CLEVELAND, Ohio – Cleveland State has been selected to finish seventh in the Horizon League Women's Soccer Preseason Poll as voted upon by league head coaches, the Horizon League announced Monday.
The Vikings received 79 votes, which is 28 more votes than Youngstown State, who was selected to finish right behind the Vikes in eighth place. Milwaukee, who finished first in the #HLWSOC standings in 2019, received 10 first place votes.
Cleveland State enters the season after finishing seventh in 2019, with a 4-4-1 record in league play.
Grace Krosky, who netted a team-high four goals during the 2019 campaign, will return to the pitch for her sophomore season, after starting in all 17 games last year. Elena Gutlove will also be returning to the Green and White's lineup once again. The senior notched a team-high nine points and a team-high three assists in 16 games (14 starts) last season.
Stevie Holbrook, Grace Grant, Essence Canady, Ali Martin, Ja'Maya Ward and Megan Bine will compete for the Vikes this upcoming season, playing in a combined 199 games over their Cleveland State careers.
Holbrook appeared in 16 games (15 starts) last season, recording 75 saves, tabbing 4.69 saves per game, good for third in the league, while Canady and Grant each notched three goals during 2019.
A trio of transfers will suit up for the Vikings this season, including Strongsville, Ohio, native Katie Sidloski. Sidloski, a senior, comes to Cleveland State following a three-year stint at Indiana State University.
Christina Trickett, a junior transfer from University of Central Florida, appeared in 29 games over her two-year career at UCF, which included a 2017 American Athletic Conference championship. Trickett, a graduate of Walsh Jesuit High School and a member of the 2013 Division I OHSAA state championship team, was one of only 31 UCF student-athletes to appear on the President's Honor Roll for Fall 2016.
Sophomore Maddie Young will suit up for the Green and White this season, after seeing action in 21 games for Ohio University during the 2019 campaign. The newest Viking was named to the MAC All-Freshman Team after scoring five goals for the Bobcats, the second-most on the team.
The Cleveland State women's soccer program will compete weekly, in a single round-robin schedule, beginning on Wednesday, February 3 at IUPUI. The Vikings will take the pitch every Wednesday for the first eight weeks of the season (February 3 – March 24), before finishing Horizon League play on Tuesday, March 30 and Monday, April 5. Of the 10-week Horizon League season, home and away contests are split evenly, with Cleveland State hosting five of its 10 games.
The Vikings will host Wright State, Youngstown State, Milwaukee, Green Bay and Detroit Mercy, while facing off against IUPUI, Oakland, Purdue Fort Wayne, Northern Kentucky and Robert Morris on the road.
Spring 2021 #HLWSOC Preseason Poll
Pl. Team – Pts. (First-place votes)
1. Milwaukee – 132 (10)
2. IUPUI – 118
3. UIC – 112 (1)
4. Northern Kentucky – 108
5. Oakland – 105 (1)
6. Wright State – 91
7. Cleveland State – 79
8. Youngstown State – 51
9. Purdue Fort Wayne – 38
10. Green Bay – 37
11. RMU – 35
12. Detroit Mercy – 30