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DATE: Nov. 30, 2001
2002 USL MDIA Preseason Poll has Familiar Look
The 2002 US Lacrosse Men’s Division Intercollegiate Associates
preseason poll features a number of familiar faces in familiar positions.
Picked to reclaim the national crown they last held in 2000, Brigham
Young University nabbed the top spot in the 2001 preseason poll.
The Cougars tallied 343 points and 9 (of the possible 14) first
place votes in establishing themselves as the early team to beat.
BYU’s favorite Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Lacrosse League
rivals are close behind. The defending 2001 national champion, Colorado
State, trails by only 13 points. Colorado State collected three
first place votes. BYU and CSU staged three classic match-ups during
the 2001 season, all decided by one goal with the Cougars winning
the regular season and conference championship face-offs and the
Rams gaining revenge in the semifinals of the US Lacrosse Intercollegiate
Associates national championships last May in St. Louis.
Not far behind are the Sonoma State Cossacks in third place with
319 points and the Michigan Wolverines (fourth place, 312 points).
Both programs garnered a first place vote as well.
2001 IA championship finalist Stanford lands fifth place in the
preseason poll with 285 points, only three points ahead of the Virginia
Tech Hokies of the SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (282 points).
The Univ. of California–Santa Barbara Gauchos are the third
WCLL team in the top seven with 255 points followed by the Lone
Star Alliance standard bearers, the Texas A&M Aggies with 249
points.
Canada’s Simon Fraser University sits at #9. The perennial
PCNLL champion Clansmen tallied 242 points. Rounding out the top
10 are the defending SELC Champion Auburn Tigers with 219 points.
The focus turns west for spots 11 through 13 with the Golden Bears
of California in 11th (212 points) followed by the 12th ranked Colorado
Buffaloes only five points behind. Filling the lucky 13th position
are the Arizona Wildcats (162 points).
The compass swings east as the Pioneer Champion Rams of Rhode Island
are picked at #14 with 159 points followed by the Tennessee Volunteers
at #15 (149 points). The #16 spot goes to Marquette University of
the CCLA (117 points) followed by the Texas Longhorns at #17 with
111. 18th place is held by the Vanderbilt Commodores while making
their first appearance in thepoll at #19 are the Bulls of Buffalo.
Previously an independent, Buffalo joins the CCLA for the 2002 spring
season.
UMLL Champion Minnesota-Duluth holds down the 20th position, seven
points in front of #21 New Hampshire. The 2001 SELC Division II
champion Florida Gators stand at #22, three points ahead of Cal
Poly-San Luis Obispo in the 23rd position. CCLA contender Illinois
lands at #24 with the California-Davis Aggies rounding out the poll
at #25.
The US Lacrosse Men’s Division Intercollegiate Associates Top
25 poll is conducted biweekly throughout the spring season. The
USL MDIA season will conclude with the sixth annual national championship
tournament in St. Louis, Mo. May 8-11. Past national champions include
Colorado State (2001, 1999), BYU (2000, 1997), and Cal (1998).
The USL MDIA consists of more than 140 collegiate club teams from
coast to coast who compete at the virtual varsity level. These programs
voluntarily adhere to NCAA regulations such as eligibility, equipment,
and game rules to promote a level playing field across the country.
The USL MDIA consists of eight conferences: Central Collegiate Lacrosse
Association (CCLA), Lone Star Alliance (LSA), Pacific Northwest
Collegiate Lacrosse League (PNCLL), Pioneer Collegiate Lacrosse
League (PCLL), Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Lacrosse League (RMILL),
SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (SELC), Upper Midwest Lacrosse
League (UMLL), and the Western Collegiate Lacrosse League (WCLL),
and nearly 20 unaffiliated independent teams.
US Lacrosse, a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization, is the national
governing body of men's and women's lacrosse. For more information
on the USL MDIA, please visit the web site at www.uslia.com.
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