Field Hockey Ranked No. 1 in NFHCA Preseason Poll
8/25/2009 8:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Aug. 25, 2009
2009 Kookaburra/NFHCA Division I Preseason Poll 
CHANDLER, Ariz. - The University of Maryland field hockey team has been selected No. 1 in the 2009 Kookaburra/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division I Preseason Poll, the organization announced today.
Maryland received 24 first-place votes and 573 points overall. Four other Atlantic Coast Conference schools appear in the top-10, including Wake Forest (No. 2), North Carolina (4), Virginia (6) and Duke (10).
Maryland defeated Wake Forest to claim the 2008 national title in Louisville, Ky., last November - its sixth NCAA championship overall.
Thirteen of the Terps' 18 regular-season games will come against teams ranked in the top-25 of the Kookaburra/NFHCA Preseason Poll, including non-conference home matchups versus Princeton (No. 7), Penn State (11), Old Dominion (16), Michigan (19) and Cal (25).
The defending NCAA champion Terrapins, 22-2 in 2008, return eight starters and 14 letterwinners from last year's squad, including two-time All-American Katie O'Donnell. The junior posted 68 points a season ago to give Maryland its third national crown in four years.
Maryland will open the 2009 season on Friday in Evanston, Ill., versus Ohio at the Wildcat Classic. The Terps will play three games on the campus of Northwestern University to commence the '09 campaign (Saturday vs. Boston University, Monday at Northwestern).
