FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU men's soccer team was slotted second in the ASUN Coaches' Preseason Poll while Gustavo Vasconcelos was named the ASUN Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, the league announced Monday afternoon.

Ethan Dudley, and O'Vonte Mullings both landed on the Preseason All-Conference Team.  

Defending ASUN Champion Jacksonville heads into the season as the favorite as the Dolphins collected 57 points along with four first-place votes. FGCU racked up 46 points with a pair of first-place votes while Lipscomb snagged the final first-place votes, tying for third with Liberty with 43 points.

North Florida (33), Bellarmine (29), Central Arkansas (26), and Stetson (11) rounded out the final four teams.

"We don't put any stock or hype into these preseason awards," said head coach Jesse Cormier. "We respect each opponent and the ASUN is going to be tough. Our daily actions and training habits are what matter now as we get ready for the season."

Vasconcelos (Recife, Brazil/Colegio GGE)

A two-time ASUN Goalie of the Year, Vasconcelos started all 11 contests, posting over 1,000 minutes between the pipes during the spring. The Brazil native secured 40 saves to go along with a 1.26 goals-against average (1.09 ASUN) while posting two clean sheets. Vasconcelos is the only keeper in program history to be named Goalkeeper of the Year twice.

Dudley (St. Johns, Fla./Bartram Trail HS)

An ASUN All-Academic member and Defensive Player of the Year, Dudley started in all 10 games he appeared in this past spring. The St. Johns native totaled over 900 minutes of action producing two goals and 18 shots (second-most on the team). His five shots on goal ranked third this season. Dudley was also named to the CoSIDA All-District Team in June.

Mullings (Toronto, Ontario/Northview Heights)

Despite missing two games out of FGCU's 11, the striker became the third Player of the Year in program history and first since 2016 (Albert Ruiz) at the end of the abbreviated spring campaign. In nine starts, Mullings led the Eagles and was tied for first in the ASUN with five goals (one game-winner). He also paced FGCU in shots (19), shots on goal (13), and points (10) while logging nearly 800 minutes on the pitch.

FGCU defeated Eckerd College Sunday night, 3-1, in an exhibition match. The Eagles will host one more exhibition match Sunday at 7 p.m. as they take on Palm Beach Atlantic - free admission.

2021 ASUN Preseason Awards
Player of the Year: Reed Davis, Jacksonville
Defensive Player of the Year: Noah Gulden, Lipscomb
Goalkeeper of the Year: Gustavo Vasconcelos, FGCU

Preseason All-Conference Team

Pos.	Name	School	Year
GK	Gustavo Vasconcelos	FGCU	Sr.
D	Alberto Suarez	Central Arkansas	Sr.
D	LJ Estes	North Florida	Sr.
D	Nil Ringstrand	Jacksonville	So.
D	Malik Smith	Liberty	Sr.
D	Noah Gulden	Lipscomb	Sr.
MF	Haziq Zed	Bellarmine	Jr.
MF	Ethan Dudley	FGCU	Sr.
MF	Seth Clark	Liberty	So.
MF	Marko Mitrevski	Liberty	Jr.
F*	Olivier Correa	Jacksonville	So.
F	O'Vonte Mullings	FGCU	Sr.
F	Reed Davis	Jacksonville	Jr.

 *- Denotes unanimous selection 

Preseason Coaches' Poll

Place	Team (First-Place Votes)	Points
1.	Jacksonville (4)	57
2.	FGCU (2)	46
3.	Lipscomb (2)	43
	Liberty	43
5.	North Florida	33
6.	Bellarmine	29
7.	Central Arkansas	26
8.	Stetson	11

For fans interested in purchasing single-game or season tickets for men's soccer this year, feel free to visit FGCUtickets.com. You can also contact the ticket office by phone at 866-FGCU-TIX (866-342-8849) or by email at tickets@fgcu.edu with any questions. Single-game tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth and military.  Fans can also purchase the Fall Frequent Flyer Pass in 15, 30 or 45 game increments, which gets you admission to any combination of men's soccer, women's soccer or volleyball home events.

HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier enters his fifth year as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program in the fall of 2021 after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 29-23-11 (.547) record overall, including a 15-5-4 mark (.708) in ASUN play. The Eagles have reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for nine-straight seasons (every year of eligibility), as Cormier has coached 28 all-conference selections since his arrival (program-record 10 in 2017). Cormier was the head coach at his alma mater the University of Vermont for the previous 13 seasons. He won 14 games with the Catamounts in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. During his time with Vermont, Cormier guided the program to the America East Tournament in 12 of 13 seasons, making five title game appearances, winning two tournament crowns, claiming a regular-season championship and advancing to three NCAA tournaments, including a pair of Second Round appearances. Cormier holds an overall 143-111-57 (.551) record as a head coach in his sixteen-plus seasons at the helm.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 85 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 42 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 21, 2020-21), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 23 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, and 2020 Fall semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.