| 2009 NWC Women's Soccer Coaches' Preseason Poll:
| 2008 records
|
| School
| (1st)
| Pts.
| All
| NWC
|
| 1. Puget Sound (Wash.)
| (9)
| 90
| 18-2
| 16-0
|
| 2. Whitworth (Wash.)
|
| 69
| 15-4-1
| 11-4-1
|
| 3. Whitman (Wash.)
|
| 60
| 11-7-1
| 9-6-1
|
| 4. Willamette (Ore.)
|
| 58
| 12-8
| 10-6
|
| 5. George Fox (Ore.)
|
| 42
| 12-8
| 8-8
|
| 6. Pacific (Ore.)
|
| 35
| 5-14-1
| 4-11-1
|
| 6. Pacific Lutheran (Wash.)
|
| 29
| 5-11-3
| 4-10-2
|
| 8. Linfield (Ore.)
|
| 19
| 6-14
| 4-12
|
| 9. Lewis & Clark (Ore.)
|
| 12
| 4-12-4
| 3-12-1
|
(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on
10-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis).
Northwest Conference coaches made Puget Sound the
unanimous favorite to win the 2009 women's soccer
championship. The Loggers are aiming for an NWC-record eighth
straight title.
Puget Sound picked up all nine first place votes
for a maximum of 90 points in the poll. The Loggers can break
a tie with Willamette for most consecutive NWC titles in women's
soccer. Willamette won or shared seven straight between 1993
and 1999, while Puget Sound has won or shared the last seven in a
row.
The Loggers, who finished 18-2 overall and ran
through the NWC at 16-0 last season, return three-time NWC
Offensive Player of the Year Janece Levien, but graduated 2008 NWC
Defensive MVP Nikki Graff.
Whitworth is second in the poll with 69
points. First Team All-NWC midfielder Lindsey Oakes will lead
the Pirates, who have finished as conference runners-up the last
two seasons. Daman Hagerott, who coached the Pirates to their
last NWC championship in 1995, returns as head coach of the Bucs
this fall.
Whitman (60 points) finished just ahead of
Willamette (58) for third place in the poll, reversing the teams'
finish in last season's standings. First Team All-NWC keeper
Courtney Porter and forward Corina Gabbert will lead Whitman.
Junior midfielder Alex Baxter was an honorable mention All-NWC
midfielder last year at Willamette.
George Fox is fifth in the poll with 42
points. The Bruins welcome back First Team All-NWC midfielder
Kirsten Cardwell.
Pacific (Ore.) totaled 35 points
while Pacific Lutheran had 29 points for sixth and
seventh in the poll, respectively. Junior midfielder Jenny
Novak was a Second Team All-NWC choice for Pacific last year.
Sophomore defender Jordan Daniels will lead the PLU back
line this fall.
Linfield is eighth (19 points), while Lewis &
Clark (12) is ninth in the poll. New head coach Dominic Doty
will aim to turn the fortunes of Linfield, while senior defender
Liska Havel leads L&C after earning Second Team All-NWC honors
last year.
The 2009 NWC season gets underway on August 29th.