July 31, 2008

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Defending champion Charlotte has been tabbed to repeat as Atlantic 10 women's soccer champions in voting conducted by the league's head coaches as the A-10's preseason poll was released today.

The 49ers tied a school-record with 16 wins as they captured the 2007 regular season title, their first-ever A-10 Championship, and earned the third NCAA Tournament berth in program history. Junior goalkeeper Lauren Brown, an All-Conference second-team selection last season who boasts a career mark of 22-5-1, is one of eight starters and 19 returning letterwinners for Charlotte.

Five-time champion Dayton is picked second, followed by Saint Louis, which claimed A-10 championships in 2005 and 2006. Rhode Island comes in at No. 4, followed by Fordham, Richmond, Duquesne, La Salle, Massachusetts, George Washington, Xavier, St. Bonaventure, Temple and Saint Joseph's.

The six-team A-10 Women's Soccer Championship will be held Nov. 6-9 at Robert R. Hermann Stadium on the campus of Saint Louis University.

2008 Predicted Order Of Finish (2007 A-10/Overall record in parentheses)
1. Charlotte (9-1-1/16-5-1)
2. Dayton (6-2-3/13-4-4)
3. Saint Louis (7-2-2/10-6-2)
4. Rhode Island (6-4-1/12-6-2)
5. Fordham (7-1-3/10-5-5)
6. Richmond (6-4-1/8-12-2)
7. Duquesne (8-3-0/11-7-0)
8. La Salle (5-6-0/11-9-0)
9. Massachusetts (4-6-1/9-6-2)
10. George Washington (3-7-1/8-9-1)
11. Xavier (3-7-1/4-14-1)
12. St. Bonaventure (2-8-1/5-12-2)
13. Temple (1-8-2/5-10-4)
14. Saint Joseph's (1-9-1/3-15-1)