Phillylacrosse.com, posted 2/28/09
Defending Division II national champion West Chester was picked as the preseason favorite in the Eastern Division of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) women’s lacrosse preseason coaches’ poll. The Golden Rams received all six first place votes in the voting.
This will be the first year with a two-division setup in women’s lacrosse with the additions of Mercyhurst and Gannon through league expansion as well as Edinboro, which is entering its first year with a lacrosse program. Kutztown has returned to the East Division after not fielding a team for 18 years.
West Chester (20-1 overall and 14-0 in PSAC play a year ago) and Lock Haven have dominated the landscape in PSAC lacrosse for the last several years, and the league’s head coaches have forecasted it to be the same again this year as Lock Haven received all six first-place votes in the West.
The Golden Rams, ranked No. 1 in the first three IWLCA national polls this spring, enter the season on a 20-game winning streak, after losing their first game last year before reeling off 20 consecutive victories en route to winning the PSAC regular season and tournament championships and the NCAA national championship.
West Chester opens defense of its national title on Wednesday, March 4 in Hilton Head, S.C. against Slippery Rock.
2009 PSAC Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Coaches’ Poll
Eastern Division
1. West Chester (6)
2. Bloomsburg
3. East Stroudsburg
4. Millersville
5. Shippensburg
6. Kutztown
Western Division
1. Lock Haven (6)
2. Mercyhurst
3. Gannon
4. IUP
5. Slippery Rock
6. Edinboro
