NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - For the fifth consecutive campaign, Keene State College earned at least a share of the top position in the annual Little East field hockey preseason poll after each of the 12 head coaches casted a vote. The Owls received nine first-place tallies and 139 total points to stand alone in the coaches' survey for the sixth time in the past 11 seasons.

Plymouth State University (128) edged the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (127) by a single point for the second seed in the preseason rankings. The Panthers finished in the top-three in each of the 12 ballots, including one first place vote, to surpass the Corsairs. The University of Southern Maine was the only other institution to eclipse the 100-point mark, totaling 101 to secure the fourth position.

Under the guidance of Head Coach Amy Watson, Keene State College continued its dominance of the conference circuit, raising the program's fifth consecutive and seventh overall conference championship trophy last season. Over the past seven seasons, the Owls have not lost more than two Little East games to boast a record of 67-7 (.905), including sweeping the conference schedule twice (2006, 2003). The 2008 edition was no different as Keene State clinched the top seed in the Little East Championship Tournament for the third consecutive campaign with a 10-1 mark. The Owls held their home field advantage throughout the eight-team tournament, culminating with a 4-0 victory over Plymouth State in the finals. Watson led Keene State into its fifth straight NCAA Division III Tournament appearance, where they fell in the opening round at Springfield College, 1-0. The Owls return an experience group of 22 student-athletes, including a pair of 30-plus scorers. First team all-league forward, Carly Benning (Brewster, Mass.) will lead the Owl offense after her 33-point 2008 campaign. Keene State will begin its title defense when the Owls host Rensselaer at 7 p.m. on Sept. 1.  

Last season, Plymouth State made its seventh overall appearance in the Little East championship match and first since 2004. The Panthers reached double digits in victories for the seventh time in the past eight seasons, registering an overall record of 15-8 (8-3). Plymouth State's success in the regular season earned Head Coach Bonnie Lord and her charges the second seed in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Championship, where the Panthers reached the championship game. Lord will welcome back 16 student-athletes from the 2008 edition, including 10 starters. Plymouth State will open the season at Endicott College at 1 p.m. on Sept. 5 in a rematch of the 2008 ECAC title game.   

Head Coach Nicole Castonguay helped lead UMass Dartmouth (16-6) to a 10-win turnaround from the 2007 campaign and a share of second place in the final conference standings with an 8-3 mark. The Corsairs were just one win shy of matching the program's single-season record, set by the 2006 squad (17-4). Last year, UMass Dartmouth ranked second in the conference in scoring average (2.81 goals per game). Junior forward Stephanie Kinchla (Falmouth, Mass.), the offensive player year, was the offensive catalyst for the Corsairs, scoring 56 points on 23 goals and 10 assists. Her 56-point season was the third highest by any Little East student-athlete in the 11-year history of the conference.  UMass Dartmouth will open the season on the road, traveling to MIT on Sept. 5 for a 12 p.m. faceoff.  

Southern Maine advanced to its third straight Little East Championship semifinal round match in 2008 before being edged in the overtime by the eventual champions. Head Coach Bonny Brown-Denico led her Huskies to an overall record of 10-11, marking the third consecutive season with at least 10 victories. Southern Maine will welcome back 13 student-athletes back into the fold from a year ago, including the senior scoring tandem of Caitlin Albert (Scarborough, Maine) and India Lowe (Gloucester, Mass.). Albert and Lowe combined to account for 48.6 percent (52-of-107) of the Huskies' offense as each player registered 26 points. Albert led the team in goals (11), while Lowe handed out a team-best six helpers.  Southern Maine will host the University of New England at 4 p.m. on Sept. 1 to open the 2009 schedule.

Westfield State College (84) and Bridgewater State College (80) are just separated by four points for the fifth spot. The Owls (12-8) completed the 2008 campaign in a four-way tie for fourth place with a conference mark of 6-5, while the Bears (7-11) clinched the eighth and final seed in the championship tournament with a 5-6 mark.

The top eight teams in the final regular season standings advance to the 2009 Little East Field Hockey Championship Tournament with the four highest seeds hosting a quarterfinal round contest on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Two days later, the four winners advance to the semifinals at the two highest remaining seeds. The Little East Championship will be played on Saturday, Nov. 7 with the tournament champion earning the automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Tournament.   

Completing the preseason poll in projected order of finish in the final conference standings are Worcester State College (68), Salem State College (61), Framingham State College (57), Fitchburg State College (47), Eastern Connecticut State University (23), and Western Connecticut State University (20).