BOSTON -- The Northeastern men's soccer team will be put to the test to kick off the 2013 season when the Huskies travel to Durham, N.C. for the John Rennie / Nike Invitational. NU will take on Elon at Koskinen Stadium on Friday before battling host Duke on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

Picked to repeat
After capturing the 2012 conference championship, NU was picked to finish first in the 2013 CAA preseason poll, according to a vote of the league's coaches on Aug. 9.

The Huskies claimed the top spot in the poll after receiving three first-place votes and 44 total points, edging Drexel by three points. This marks the first time that the Huskies have been slotted for the top spot since Northeastern joined the CAA in 2005, and only the second time that any NU sport was picked as the favorite, joining volleyball in 2012.

O Captain, My Captain
Northeastern has chosen its leaders for the 2013 season. Senior Dante Marini, along with juniors Simon Cox and Donovan Fayd'Herbe de Maudave will be looked upon to lead a group of Huskies who return 17 letterwinners, including eight starters, from last season's squad.

Cox enters his first season as a tri-captain, while Fayd'Herbe de Maudave and Marini also served as captains last season.

Five Huskies earn preseason accolades
Simon Cox and Dante Marini got the 2013 Northeastern men's soccer season started on the right foot on Aug. 13 when the two captains were named to the Preseason All-CAA team. In addition, Jonathan Eckford, captain Donovan Fayd'Herbe de Maudave and Ambry Moss earned Honorable Mention status.

NU's five selections are the most of any team in the conference. 

Holding the back line
Northeastern's strongest asset in 2013 should be the performance of its defense, which returns all five of its starters from last season. Simon Cox, who potted four goals en route to CAA Co-Defensive Player of the Year accolades, helped anchor a defense that held its opponents to 0.76 goals per game and 10 shutouts.

Aided by the play of Conner Alexander, Jonathan Eckford, Nikko Lara and Ambry Moss, NU allowed just 16 goals in 21 matches, the lowest total in team history.

Fresh faces
The Huskies welcome 10 new faces to the 2013 squad, the most of any team in the conference. The group of three forwards, three midfielders and four goalkeepers are expected to push to returning players for playing time throughout the season.

Scouting Elon
Elon is coming off a strong 2012 season in which it compiled at 15-5-2 record and won the Southern Conference Championship before being ousted in the first round of the NCAA tournament by Coastal Carolina.

Head Coach Darren Powell will be expecting plenty of scoring coming from the middle of the field in 2013. While having graduated a major offensive force in forward Chris Thomas (23 goals, 51 points last season), they still have returned some solid offensive weapons, headlined by midfielder Matt Westcoe. The senior was second on the team last season with 19 points (six goals, seven assists).

Scouting Duke
The Blue Devils are coming off an 8-8-2 season in which they finished seventh in the ACC. This will be the second time the two teams face off, with NU winning the lone match in 2001.

Duke returns four of their top five scorers from a season ago. Senior defender/midfielder Sebastien Ibeagha led the team in scoring with 5-2-12 totals. Zach Mathers, Luis Rendon and Nick Palodichuk were third, fourth, and fifth, respectively. Mathers (2-4-8) and Palodichuk (2-0-4) provided offense from the midfield position, while Rendon (2-1-5) contributed at forward.

The goalkeeper position will be a big question for the Blue Devils this season. Junior Wilson Fisher played only one minute last season, and is the only goalkeeper currently on the roster to see any game action in a Duke uniform. 

2012 in review
The 2012 campaign was a year to remember for the Huskies, who captured their first-ever CAA tournament title and reached the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002.

Led by MAC-Hermann semifinalist and NSCAA Third Team All-American Don Anding, NU went 14-3-4, setting program records for most wins, fewest losses and longest unbeaten streak (12 games), while also tying the team record for longest winning streak (six games).

NU unveils 2013 digital media guide
The Northeastern athletic department introduces the official 2013 digital media guide for men's soccer. In an upgrade from previous media guides, this year's digital guides provide a user-friendly, easy-to-navigate format to access information for all 18 teams at Northeastern.

This season's digital media guides provide a glance into the student-athletes, coaches and history of each NU team, as well as a multitude of information on the University and the City of Boston. The guide also allows fans to learn more about a specific topic with a simple click of the mouse. Visit GoNU.com/DMG to view all four fall media guides.

The road ahead
After this weekend's set in Durham, N.C., the Huskies will return home for three of their next five games at home at Parsons Field, beginning with Fairfield on Sept. 7 at 6 p.m. Northeastern is unbeaten at Parsons in its last 16 contests (15-0-1), and hasn't lost at home since Nov. 6, 2010.

---

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU

ECNL Girls N. Atlantic Players to Watch

Women's NCAA Tournament Round Two Preview

Best of Men's College Soccer Week 13