SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Seven-time defending Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) champion Endicott College has been tabbed as the favorite to win the 2013 CCC women's lacrosse championship, it was announced today by Commissioner Gregg M. Kaye.

Voting for the preseason poll was conducted among the league's head women's lacrosse coaches.

Endicott received all nine first-place votes in the 2013 CCC preseason poll. University of New England (12-5, 6-1 CCC) was selected as the runner-up, while Gordon College (14-4, 5-2) was slotted third, Roger Williams University (6-12, 3-4) was tabbed fourth and Western New England University (6-12, 3-4) was selected to finish fifth.

Consistency has been the hallmark of Endicott's women's lacrosse program in their recent history, as the Gulls are coming off of their seventh consecutive title and NCAA tournament appearance.

"The Senior class is the backbone of the team," says Head Coach Meghan Fitzgerald. "They may not get all of the recognition, but they are the hardest workers." 

It starts with attack, which means Holly Davis (Guilford, Conn.) and Kelly Tierney (South Hadley, Mass.).  Davis, who scored 52 goals last season and was the team-leader with 84 draw controls, is a two-time All-CCC and All-IWLCA Pilgrim Region selection, while Tierney, who had 42 goals and 24 assists, was named to the CCC Second Team last year and was second on the Gulls in points. 

"Holly's a phenomenal player who's really hard to defend and Kelly is really consistent, strong and has the ability to sees things on the field that others don't," says Fitzgerald. 

Senior Caitlin Pratt (Bow, N.H.), who scored 9 goals in 12 games a season ago and can read situations very well on the field will be added to the fold as another offensive threat. 

On the defensive side of the ball, captain Stacia Geno (White River Junction, Vt.) will anchor the back-line, though this year she also may step up in the attack a little more, as she is gaining confidence, versatility, and flexibility in the midfield. Geno is coming off a year in which she earned her first All-CCC team award, an Honorable Mention selection. 

Joining Geno will be Lauren Todd (Newfields, N.H.), a two-time All-CCC Honorable Mention player, who led the team with 20 caused turnovers a year ago, while grabbing 35 ground balls and also scoring 21 goals, and Gabrielle Boyle (Hingham, Mass.), who is one of the leaders of a new defensive system because of her conditioning and intelligence on the field.

Moving down to the junior class, Endicott also has strong players in both attack and defense, the latter of which will feature Kelsey Barnes (Mendham, N.J.), the team's top low-defender who shuts down the top players from each opponent. Barnes caused 15 turnovers and pounced on 23 ground balls a year ago, starting all 18 games for the Gulls and earning her second All-CCC team and first First Team honor. 

Her classmates, Callie Murphy (Woburn, Mass.) and Rachel Campos (Shrewsbury, Mass.) will take bigger roles this year, after breakout seasons a year ago for the pair. Murphy was a consistent attacking threat, with 38 goals and 21 assists for the Gulls, earning her All-CCC Honorable Mention, while Campos is a great defender and draw-taker and gets to loose balls as she proved with 71 draw controls and a team-high 51 ground balls. 

Junior goalkeeper Rachel Socolow (Westford, Mass.) will be the Gull's starting net-minder when the season opens up. Though she was not a starter last season, Socolow appeared in five games for the Gulls and is ready to step up and thrive in game settings. Socolow's strengths are her activeness and confidence, and she has the ability to come out of the crease and make strong clears. 

 Adding to the experience will be a solid foundation of freshman and sophomores, particularly on the defensive end. Freshmen Melissa Bulman (Farmington, N.Y.), Elizabeth Reda (Wilton, Conn.) and Katie Clements (Reading, Mass.) are really solid defenders who have great experience from high school and club teams. 

First year Isabelle Sipperly (Greenwich, N.Y.) will see a lot of time on the attacking side. 

A strong set of returning sophomores includes Taylor Rogerson (Washington Depot, Conn.), a hard worker in the midfield and Siri Mason(Williamstown, Mass.), who got great experience last year to draw on as they find their roles increased in this year's squad. Katie Tierney (South Hadley, Mass.) played at Division II Southern New Hampshire for a season and now will join her sister in the Gull's attacking ranks. Kirsten Thor (Longmeadow, Mass.) is a strong high attacker who will hopefully get more game experience this year to get comfortable and confident.

Coach Fitzgerald expects the Gulls to be targeted every time they take the field because of their history of success, particularly in the conference. "We're in a tougher position than most teams in our conference because we can't necessarily pick out one game on our schedule as a big game. Everyone wants to beat us and we can't afford to have an off day." 

The Gulls will continue their trend of playing one of the most difficult schedules in the country, which this year includes a trip to New York to play RIT and Nazareth, and back to back road games against Bowdoin and Colby, the latter of which ended the Gull's season last year in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Endicott will also travel to Tufts and Babson, wrapped around a conference schedule that includes Roger Williams, Gordon and Western New England, the only CCC team to beat Endicott since 2007. 

Endicott opens their schedule on March 6^th with a road game at Wellesley and then returns home for their home opener on March 9^th against Southern Maine. They travel to New York and then to their back-to-back NESCAC opponents before their CCC title-defense begins on March 23^rd at Gordon.

 2013 CCC PRESEASON WOMEN'S LACROSSE POLL

Teams received nine points for every first place vote received, eight points for second place votes, seven points for third place votes, down to one point for a last place vote. First place votes are shown in parentheses.