ST. LOUIS – The University of Evansville men's soccer team was projected to finish sixth in the 2015 Missouri Valley Conference annual Preseason Coaches' Poll released by the MVC on Thursday. Evansville senior forward Mark Anthony Gonzalez was also named to the 2015 All-MVC Preseason Team. Gonzalez piloted UE with a team-high six goals, three assists and a team-leading 15 points last fall.
 
MVC Release
 
SIUE (42 points, three first place votes) just narrowly edged Missouri State (39 points, three first place votes) to become the preseason favorite. Loyola (38 points), Bradley (27 points, one first place vote) and Drake (26 points) complete the top five rankings. Central Arkansas (nine points) was voted to finish seventh in the MVC.
 
The Purple Aces are coming off a season in which they were 6-11-1 but placed third in the MVC with a 4-2-0 mark.
 
UE will be under the guidance of first year head coach Marshall Ray. A former player (1995-'99) at Evansville, Ray graduated from UE in 2000 and has served on the staff for nine years with the last six as Associate Head Coach.
 
Evansville will benefit from 15 returning letterwinners including senior defender Vince DiPrimio (16 matches started last year), senior forward Nate Opperman (two assists last season), junior forward Jared Robinson (2013 MVC All-Freshman Team) and sophomore midfielder/defender Ian McGrath (2014 MVC All-Freshman Team).
 
The Aces also welcome eight newcomers to the mix, most of which saw time during the preseason opener against Bellarmine.
UE is on the road at Mercer on Thursday, August 20 at 3:00 p.m. CDT. Evansville is back at home for their preseason finale against IUPUI on Sunday, August 23 at 5:00 p.m. CDT.

For all of the latest information on University of Evansville men's soccer, log on to the sport page on GoPurpleAces.com or follow the program on Twitter via @UEAthleticsMSOC. For more information on giving to UE Athletics or its individual athletics programs, visit the DONATE tab on the top of GoPurpleAces.com . To purchase tickets for University of Evansville athletics events, log on to GoPurpleAces.com and click on the TICKETS tab on top of the page.