Dominican unanimous selection to repeat in men's soccer

VERONA, Wis. -- Dominican University received all 11 first place votes in the Northern Athletics Conference preseason men's soccer poll and have been selected to win the 2007 title.

The Stars (20-2-2, 9-0 NAC) won the NAC regular season and tournament championships last season, and advanced to the sectional finals of the NCAA Division III Championship. Dominican returns both the NAC Player of the Year, Matt Kochanowski (Arlington Heights, Ill.), and NAC Rookie of the Year, Arnes Rodriguez (Rosemont, Ill.), to their roster. The Stars are also ranked No. 3 in the D3Kicks.com preseason top 25 poll.

Aurora University is picked to finish second in the conference. The Spartans (12-5-4, 8-1) finished second in 2006, and also received an at-large berth to the NCAA Division III Championship, falling to Dominican in a first round match up.

Edgewood College (11-4-3, 6-3) is slated for a third place finish, matching last year's finish. The Eagles finished 2006 strong going 6-1-1 in their final eight games.

All 11 Northern Athletics Conference teams open their 2007 season this Friday or Saturday. The season will conclude with the Northern Athletics Conference Tournament taking place October 29 through November 3, and the NCAA Division III Championship tournament taking place November 7-24.

2007 NAC Men's Soccer Coaches' Preseason Poll
1. Dominican University (11), 121
2. Aurora University, 103
3. Edgewood College, 101
4. Concordia University Wisconsin, 93
5. Wisconsin Lutheran College, 67
6. Benedictine University, 53
7. Lakeland College, 48
8. MSOE, 46
9. Marian College, 40
10. Concordia University Chicago, 34
11. Maranatha Baptist Bible College, 20

First place votes in parentheses.