Edward Kizza placed on ACC preseason watch list

Pitt forward Edward Kizza was named to the ACC preseason watch list on Monday, according to a press release from the conference. Kizza was the only member of the Pitt men’s soccer team included on the watch list, as the list is comprised of one player per team from the conference.

Last season, Kizza was one of three Pitt players to earn All-ACC honors, as he made the first team, then-Panthers midfielder Javi Perez made the second team and Panthers defender Chandler Vaughn made the freshman team. Perez is now in the professional ranks with the Los Angeles Football Club of MLS, and Vaughn will return alongside Kizza.

Kizza was the first player in program history to earn first-team All-ACC honors, and he did so after scoring 15 goals in 19 matches during the 2018 season. That ranks as the third-best single-season goal total in Pitt’s history. The native of Kampala, Uganda, also converted on 62 percent of his shots and accounted for 30 points on the season, placing him atop the ACC in goals, points and shot accuracy.

However, while much is expected of Kizza in the coming season, there appears to be much less excitement surrounding the Pitt program as a whole, as the Panthers were picked in a poll of the ACC’s 12 coaches to finish last in the conference, receiving zero first-place votes. In 2018, the team failed to improve on its 8-10 record but managed to defeat Virginia 2-0 in the ACC tournament. That marked Pitt’s first tournament win since joining the ACC in 2013.