CCC Preseason Poll Video

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – After a perfect Commonwealth Coast Conference season last year, Western New England will try to make it two in a row as the Golden Bears were picked as the favorite in the 2017 CCC Men's Lacrosse Coaches' Preseason Poll.

The reigning champions – and winners of four of the last five conference titles – earned 79 points and seven first place votes in the poll conducted by the league's nine CCC men's lacrosse head coaches.

Last year's CCC Tournament runner-up, Endicott, was also the runner-up in the 2017 preseason rankings. The Gulls grabbed the other two first place votes and earned 74 points in the poll.

The two semifinalists from a year ago, Roger Williams and the University of New England, finished third and fourth in the poll, respectively. The Hawks earned 62 points, while the Nor'easters garnered 54. Salve Regina rounded out the top five with 44 points.

Wentworth (36 points), Curry (27), Gordon (15), and Nichols (14) rounded out this year's table in that order

The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team is coming off its fourth straight appearance in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament and, with 25 players returning from last year's team, the Leopards are poised to improve their standing within the league. While Wentworth may have finished with a 4-13 record in 2015, the Leopards were involved in numerous close games with five of their losses coming by a single goal. Additionally, the Black & Gold played in a program-record four overtime games a season ago, including back-to-back contests to close out the regular season.

Leading the offensive returners is senior Mike Coakley (Flemington, N.J.) who had 13 goals and nine assists for 22 points in 2016. All three of those stats ranked him third among his teammates. Sophomore Jack Zaylor (Hanover, Mass.) was on pace to be one of the team's leading scorers as a freshman before an injury ended his rookie campaign. In five games he scored eight goals and had one assist for nine points. Senior midfielder Sean Farmer (Billerica, Mass.) had a strong, two-way season for Wentworth last season as he scored seven goals and assisted on seven others for 14 points while causing seven turnovers and scooping up 29 ground balls. Sophomore Sean Brennan (Stony Point, N.Y.) was second on the team in ground balls (69) and third in caused turnovers (24) while also collecting six points on three goals and three assists. Classmate Peter Andersson (Madison, N.J.) also returns for the Leopards after winning just under 50 percent of his face-offs at the X and scooping up 48 ground balls.

Wentworth opens the 2017 campaign at home on March 1 against Dean College.

For the latest on Wentworth Athletics, follow the Leopards via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Fans can also download the Wentworth Leopards "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.

2017 CCC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches' Poll