FLUSHING, N.Y. (Aug. 28, 2018) - The City University of New York Athletic Conference announced Tuesday that the College of Staten Island has been tabbed as the favorite by the league's nine head coaches to win the men's soccer regular-season and tournament crowns in 2018.

The Dolphins, who are in search of their first CUNYAC title since 1998, tallied 68 points and three first-place nods, after coming off a year in which they posted a 10-7-2 record and reached the semifinals of the league tournament.

Staten Island returns six starters from last year's squad, three of whom played in the Dolphins' defensive unit. Junior Ryan Layman and sophomore Wilson Quintero claimed CUNYAC All-Star honors, while Erick Conde was named the CUNYAC Defensive Player of the Week last September.

Two-time defending champion Lehman finished second in the poll, earning 63 points and three first-place votes. The Lightning cruised to a 13-5-1 overall record and a perfect 8-0 conference mark in 2017, outscoring their opposition by an average of 1.24 goals per game.

Senior forward Salh Alzubidi received the nod as the CUNYAC Preseason Player of the Year. In his debut campaign at Lehman, Alzubidi scored a league-leading 18 goals in 19 games, en route to garnering CUNYAC Player of the Year recognition. Eight of those tallies were also game-winners, which paced all goal-scorers in the conference.

Brooklyn was a close third in the balloting with 58 points and two first-place votes. The Bulldogs, led by CUNYAC Rookie of the Year Azizjon Ziyaev, went 9-9-2 and had a 6-2 ledger against CUNYAC opposition. In 19 games, Ziyaev netted a team-high 17 goals for Brooklyn and led his team in points with 36

Baruch, under the tutelage of first-year head coach Dima Kamenshchik, placed fourth in the rankings with 53 points and one first-place vote. Meanwhile, reigning CUNYAC Coach of the Year Ridi Dauti's John Jay team was fifth with 52 points, following a season in which the Bloodhounds advanced to the CUNYAC Championship for the first time in 11 years.

The 2018 CUNYAC Men's Soccer Championship will be held in early-November, with first-round games slated for Wednesday, Oct. 24 at higher seeds. The semifinals (Oct. 27) and final (Nov. 3) are slated to be held on back-to-back Saturdays at Brooklyn College.

2018 CUNYAC Preseason Men's Soccer Poll
1. Staten Island (Three First-Place Votes) - 68 Points
2. Lehman (Three First-Place Votes) - 63 Points
3. Brooklyn (Two First-Place Votes) - 58 Points
4. Baruch (One First-Place Vote) - 53 Points
5. John Jay - 52 Points
6. Hunter - 42 Points
7. CCNY - 35 Points
8. Medgar Evers - 22 Points
9. York - 12 Points

CUNYAC Preseason Player of the Year: Salh Alzubidi, F, Lehman