Ravens Picked Sixth in HCLC Preseason Poll

The Anderson University Ravens Women's Lacrosse team was picked sixth in the preseason HCLC poll. This is Anderson's inaugural season and is led by Head Coach Colin McSharar.

The Transylvania University women's lacrosse team has been selected as the favorite to win the 2019 Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference title in a vote of the seven league coaches. The Pioneers claimed 69 total points and six first-place votes in the coaches preseason poll.

Hanover College placed second in the poll with 64 total points (one first place vote) and Mount St. Joseph University finished third in the poll with 50 total points. Franklin College (49), Earlham College (47), Anderson University (34) and Thomas More University (30) rounded out the poll.

The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference adopted in the Summer 2018 the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference. The sport of lacrosse has been a part of the HCAC since the 2014-15 academic season when it partnered with the Presidents Athletic Conference (PAC) to create the Ohio River Lacrosse Conference (ORLC).

After the 2017-18 season, with the approval from the NCAA the Heartland was able to rename the ORLC to the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference while still maintaining the NCAA Division III Automatic Qualifier for the men's and women's lacrosse championships.

Transylvania will be looking to claim the school's second straight conference title this spring. The Pioneers went 18-2 overall and 11-0 in conference play last season. Transylvania ended its season in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Rhodes.

The Pioneers return three all-conference selections from the 2018 season. Transylvania's Hannah Maroni and Harper Zeitz anchored a defense that tallied 210 caused turnovers, a 5.35 goals-against average and limited conference opponents to 32 goals last season. Midfielder Emma Oliver ranked in the top five from last year's Pio squad with 37 goals, 36 assists and 73 total points on the offensive end.

Hanover College finished fourth in the league standings last season with an 8-3 record. The Panthers were 11-7 overall and ended their season with a loss to Transylvania in the conference tournament semifinals. Hanover returns one first-team all-conference member to the roster this spring. Senior Rachel Davis recorded 22 goals and 30 assists last season while also adding 26 ground balls and a 71.9 shots on goal percentage during the 2018 campaign.

Mount St. Joseph University finished in a tie for fourth in the 2018 conference race with a 5-6 league record and posted an overall record of 6-10. Mount St. Joseph graduated both members of the all-conference team from the 2018 squad and will look to rely on a balanced roster for a playoff spot in the conference tournament this season. Leading the attack for the Lions is junior Brianna Brannon. As a defender last year, Brannon registered 20 goals, 13 assists and 74 ground balls for the Lions.

The 2019 women's lacrosse season opened on February 9 with the HCLC portion of the schedule beginning on April 6.

The 2019 HCLC Women's Lacrosse Championship Tournament will feature a four-team field, with the high seed hosting each tournament match. On Wednesday, May 1 the two conference semifinals will take place on the campus of the high seed. The tournament's title match will be contested on Saturday, May 4.

For the third year in a row, the winner of the women's championship tournament will receive one of just 30 automatic qualifying bids to this year's NCAA Division III Lacrosse Championship. The women's lacrosse NCAA championship bracket is scheduled to be announced on Sunday, May 5.