University of Minnesota Athletics
No. 1 Minnesota Tops Preseason Poll
9/22/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
MINNEAPOLIS – The defending national champion University of Minnesota women’s hockey team topped the rankings in the USCHO preseason poll released this week.
The Golden Gophers received all 15 first-place votes, totaling 150 points to earn the No. 1 rank in the national poll. Following Minnesota is No. 2 Boston College (128), No. 3 Wisconsin (124), No. 4 Harvard (101) and No. 5 Clarkson (84) to complete the top five spots.
No. 6 North Dakota (64), No. 7 Quinnipiac (56), No. 8 Boston University (49), No. 9 Bemidji State (25) and No. 10 Cornell (18) complete the nation's top 10 teams to start the 2015-16 season, according to USCHO.com.
The Gophers were also named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) preseason favorite, collecting six first-place votes and totaling 48 points in the annual preseason poll. Minnesota topped Wisconsin, North Dakota and Bemidji State to complete the top half of the WCHA rankings.
Minnesota takes the ice on Friday at 7 p.m. for an exhibition game against the Minnesota Whitecaps, an elite post-collegiate team featuring many Gopher alumni. Following the exhibition game, the Gophers will officially start the season on the road, taking on Penn State on Oct. 9 and Oct. 10.
The USCHO.com poll is compiled weekly and consists of 15 voters, including 14 coaches of Division I programs and one women's hockey writer.
2015-16 USCHO.com Preseason Poll
1. Minnesota (15), 150
2. Boston College, 128
3. Wisconsin, 124
4. Harvard, 101
5. Clarkson, 84
6. North Dakota, 64
7. Quinnipiac, 56
8. Boston University, 49
9. Bemidji State, 25
10. Cornell, 18
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