GREENVILLE, SC – Francis Marion University, the reigning three-time champions of the Conference Carolinas East Division, were voted second in the 2026 Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll that was released on Wednesday morning (Aug. 19).
The Patriots tallied 174 total points and three first-place nods as voted on by the league's head coaches. Young Harris College, the defending league tournament champions, was chosen as the preseason favorite in the Conference Carolinas after garnering nine first-place votes and totaling 189 points. Chowan University (169), North Greenville University (161), and Converse University (146) rounded out the top five while each received one first-place nod.
Barton College (119) ranked sixth, followed by Lees-McRae College (116), Belmont Abbey College (99), University of Mount Olive (97), Emmanuel University (81), Ferrum College (68), King University (57), Southern Wesleyan University (56), Erskine College (27), and Shorter University (16).
Francis Marion head coach
Luis Rincon enters his eighth season at the helm and welcomes back 10 returnees, with nine of those players seeing playing time for last season's 8-4-5 squad. The roster also features the addition of several experienced transfers as the Patriots are determined to make a deep run in the postseason. In 2025, Francis Marion University was selected as the preseason favorite and ultimately claimed the No. 1 seed in the league tournament before suffering a late defeat in the quarterfinals, which resulted in an early exit.
Graduate student defender
David Guevara brings a veteran presence to the Patriot backline after starting all 17 matches in 2025, while competing in over 50 career contests with the program. He has had a decorated career at Francis Marion after earning all-region honors for consecutive years, including D2CCA All-Southeast Region First-Team status in 2025. Graduate student defender
Tim Wilkening and senior defender
Esteban Quintero also rejoined an FMU defense that held their opponents to just 15 goals (0.88 goals per game) last year.
FMU opens its 2026 season hosting #15 Flagler College on Thursday, Aug. 27, with the match time set for 4 p.m. on Hartzler Field. Conference play begins on the first weekend of September as the Patriots travel to Chowan University on Saturday, Sept. 5, before hosting their conference home opener on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 1 p.m., versus Shorter University. Francis Marion will compete in 18 scheduled games, including 10 at home.
The 2026 Conference Carolinas Men's Soccer Championship is scheduled to start with preliminary rounds on October 28 and 31 before the semifinals, and the final will be played at Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park in Browns Summit, North Carolina, on November 6 and 8.
