By BRANDON SMITH
Barton Sports Indo
The 5th ranked Barton Community College men's soccer team has been picked to finish second in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Division I men's soccer preseason order of finish as voted on by the seven league coaches.
Picked to finish runner-up a season ago, the Cougars proved the pollsters wrong clinching their second straight and program's 12th league crown while making their sixth national tournament appearance.
Barton finished league play 9-1-2 with a five-point cushion before ultimately having the season end 18-4-4 overall in a bizarre mini-golden goal pool tournament to 2nd ranked Salt Lake Community College.
Defending Region 6/Plains District Champion 6th ranked Cowley College was tabbed to win the conference with Dodge City and Kansas City Kansas concluding the top four predictions.
Entering his third year at the helm, two-time KJCCC Coach of the Year Rafael Simmons led 10 Barton players to post-season honors a year ago including a pair of NJCAA All-America players.
Simmons and the Cougars bring back four of those postseason selections for the 2024 season highlighted by Loic Kanku's first-team nod. Kanku a season ago was an all-around player producing six goals, seven assists with 19 points in 24 games played.
Also returning from last year's post-season honors include forward Maxence Voinier an NJCAA All-Tournament team selection and a pair of defenseman Lucas Dos Santos and Diego Sano who played vital roles a year ago in helping the Cougars pitch nine shutouts.
Simmons will rely heavily on a talented 2024 freshman class that features 25 newcomers with just 11 returning off last season's national tournament team.
Barton has a pair of scrimmages beginning Wednesday night at Friends University in a 6:30 p.m. kickoff before concluding the exhibition portion Sunday morning hosting Pratt at 10:30 a.m.
The Cougars have a trio of non-conference classics, opening the campaign August 23rd-24th in Enid, Oklahoma, followed by their conference opener the 28th on the road at Dodge City with the home opener August 30th against Jefferson College and a day later September 1st against Trinidad State to close out the first of two home classics held this season.
Hosting their first home conference match against Coffeyville on September 4th, the Cougars will then head on the road for a pair of KJCCC tilts against KCK and conference favorite 6th ranked Cowley with a busy close to September hosting three straight against Garden City, Seward County and Dodge City.
Opening the month of October holding a midweek classic against 16th ranked Otero and 7th ranked Indian Hills on the 3rd, the Cougars will close the season with four of their final six matches on the road which features a pair of matches against top-ranked teams in a road trip up north to face former head coach Mike Brown's 14th ranked Reivers of Iowa Western on October 7th and hosting 6th ranked Cowley on October 19th.
Postseason play begins on November 2nd, in a hopeful first round hosting followed by the final two rounds taking place November 6th and 10th.