WASHINGTON – Coming off the team’s second consecutive conference title, Dayton men’s soccer has been picked to repeat as Under Armour Atlantic 10 champions by the league’s annual Preseason Poll. Additionally, the league released the Preseason All-Conference team on Friday morning ahead of the season’s opening slate of matches one week away.
The A-10 Preseason Poll and Preseason All-Conference team are voted on by the league’s head coaches.
The Atlantic 10 enjoyed a historic 2024 men’s soccer season, sending four teams to the NCAA Tournament – tied for the most in conference history. Dayton earned the No. 5 seed and eventually reached the Elite Eight, while UMass, Fordham, and Saint Louis received at-large bids.
Dayton led the pack with 159 points and eight first-place votes in the preseason poll. The Flyers went 14-4-4 last season with a 7-1-2 mark in conference play, winning the Atlantic 10 Championship with a decisive 3-0 victory over No. 6 seed Saint Louis in the title match. Finishing the season ranked 12
th nationally, Dayton enters the 2025 campaign in the same position by the United Soccer Coaches Poll.
Dayton returns two players selected to the 2024 Atlantic 10 First Team – forwards Martin Bakken and Andrew Armstrong – as well as two Second Team honorees – midfielders Braden Seel and Miles Bonham. Armstrong took home the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year award after a spectacular debut season, scoring eight goals including three game winners. Bakken led the Flyers with nine goals (third in A-10) and led the conference with 10 assists, earning a spot on the United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region First Team as well as the OCSA All-Ohio First Team. Bonham, who joined Bakken and Armstrong on the 2025 Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference team, tallied four assists on the season as well as a game-sealing goal against UNLV. Bonham finished the season with a 41-match starting streak, every match he has been available during his time at Dayton.
Defender Paul Yeboah and forward Ethan Sassine also represent Dayton on the Preseason All-Conference Team. Yeboah anchored a defensive unit that produced seven shutouts during the 2024 campaign, while Sassine logged eight goals – including two in an NCAA Tournament win over Michigan.
George Mason placed second in the preseason poll with 153 points, garnering three first-place votes. Led by 2024 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year Rich Costanzo, the Patriots put together one of their strongest campaigns in program history last season – winning the program’s first-ever Atlantic 10 regular season title with a 6-1-1 conference record (13-4-1 overall).
The Patriots landed three players on the Preseason All-Conference Team: midfielder James Eliuda, forward Martim Sereno, and defender Javi Sánchez. Eliuda earned Atlantic 10 Second Team honors in 2024, recording two goals and five assists for nine points. Sereno received All-Rookie accolades, scoring two goals and adding six assists for 10 points, including a game-winning goal against Delaware. Sanchez landed on the Atlantic 10 Second Team as well, contributing three goals and four assists offensively while helping the Patriots shut out six opponents.
Saint Louis followed closely behind George Mason in the preseason poll, placing third with 149 points and two first-place votes. The Billikens return Atlantic 10 Goalkeeper of the Year Jeremi Abonnel, one of the top net-minders in the nation. Abonnel allowed just 0.94 goals per game last season, producing nine shutouts – the fifth-most by a Billiken keeper in school history.
A pair of Rams battled for the fourth slot in the preseason poll, with Fordham (122) edging past VCU (118) by a margin of four points. Fordham is led by 2024 Atlantic 10 Midfielder of the Year Daniel D’Ippolito, who ended the season at No. 10 on the Top Drawer Soccer Postseason Top 100 list. Ranking third in the nation in points (35) and goals scored (14), D’Ippolito scored more goals and registered more points than any Fordham player in a single season since John Wolyniec in 1998. He tallied two hat tricks, one against Santa Clara and another in the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals at Duquesne.
VCU defender Moussa Ndiaye and Fordham defender Thomas Gray landed on the Preseason All-Conference team as well. Ndiaye started 17 matches for the Rams in 2024 and earned Atlantic 10 First Team honors in 2023, while Gray helped the Fordham defense log five clean sheets.
Duquesne (98) and Loyola Chicago (91) enter the season ranked sixth and seventh, respectively, in the Preseason Poll. Loyola Chicago midfielder Hugo Urdiales made the Preseason All-Conference team, leading his team last season in goals (6), total shots (29), shots on goal (16), and points (16). Davidson (80) follows closely behind at eight, while Rhode Island (66) comes in at nine.
Rounding out the preseason poll is La Salle (52) at 10, St. Bonaventure (38) at 11, Saint Joseph’s (33) at 12, and George Washington (24) at 13.
2025 Atlantic 10 Men’s Soccer Preseason All-Conference Team
Moussa Ndiaye, VCU
Javi Sánchez, George Mason
Paul Yeboah, Dayton
Andrew Armstrong, Dayton
Martin Bakken, Dayton
Martim Sereno, George Mason
Jeremi Abonnel (GK), Saint Louis
Daniel D’Ippolito, Fordham
Miles Bonham, Dayton
Hugo Urdiales, Loyola Chicago
Thomas Gray, Fordham (tie)
Ethan Sassine, Dayton (tie)
James Eliuda, George Mason (tie)
2025 Atlantic 10 Men’s Soccer Preseason Poll
- Dayton (8) – 159
- George Mason (3) – 153
- Saint Louis (2) – 149
- Fordham – 122
- VCU – 118
- Duquesne – 98
- Loyola Chicago – 91
- Davidson – 80
- Rhode Island – 66
- La Salle – 52
- St. Bonaventure – 38
- Saint Joseph’s – 33
- George Washington – 24