WINTHROP, Mass. – Emmanuel College has been ranked first in the 2015 GNAC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll, as voted upon by the league's nine head coaches. The conference office handed down the announcement on Wednesday morning.
The defending GNAC champion Saints finished 15-4 overall last season with an unblemished 10-0 mark in league play. They handled Becker, 9-3, in last year's GNAC title game en route to an NCAA Tournament appearance, where they fell to eventual national champion Tufts in the first round.
Emmanuel received seven of a possible nine first-place votes and 78 points overall in the poll.
Lasell College (11-6, 9-1 GNAC) finished second with 69 points and one first-place vote, while Norwich University (8-10, 7-3 GNAC) took the third spot with 64 points and one first-place nod. The two teams both advanced to the GNAC Tournament semifinals last spring.
Mount Ida College (9-8, 6-4 GNAC) finished fourth in the voting with 54 points, while Rivier University (8-8, 5-5 GNAC) rounded out the top-five with 37 points.
Making up the remainder of the poll was Saint Joseph's College of Maine (6-8, 5-5 GNAC) with 34 points, Johnson & Wales University (4-13, 2-8 GNAC) with 32 points, Albertus Magnus College (3-10, 2-8 GNAC) with 26 points and Anna Maria College (2-14, 2-8 GNAC) with 11 points.
Emmanuel will open up the 2015 campaign this Saturday, February 21 against Salve Regina, which last year won the ECAC Championship.
League contests will begin on Saturday, March 21, with the 2015 GNAC Tournament scheduled to get underway with first-round play on Tuesday, April 21.
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
2015 GNAC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Emmanuel (7) - 78
2. Lasell (1) - 69
3. Norwich (1) - 64
4. Mount Ida - 54
5. Rivier - 37
6. Saint Joseph's (Maine) - 34
7. Johnson & Wales - 32
8. Albertus Magnus - 26
9. Anna Maria - 11
COURTESY OF GNAC SPORTS INFORMATION OFFICE
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
