Georgia Southern women's soccer defender Sade Heinrichs and forward Elis Nemtsov each earned a spot on the 2023 Preseason All-Sun Belt Team, announced this week by the league.
The 2023 Sun Belt Women's Soccer Preseason Awards release also included the preseason coaches' poll, where the Eagles were picked to finish fourth overall among the 14 schools.
Heinrichs, the 2022 Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year, earns one of the five defender spots on the preseason All-Conference squad. The Monchengladbach, Germany, native played all but 30 minutes at center back for the Eagles in 2022, helping Georgia Southern set a new school record with an 0.71 GAA. She was also a first-team All-Sun Belt selection and a United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region selection.
Nemtsov, meanwhile, earns one of the four forward spots after scoring seven goals and notching one assist for 15 points as a redshirt sophomore for the Eagles in 2022, earning first-team All-Conference honors. The Bradford, Ontario, native ranked among the Top 10 in the Sun Belt in total goals, goals per game and game-winning goals.
This is the second straight season that both Heinrichs and Nemtsov have earned preseason All-Sun Belt honors.
The Eagles, who captured the 2022 Sun Belt Regular Season championship, earned a pair of first-place votes and 153 points total in the annual vote of the league's coaches for the preseason poll. James Madison and South Alabama tied for first with 179 points each, though JMU had five first-place votes and South Alabama had three. Old Dominion was picked third with four first-place votes and 177 points total, just ahead of the Eagles.
Texas State (132) was picked fifth, followed by Georgia State (124), Arkansas State (120), Appalachian State (88), Marshall (76) and Coastal Carolina (61). ULM and Louisiana tied for 11th in the poll with 47 points each, while Southern Miss (45) and Troy (42) round out the poll.
Georgia Southern drew at the University of Florida on Sunday in its first action of the preseason and the Eagles will host Kennesaw State on Saturday, Aug. 12, in a 4 p.m. exhibition at Eagle Field. Georgia Southern opens the 2023 regular season on Thursday, Aug. 17, traveling to UAB for an 8 p.m. matchup against the Blazers in Birmingham, Ala.