Westminster men's soccer was chosen to finish second in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference based on a poll by the league's head coaches.
The Blue Jays receive 75 points and three first-place votes to secure the second spot. Only Spalding finished ahead of Westminster, receiving 78 points and six first-place votes.
During the 2016 season, Westminster finished second in the regular season, but went on to secure its fifth-straight SLIAC Tournament title to enter the NCAA Tournament. They finished the season 15-4-1 overall and 7-1-1 in the conference.
Head Coach Adam Galla, in his second year, returns 15 players and eight starters. Raul Belman, who sat out a season ago due to injury, will return this season as the squad's goalkeeper.
Defenders Blake Hausman and Cooper Smith return while Daniel Barone, who tallied 10 points last season, returns in midfield.
Westminster opens its season at home Sept. 1 against North Central at 5 p.m.
The entire poll is as follows: