Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 1/31/17
From Press Release
The Eastern Eagles were selected as the favorite in the 2017 conference preseason poll conducted among the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) men’s lacrosse coaches. The Eagles received six of eight first-place votes for 46 points.
In 2016, Eastern won its fifth-straight conference title to advance to it fourth NCAA Division III Championship in the last five seasons. The Eagles fell in the first round of the NCAA tournament at York (Pa.) to conclude last season. Eastern finished the 2016 season with its fifth-straight undefeated conference slate all under current head coach Kevin Wallace, who is now 30-0 in MAC Freedom regular-season action.
DeSales received 41 points and the final two first-place votes. The Bulldogs finished second in the conference standings in 2016, but fell to Misericordia in the MAC Freedom semifinal round.
Delaware Valley collected 33 points to rank third. The Aggies earned the fourth-seed in the conference tournament a season ago, but fell to Eastern in the semifinal round.
FDU-Florham and Misericordia both earned 31 points each to tie for fourth and round out the top five. The Cougars earned the third-seed in last year’s tournament and advanced to the championship game where they lost to Eastern. The Devils tied for third in the conference last season with Misericordia and Delaware Valley, but were eliminated from the playoffs due to tiebreakers.
The rest of the poll, in respective order, included King’s (20 points), Manhattanville (15 points) and Wilkes (7 points).
The 2017 MAC Freedom Preseason Poll and 2016 final standings can be viewed below.
2017 MAC Freedom Men’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll
Rank Team Points (1st Place Votes)
1 Eastern 46 (6)
2 DeSales 41 (2)
3 Delaware Valley 33
T4 FDU-Florham 31
T4 Misericordia 31
6 King’s 20
7 Manhattanville 15
8 Wilkes 7
2016 MAC Freedom Men’s Lacrosse Final Standings
Finish Team Conf. Overall
1 Eastern 7-0 14-6
2 DeSales 6-1 6-9
T3 (3) Misericordia 4-3 10-7
T3 (4) Delaware Valley 4-3 8-8
T3 FDU-Florham 4-3 6-9
6 King’s 2-5 3-11
7 Manhattanville 1-6 4-12
8 Wilkes 0-7 0-15
MAC Commonwealth
The Stevenson Mustangs were selected as the favorite in the 2017 conference preseason poll conducted among the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth (MAC Commonwealth) men’s lacrosse coaches. The Mustangs received all eight of the opposing conference coaches’ first-place votes for 64 points.
In 2016, Stevenson won its fourth-straight MAC Commonwealth title to advance to its eighth-straight NCAA appearance. The Mustangs fell to Cabrini in the first round of the NCAA tournament to conclude their 2016 season. Stevenson earned its fourth-straight undefeated conference slate a year ago. The Mustangs are 32-0 in conference play since joining the MAC Commonwealth in 2013.
Messiah earned 54 points to rank second. The Falcons fell to Stevenson in the conference title game a season ago to conclude their season. Widener earned 51 points to rank third. The Pride fell to Messiah by one goal in the 2016 MAC Commonwealth semifinal round.
Albright earned 41 points and Lebanon Valley collected 40 points to rank fourth and fifth, respectively. A season ago, the Lions knocked off the Dutchmen in the MAC Commonwealth play-in game. Albright then lost to Stevenson in the semifinal round.
The rest of the poll, in respective order, included Lycoming (25 points), Arcadia (24 points), Hood (13 points) and Alvernia (12 points).
Stevenson is ranked No. 12 in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Division III preseason poll, and No. 15 in the U.S. Lacrosse Magazine preseason poll.
The 2017 MAC Commonwealth Preseason Poll and 2016 final standings can be viewed below.
2017 MAC Commonwealth Men’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll
Rank Team Points (1st Place Votes)
1 Stevenson 64 (8)
2 Messiah 54
3 Widener 51
4 Albright 41
5 Lebanon Valley 40
6 Lycoming 25
7 Arcadia 24
8 Hood 13
9 Alvernia 12
2016 MAC Commonwealth Men’s Lacrosse Final Standings
Finish Team Conf. Overall
1 Stevenson 8-0 15-5
T2 (2) Messiah 6-2 11-7
T2 (3) Widener 6-2 7-8
T4 (4) Lebanon Valley 5-3 11-8
T4 (5) Albright 5-3 7-10
6 Lycoming 3-5 4-11
7 Arcadia 2-6 4-12
8 Hood 1-7 5-10
9 Alvernia 0-8 3-14
MAC Women
The Messiah Falcons were selected as the favorite in the 2017 conference preseason poll conducted among the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth (MAC Commonwealth) women’s lacrosse coaches. The Falcons received seven of nine first-place votes and 63 points.
