | Eugene Stone Stadium • Greenville, SC | SDN | L 1–2 | 406 | Report |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | Winthrop | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | | W 2–1 | 176 | Report |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | Appalachian State | ASU Soccer Stadium • Boone, NC | | T 1–1 $^{2OT}$ | 782 | Report |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | Davidson | Alumni Soccer Stadium • Davidson, NC | A10N | T 1–1 $^{2OT}$ | 338 | Report Archived 2019-12-01 at the Wayback Machine |
| October 1 | 7:00 p.m. | Campbell | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN | L 0–2 | 305 | Report |
| October 4 | 7:00 p.m. | Wofford | Georgia Southern | Eagle Field at Erk Russle Park • Statesboro, GA | | L 2–3 | 351 | Report |
| October 5 | 3:00 p.m. | VMI | NJIT | Lubetkin Field • Newark, NJ | | L 0–5 | 650 | Report |
| October 5 | 4:00 p.m. | UNCG | High Point | Vert Stadium • High Point, NC | | L 0–1 | 628 | Report |
| October 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | Georgia State | GSU Soccer Field • Decatur, GA | | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 329 | Report |
| October 5 | 7:30 p.m. | Kentucky | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | ESPN+ | L 0–1 | 827 | Report |

### Week 7 (Oct. 6–12)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| October 7 | 6:00 p.m. | North Florida | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | | W 2–0 | 219 | Report |
| October 8 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | NC State | Method Road • Raleigh, NC | ACCN+ | L 0–1 | 389 | Report |
| October 8 | 7:00 p.m. | North Greenville | Furman | Stone III Stadium • Greenville, SC | | W 4–1 | 822 | Report |
| October 8 | 7:00 p.m. | Longwood | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 213 | Report |
| October 12 | 5:00 p.m. | Wofford | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | T 3–3 $^{2OT}$ | 237 | Report |
| October 12 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | Furman | Stone III Stadium • Greenville, SC | ESPN+ | FUR 2–0 | 701 | Report |
| October 12 | 7:00 p.m. | VMI | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | SDN | UNCG 4–0 | 300 | Report |

### Week 8 (Oct. 13–19)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Report |
| October 15 | 4:00 p.m. | Furman | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | | FUR 3–0 | 85 | Report |
| October 15 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | Davidson | Alumni Soccer Stadium • Charlotte, NC | | W 2–1 | 523 | Report |
| October 15 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | | WOF 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 254 | Report |
| October 15 | 7:30 p.m. | UNCG | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | UNCG 2–1 | 381 | Report |
| October 19 | 12:00 p.m. | ETSU | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | | ETSU 3–0 | 78 | Report |
| October 19 | 7:00 p.m. | Belmont | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | | | | |
| October 19 | 7:00 p.m. | Wofford | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | SDN | | | |

### Week 9 (Oct. 20–26)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV |
| October 22 | 6:00 p.m. | VMI | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN |
| October 22 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | |
| October 22 | 7:00 p.m. | UNCG | Furman | Stone III Stadium • Greenville, SC | SDN |
| October 26 | 12:00 p.m. | Belmont | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | |
| October 26 | 7:00 p.m. | ETSU | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | |
| October 26 | 7:00 p.m. | Furman | Mercer | Betts Stadium • Macon, GA | ESPN3 |
| October 26 | 7:00 p.m. | Wofford | USC Upstate | County University Soccer Stadium • Spartanburg, SC | |

### Week 10 (Oct. 27–Nov. 2)

| Date | Time (ET) | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV |
| October 29 | 7:00 p.m. | Furman | Wofford | Snyder Field • Spartanburg, SC | SDN |
| October 29 | 7:00 p.m. | Mercer | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | SDN |
| October 29 | 7:30 p.m. | ETSU | Belmont | E.S. Rose Park • Nashville, TN | |
| November 2 | 5:00 p.m. | Mercer | VMI | Patchin Field • Lexington, VA | |
| November 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Belmont | Furman | Stone III Stadium • Greenville, SC | |
| November 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Old Dominion | UNCG | UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC | ESPN3 |
| November 2 | 7:30 p.m. | Wofford | ETSU | Summers-Taylor Stadium • Johnson City, TN | |

## Postseason
### SoCon Tournament

* Semifinals
* 1
* 4
* 2
* 3

### NCAA tournament

| Seed | Region | School | 1st round | 2nd round | 3rd round | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Championship |
| TBD | | | | | | | | |

## Rankings
### National rankings

| | Improvement in ranking |
| | Drop in ranking |
| RV | Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 |
| NV | No votes received |
| | | Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 |
| Belmont | USC | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| Belmont | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| East Tennessee State | USC | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| East Tennessee State | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| Furman | USC | RV | NV | RV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| Furman | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| Mercer | USC | NV | RV | RV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| Mercer | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| UNC Greensboro | USC | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| UNC Greensboro | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| VMI | USC | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| VMI | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |
| Wofford | USC | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | None released | None released | None released | None released |
| Wofford | TDS | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | | | | |

### Regional rankings - South Region

| | Improvement in ranking |
| | Drop in ranking |
| RV | Received votes but were not ranked in Top 10 |
| NV | No votes received |
The United Soccer Coaches' south region ranks teams among the ACC, Atlantic Sun, and SoCon.
| | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 |
| Belmont | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| East Tennessee State | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| Furman | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| Mercer | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| UNC Greensboro | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| VMI | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |
| Wofford | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV | NV |

## Awards and honors
### Players of the Week

| Week | Offensive | Offensive | Offensive | Defensive | Defensive | Defensive | Ref. |
| Week | Player | Position | Team | Player | Position | Team | Ref. |
| Sep. 3 | Trevor Martineau | FW | Mercer | JR DeRose | GK | Mercer | |
| Sep. 10 | Trevor Martineau | FW | Mercer | Cole McLagan | DF | Furman | |
| Sep. 17 | Emery May | MF | Furman | Jack Shiels | DF | Furman | |
| Sep. 24 | Hauk Andreas Fossen | FW | ETSU | Josh Perryman | GK | ETSU | |
| Oct. 1 | Trevor Martineau | FW | Mercer | Joe Pickering | DF | ETSU | |
| Oct. 8 | Trevor Martineau | FW | Mercer | JR DeRose | GK | Mercer | |
| Oct. 15 | Niccolo Dagnoni | FW | Belmont | Cole McLagan | DF | Furman | |
| Oct. 22 | | | | | | | |
| Oct. 29 | | | | | | | |
| Nov. 5 | | | | | | | |

### Postseason honors

2019 Southern Conference Men's Soccer Individual Awards :
* Award
* Offensive Player of the Year
* Defensive Player of the Year
* Goalkeeper of the Year
* Coach of the Year
* Newcomer of the Year
2019 SoCon Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams :
| First Team | Second Team | Newcomer Team |

## 2020 MLS Draft

The 2020 MLS SuperDraft was held in January 2020.
| Rnd. | Pick | Player | Pos. | Team | School |

## Homegrown players

The Homegrown Player Rule is a Major League Soccer program that allows MLS teams to sign local players from their own development academies directly to MLS first team rosters. Before the creation of the rule in 2008, every player entering Major League Soccer had to be assigned through one of the existing MLS player allocation processes, such as the MLS SuperDraft.
To place a player on its homegrown player list, making him eligible to sign as a homegrown player, players must have resided in that club's home territory and participated in the club's youth development system for at least one year. Players can play college soccer and still be eligible to sign a homegrown contract.
| Original MLS team | Player | Pos. | School | Ref. |