CLEVELAND, Ohio – The North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) released its 2026 preseason coaches poll for men's soccer on Tuesday afternoon. The Ohio Wesleyan University men's soccer team was picked to finish fifth in the nine-team conference field.

Defending NCAC champions DePauw narrowly beat out Denison for the top spot in the poll, holding 75 points and seven first-place votes while the Big Red held 73 points and two first-place votes. Kenyon and Wooster came third and fourth with 57 and 50 points respectively. The Battling Bishops took fifth with 47 points.

The bottom of the table featured John Carroll in sixth with 39 points, followed by Wabash with 29, Oberlin with 18, and Wittenberg with 17.

The Red and Black finished fifth in the conference last season with a 3-3-2 record, just missing out on a spot in the NCAC Tournament. Overall, OWU held a 7-5-6 mark.

The Bishops open up the 2026 season on the road at Case Western Reserve on Tuesday, September 1 at 7:30 p.m.