NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- North Central was predicted to win its seventh-straight College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) baseball title according to the results of the CCIW's annual preseason poll announced Wednesday.
The Cardinals won the poll with 59 points and six first place votes. North Central has won a share or outright title every year since 2015, as well as CCIW Tournament titles in 2017, 2018 and 2019 during that stretch.
Augustana was second with 53 points after a second place finish in the regular season standings as the Vikings advanced to the CCIW Tournament's semifinal round last season.
2021 CCIW Tournament champion Millikin placed third with 49 points and two first place votes. Last year's tournament title was the Big Blue's first in program history. The team ended a 29-year drought in 2019 by qualifying for its first conference tournament since 1990.
Illinois Wesleyan placed fourth in the preseason voting with 45 points and one first place vote as the Titans tied for fifth in the CCIW standings last season. North Park was fifth with 31 points, while Carroll and Carthage tied for sixth with 28 points.
Elmhurst (16 points) and Wheaton (15 points) rounded out the poll.
Voting for the CCIW Preseason Baseball Poll is done by the head baseball coaches. Each coach votes for the eight other programs in the conference in order of predicted finish. Points are assigned in reverse order of voting (eight points for first, seven for second, etc.). Coaches do not vote for their own teams.
2022 CCIW Preseason Baseball Poll
| Rank |
Institution |
Points (1st Pl. Votes) |
| 1 |
North Central |
59 (6) |
| 2 |
Augustana |
53 |
| 3 |
Millikin |
49 (2) |
| 4 |
Illinois Wesleyan |
45 (1) |
| 5 |
North Park |
31 |
| 6 |
Carroll |
28 |
| 6 |
Carthage |
28 |
| 8 |
Elmhurst |
16 |
| 9 |
Wheaton |
15 |
2021 CCIW Baseball Standings
| Team |
CCIW |
Overall |
| North Central |
27-5 |
38-9 |
| Augustana |
25-7 |
35-9 |
| Millikin |
20-12 |
31-16 |
| Carroll |
14-18 |
22-22 |
| North Park |
12-20 |
18-23 |
| Illinois Wesleyan |
12-20 |
17-25 |
| Elmhurst |
12-20 |
18-25 |
| Wheaton |
11-21 |
16-27 |
| Carthage |
11-21 |
16-25 |
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 University (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).