Field Hockey Ranked No. 1 In Preseason Poll
8/22/2006 8:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Aug. 22, 2006
COLLEGE PARK - The reigning NCAA Champion University of Maryland field hockey team was ranked No. 1 in the Preseason Coaches Poll released by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Monday.
The Terrapins, who are also the 2005 ACC Champions, received 879 points and 35 first-place votes. Four ACC teams were ranked in the top five. Wake Forest, ranked second, garnered 819 points and received five first-place votes, while Duke and North Carolina nabbed two and one first-place votes, respectively, to place third and fifth in the poll.
In all, six ACC teams earned a spot in the Top 20. Boston College was rated 11th and Virginia tied for 19th with 141 points.
Four other Terrapin foes appeared in the preseason poll, including No. 4 Old Dominion (756), No. 6 American (615), No. 8 Michigan and 18th-ranked James Madison (154).
Maryland opens the 2006 slate at on Aug. 26 vs. Pacific, closing a three-game road trip against California on Aug. 29, who received 60 votes and is ranked just out of the top 20. The Terps return 13 letterwinners and six starters, including Honda Sports Award recipient Paula Infante (Santiago, Chile), presented to the sports top player in the nation.
STX/NFHCA PRESEASON COACHES POLL
1. MARYLAND 879(35) 2. Wake Forest* 819 (5) 3. Duke* 793 (2) 4. Old Dominion 756 (2) 5. North Carolina* 683 (1) 6. American 615 7. Penn State 605 8. Michigan 537 9. Connecticut 469 10. Indiana 390 11. Boston College* 368 12. Iowa 352 13. Northeastern 312 14. Louisville 299 15. Ohio State 292 16. Michigan St. 227 17. Boston Univ. 195 18. James Madison 154 19. Richmond 141 19. Virginia* 141Also Receiving Votes: Princeton (139), Villanova (66), California (60), William & Mary (44), Hofstra (23), Harvard (20), Delaware (19), Miami (OH) (13), Drexel (8), Massachusetts (6), Providence (5), Albany (4), Ohio (4), Syracuse (3), Lock Haven (2), New Hampshire (2), Northwestern (2), Pacific (2), Towson (1).
* ACC school
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