When the nine ACC men's soccer head coaches ranked Virginia second in the preseason poll, ahead of the likes of Wake Forest and defending national champion Maryland, they had to be thinking about the return of the Cavaliers' top six goal scorers from a year ago. They also must have realized Virginia only graduated two players and that one of the nation's top midfielders, sophomore Tony Tchani, is fully recovered from his knee injury and poised to back up his ACC Freshman of the Year performance. What they might not have considered when ranking Virginia behind North Carolina in the preseason polls is the Cavaliers' incoming recruiting class, a group capable of making immediate contributions to an already talented team.\nAfter landing one of the country's top recruiting classes last year - one that included Tchani, forwards Chris Agorsor and Brian Ownby, midfielder Jimmy Simpson and defender Hunter Jumper - coach George Gelnovatch once again used his recruiting prowess to bring in the conference's highest rated group of incoming freshmen this year. Will Bates, Ahkeel Rodney, Shane Cooke, Sean Murnane, Marcus Douglas and Will Whorton all appear to possess the outstanding credentials to make them some of the most highly touted soccer players on the East Coast.\nOne of central Virginia's most promising talents, forward Will Bates, was instrumental in leading Thomas Dale High School to two state championship titles. He tallied 47 goals
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