In 2016, Messiah won its second-straight MAC Commonwealth title to advance to its sixth all-time appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship. The Falcons concluded their season in the first round of the national tournament at Catholic. Messiah earned its second-straight undefeated conference slate, fourth under current head coach Heather Greer, in 2016. The Falcons look to collect their third-straight conference title and sixth overall in 2017. Messiah has three Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) titles prior to the conference splitting into two in 2012.
Stevenson collected 57 points and the other two first-place votes to be ranked second. The Mustangs earned the second-seed in the 2016 conference tournament, falling at Messiah in the title game.
Lebanon Valley earned 48 points to rank third, and Albright collected 43 points to rank fourth. The Dutchmen and Lions earned the third and fourth seeds, respectively, in last year’s conference tournament, both falling in the semifinal round.
Lycoming received 39 points to round out the top-five. The Warriors fell to Albright in the 2016 conference tournament play-in game by a close 16-15 margin.
The rest of the poll, in respective order, included Alvernia (23 points), Widener (22 points), Arcadia (20 points) and Hood (9 points).
The Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Division III Preseason Poll was also announced today. The Messiah Falcons were ranked No. 17, receiving 87 points. The Falcons ranked No. 18 in the final IWLCA poll in 2016.
The 2017 MAC Commonwealth Preseason Poll and 2016 final standings can be viewed below.
2017 MAC Commonwealth Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll
Rank Team Points (1st Place Votes)
1 Messiah 63 (7)
2 Stevenson 57 (2)
3 Lebanon Valley 48
4 Albright 43
5 Lycoming 39
6 Alvernia 23
7 Widener 22
8 Arcadia 20
9 Hood 9
2016 MAC Commonwealth Women’s Lacrosse Final Standings
Finish Team Conf. Overall
1 Messiah 8-0 14-6
2 Stevenson 7-1 10-9
3 Lebanon Valley 6-2 11-8
4 Albright 5-3 11-7
5 Lycoming 4-4 12-5
T6 Alvernia 2-6 6-9
T6 Arcadia 2-6 6-10
T6 Widener 2-6 6-10
9 Hood 0-8 4-13
The Fairleigh Dickinson University – Florham (FDU-Florham) Devils were selected as the favorite in the 2017 conference preseason poll conducted among the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) women’s lacrosse coaches. The Devils received 49 point and all seven first-place votes from the opposing conference coaches.
In 2016, FDU-Florham won its second-straight conference title. It is the Devils fourth title and five years and their fifth all-time. FDU-Florham made its second-straight, third overall, appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship a season ago, advancing to the second round. The Devils concluded its season with a second-straight—fourth in five years—undefeated conference slate in 2016.
Misericordia collected 43 points to be ranked second. The Cougars earned the second-seed in the 2016 conference tournament, but fell to FDU-Florham in the title game.
King’s earned 33 points and Wilkes collected 32 points to rank third and fourth, respectively. The Colonels earned the third seed in last year’s conference tournament, while the Monarchs earned the fourth seed. Both teams fell in the conference semifinal round.
Eastern earned 25 points to round out the top-five. The rest of the poll, in respective order, included Manhattanville (22 points), Delaware Valley (13 points) and DeSales (7 points).
DeSales will be competing in its inaugural season in 2017. Led by Rachel Smith, the Bulldogs will played their first-ever NCAA Division III women’s lacrosse game at home against Keystone on Feb. 24 at 4 p.m. DeSales will face FDU-Florham on the road in its first-ever MAC Freedom game on April 5 at 4 p.m.
The 2017 MAC Freedom Preseason Poll and 2016 final standings can be viewed below.
2017 MAC Freedom Women’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll
Rank Team Points (1st Place Votes)
1 FDU-Florham 49 (7)
2 Misericordia 43
3 King’s 33
4 Wilkes 32
5 Eastern 25
6 Manhattanville 22
7 Delaware Valley 13
8 DeSales 7
2016 MAC Freedom Women’s Lacrosse Final Standings
Finish Team Conf. Overall
1 FDU-Florham 6-0 14-7
2 Misericordia 5-1 10-9
3 Wilkes 4-2 12-5
4 King’s 3-3 6-10
5 Eastern 2-4 4-12
6 Manhattanville 1-5 6-10
7 Delaware Valley 0-6 5-9