Little East announces preseason women’s soccer poll

Panthers slated to place sixth in 2011 

            PLYMOUTH, N.H.  -- The Little East Conference has announced the results of the women’s soccer preseason coaches’ poll and for the second straight season, Plymouth State University has been picked to finish in sixth place in this year’s race.  The votes were cast by the conference’s eight head coaches.

            The Panthers, led by second-year head coach Cindy Bennett, received 23 points in this year’s poll to end up in the sixth spot. Defending LEC regular season champion Eastern Connecticut State University was the top pick in the poll with 62 points, including six first-place votes, and defending tournament champion Western Connecticut State University was runner-up with 54 points and the other two top votes. Keene State College and UMass Boston rounded out the top half of the poll, while the bottom half included the University of Southern Maine, Plymouth State, Rhode Island College, and UMass Dartmouth.

            PSU is coming off a 7-11-0 campaign in 2010, which included a tie for fifth place in the LEC with a 2-5 mark. The Panthers open this year’s campaign at the Colby-Sawyer College Labor Day Tournament on Sept. 3-4, at New London, N.H.

            The LEC women's soccer regular season slate, now in its 22nd year, includes one match against the other seven schools.  The conference tournament, which includes the top six teams, is the first week in November, with the LEC champion receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

2011 LEC Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches’ Poll

 (first-place votes in parentheses)

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