NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- Illinois Wesleyan was predicted to win the 2021 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) men's lacrosse title based upon the results of the conference's annual preseason coaches' poll announced Friday.
The Titans won the poll with 36 points and six first place votes. Illinois Wesleyan has won three CCIW regular season titles in program history (2016, 2018, 2019) and are a three-time CCIW Tournament champion (2017-2019).
Carthage placed second with 28 points as the Firebirds have also won three regular season titles in program history (2015, 2016, 2017) and one CCIW Tournament title (2016).
North Central placed third with 27 points and one first place vote, followed by Elmhurst in fourth with 22 points.
Augustana (17 points), Dubuque (11 points) and Carroll (six points) rounded out the poll.
Voting for the CCIW Preseason Men's Lacrosse Poll is done by the head men's lacrosse coaches. Each coach votes for the six other programs in the conference in order of predicted finish. Points are assigned in reverse order of voting (seven points for first, six for second, etc.). Coaches do not vote for their own teams.
2021 CCIW Preseason Men's Lacrosse Poll
| Rank |
Institution |
Points (1st Pl. Votes) |
| 1 |
Illinois Wesleyan |
36 (6) |
| 2 |
Carthage |
28 |
| 3 |
North Central |
27 (1) |
| 4 |
Elmhurst |
22 |
| 5 |
Augustana |
17 |
| 6 |
Dubuque |
11 |
| 7 |
Carroll |
6 |
The College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) was founded in 1946 and currently services nine member institutions including Augustana College (Rock Island, IL), Carroll University (Waukesha, WI), Carthage College (Kenosha, WI), Elmhurst College (Elmhurst, IL), Illinois Wesleyan University (Bloomington, IL), Millikin University (Decatur, IL), North Central College (Naperville, IL), North Park University (Chicago, IL) and Wheaton College (Wheaton, IL).