1.  Louisville – Ken Lolla knows how to build winners.  He has worked wonders at Louisville in a short period of time. Nine starters return from the 2010 squad that was 20-1-3 with their lone loss at the hands of Akron 1-0 in the National Championship game.  Junior All-American forward Colin Rolfe (9g, 7a) will power the attack up-top.  Senior Nick DeLeon (8g, 3a) and sophomore Dylan Mares (8g, 4a) are talented midfielders who add another element to the attack.  Senior All-American Austin Berry anchors the backline and senior Andre Boudreaux returns in goal.  Off-season difficulties may prove to be a distraction but the Cardinals appear to be moving forward in a positive manner.   Louisville will be tested right out of the gate when they open the season by hosting UCLA.  They then travel to tangle with Wake Forest and North Carolina.

 

2.  UCLA – This team has the Bruin faithful thinking big and rightly so.  No team in the West, and few in the country, will have as many big game players as the Bruins.  Jorge Salcedo, who usually has to contend with losing players early to enter the professional ranks, will have the luxury of having all eleven starters from the 2010 squad back in 2011.  Last year a young Bruin team was an impressive 16-5-1 and advanced to the Elite Eight where they lost a heartbreaker to Louisville 5-4.  Sophomores Victor Chavez (10g, 5a) and Reed Williams (5g, 4a) and junior Chandler Hoffman (6g, 1a) return up-top.  Seniors Andy Rose (1g, 4a) and Eder Arreola (4g, 7a) and sophomore Kelyn Rowe (7g, 10a) will lead an outstanding midfield. Senior Shawn Singh (1g, 3a) and junior Matt Wiet return to anchor a very competent back line.  Senior Brian Rowe returns in goal.  The Bruins play a brutal schedule that begins on August 27 when tangle with Louisville in what should be a dandy of a season opener.

 

3.  North Carolina – The Tar Heels are under new management in 2011 and they have more than the usual number of gaps to fill due to graduation but don’t expect a significant drop off in the level of play in Chapel Hill.  Carlos Somoano takes over as the new head coach replacing Elmar Bolowich who traveled west to Omaha to assume the head coaching job at Creighton.  The return of forward Billy Schueler after missing almost all of the 2010 season due to injury is a big boost for the Tar Heels.  North Carolina has also helped their case by adding a top-notch recruiting class that features senior transfer Matt Hedges who was an All-American defender at Butler last year.  Junior Enzo Martinez (10g, 5a) and senior Kirk Urzo (5g, 5a) are among returning players who can light up the back of the net.  Senior Drew McKinnery will anchor the backline while junior Scott Goodwin returns in goal to give North Carolina a talented and experienced presence between the pipes. UNC has advanced to the Final Four for the past three years in a row.

 

4.  Akron – It is an understatement to say that the Zips lost a lot of talent and experience.  The 2010 National Champions will be without five stellar underclassmen that elected to enter the professional ranks as well as Anthony Ampaipitakwong and Chris Korb who graduated.   Junior goalkeeper David Meves, sophomore forward Darren Mattocks (18g, 5a), junior midfielder Scott Caldwell (5g, 1a), and junior defender Chad Barson (2g, 1a) are the only returning Zips who played in the 2010 NCAA title game.  It is tempting to focus on who will not be back instead of who will be back but in Akron’s case that would be a mistake.  There are several things in Akron’s favor.  The Zips have added another banner recruiting class with a ton of competitive experience.  And, Caleb Porter, who has a record of 90-13-10 since coming to Akron in 2006, will still be leading the program.  It may be a while before the Zips fully hit their stride but that doesn’t mean they won’t keep winning in the process.