#3 Albany Unanimously Chosen 2018 #AEMLAX Favorite
BOSTON – After a season during which Albany reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship for the third time in four years, the Great Danes are the unanimous America East favorites in 2018. The voting was conducted by the conference’s seven head coaches, who were not permitted to vote for their own teams.
Albany, which is ranked 3rd in the USILA Division I Preseason Coaches’ Poll, received all six possible first-place votes and 36 points. Stony Brook followed in second place with 27 points and Vermont, which earned the final first-place tally, was third with 22 points. Here is the full poll:
2018 #AEMLAX Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Albany (6 1st-place votes), 36 pts – unanimous selection
2. Stony Brook, 27
3. Vermont (1), 22
4. UMBC, 19
5. Hartford, 18
6. Binghamton, 17
7. UMass Lowell, 8
Albany was the sixth America East program to reach the NCAA quarterfinals since 2007 last season and it was the 12th win for an America East team all time.
Connor Fields, the reigning America East Offensive Player of the Year, headlines the league’s returning players. He was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award last year, the sixth America East men's lacrosse student-athlete to be named a finalist in the last eight years. The Great Danes also return All-Americans T.D. Ierlan and Kyle McClancy.
The 2018 campaign begins the weekend of Feb. 1 with Vermont opening play while other teams start between Feb. 10-17. The top four teams in the conference standings will qualify for the America East Men’s Lacrosse Championship, which will be held at tournament's No. 1 seed for the fourth-straight year. The semifinals take place on May 3 and the championship tilt on May 5, a game that will be nationally televised on ESPNU.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
- #3Pillars – Building the Complete Student-Athlete -