Contact: Rachel Balinao, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, rabalinao@noctrl.edu 

2026 CCIW Men's Soccer Preseason Poll

Aug. 19, 2026 - After a strong 2025 season, the North Central College men's soccer team will enter the 2026 campaign as a top contender after being picked to finish first in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin preseason poll, released Wednesday by the conference office.

The Cardinals received three first-place votes and 57 total points in the conference poll, tying with Wheaton College, the 2025 regular-season champion. North Park University followed in third with 54 points, while CCIW Tournament champion Illinois Wesleyan University received one first-place vote and finished fourth with 45 points. Rounding out the poll were Carroll University (33), Carthage College (32), Augustana College (19), Millikin University (16) and Elmhurst University (12). 

The program posted a 9-2-8 overall record last season, finishing 4-0-4 in conference play and making its eighth consecutive CCIW Tournament appearance. North Central advanced in the first round of the 2025 CCIW Tournament with a 1-0 victory over Carthage. After advancing to the semifinals, the Cardinals fell to eventual tournament champion Illinois Wesleyan, 4-1. 

North Central returns five All-CCIW selections from its 2025 team, led by first-team honorees Joseph Sargent and Aleks Duncevic. Sargent also earned CCIW First-Year Student-Athlete of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year honors, along with United Soccer Coaches' All-American Fourth Team recognition. Griffin French, Joris Rijnja and Marco Costabile return after earning second-team honors. The Cardinals' All-CCIW selections in 2025 were the program's most since 2022.

The Cardinals open the 2026 season with a three-game road stint, beginning Sept. 1 at Illinois Institute of Technology with kickoff set for 7 p.m. The team then travels to Benedictine University on Sept. 3 before wrapping up the road trip at Milwaukee School of Engineering on Sept. 5.