 Junior Nassim Berhouni plays in an exhibition match against Francis Marion.
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As late August brings the start of fall classes, it also signals the beginning of another full year of UNCW athletics. This year, it will be the usual suspects to kick-off an action-packed year of Seahawk sports: the men's soccer team. The Seahawks enter 2009 as the reigning Colonial Athletic Association regular season champions following their 7-4 league mark last season. The title was the first in program history and led to the Seahawks hosting the CAA championships at the UNCW Soccer Stadium. Returning to the helm for his ninth season is head coach Aidan Heaney. A two-time CAA Coach-of-the-Year honoree, Heaney led the Seahawks to an impressive turn-around in 2008 by finishing first in the conference, a sizable improvement on their tenth-place finish a year earlier. Heaney will have a host of returning talent at his disposal in 2009 as last year's squad graduated only one senior, midfielder Will Friesinger. Of the Seahawks' numerous returning starters, none were more instrumental last season than senior forward Devan Carroll. Carroll led the Seahawks in 2008 with nine goals and two assists on his way to picking up CAA Player-of-the-Year honors. In addition, Carroll was named First-Team All-Conference, First-Team All-South and included in TopSoccerDrawer.com's National All-Star team. The expectations will be even higher for Carroll this season as he has already been short-listed for the Hermann Trophy, the top individual award in college soccer. Carroll is not the only award winner returning to the Seahawks in 2009. Junior defender Indy Smith is also back to build on a solid 2008 campaign. As a sophomore, Smith started in every match, one of only three Seahawks to do so, and collected the CAA Defender-of-the-Year award. Standing at a towering 6-foot-4-inches, Smith is an opposing figure to lead the Seahawk back line. In addition to his defensive prowess, Smith also contributed a goal and two assists to the Seahawks' attack force last season. With a nearly full returning roster, Heaney and the Seahawks will be among the preseason favorites to capture the CAA title for the second year running; however, the CAA regularly proves to be one of the toughest soccer conferences in the nation, making repeat winners a rarity. In addition to a full CAA slate, the Seahawks will also face off against national powerhouses with home tilts against Campbell, West Virginia and UNC Greensboro as well as a trip to perennially ranked Duke. Historically, the Seahawks have fared well against ranked opponents with upsets over Furman, UNC Greensboro and Duke all within recent seasons. Now with the confidence of a conference title under their belts, the next step into the upper echelon of college soccer is growing shorter for Heaney's men. The Seahawks face preseason exhibition matches against Francis Marion and Winthrop before the season officially gets underway on Sept. 1 when Atlantic Sun champions Campbell visit the UNCW Soccer Stadium. Kick-off is slated for 7 p.m.
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