PORTLAND, Ore. – Concordia University, which has advanced to the NAIA semifinals each of the past two years, secured all 10 first-place votes and is a prohibitive favorite to win its 10th consecutive Cascade Collegiate Conference championship, according to a preseason poll of the conference head coaches.
The Cavs finished ahead of College of Idaho, which shared the CCC regular season crown with CU last year. The Yotes totaled 89 points and were followed by Corban, Southern Oregon, Oregon Tech, Northwest, Eastern Oregon, Warner Pacific, Northwest Christian, and Evergreen.
Concordia coach Grant Landy welcomes 15 letterwinners and eight starters from his 2009 club, which posted a 21-3-0 overall record and was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation. CU went on to the national tournament, where it advanced to the semifinals before falling to eventual national champion Lee (Tenn.).
Top returnees for the Cavs include junior defender Brittany Orr, a first team All-American; junior midfielder Jackie Hendrickson, an honorable mention All-American; junior defender Jenna Peterson, an honorable mention All-American; and senior forward Kaitlyn Tebbs, an honorable mention All-American who finished second on the team in goals (14).
College of Idaho, which is coming off a 14-3-0 campaign, including winning a share of the CCC regular season title, welcomes back nine starters and 15 letterwinners overall. Fifth-year coach Niki Taylor, who was the CCC co-Coach of the Year, will look to a host of talented returnees, including honorable mention All-American Erika Mouritsen (13 goals), and All-CCC selections Chelsea Heffner, Jessica Patton and Jessica Ayala. The Yotes also return goalkeeper/forward Kelly Hardegree-Ullman, who had five shutouts last year.
Corban, which has reached the CCC tournament semifinals each of the last three seasons, is coming off a third-place (6-2-1) finish in last year’s regular season standings. The Warriors, under the guidance of 15th-year head coach Marty Ziesemer, are led by returning first team All-CCC selection Katie Hanson, a senior midfielder who had five goals and three assists last season, and junior midfielder Amanda Mendenhall, who had 16 points on her way to earning first team All-CCC and honorable mention All-America recognition. Corban also returns a trio of second team All-CCC honorees in defender Genessa Neeser, midfielder Brittany Bowman, and midfielder Emily Tsugawa.
CCC Preseason Poll
| Team |
Points |
| 1. Concordia (10) |
100 |
| 2. College of Idaho |
89 |
| 3. Corban |
75 |
| 4. Southern Oregon |
59 |
| 5. Oregon Tech |
56 |
| 6. Northwest |
49 |
| 7. Eastern Oregon |
47 |
| 8. Warner Pacific |
29 |
| 9. Northwest Christian |
27 |
| 10. Evergreen |
19 |
| First place votes in parentheses |