NAPERVILLE – North Central is the preseason pick to win the 2023 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) women’s soccer title, the league office announced Thursday morning. League head coaches gave the Cardinals seven first-place votes as part of NCC’s point total of 63.

2023 Preseason CCIW Women's Soccer Coaches' Poll

1. North Central (7)	63
2. Illinois Wesleyan (2)	56
T3. Augustana	41
T3. Wheaton	41
5. Carroll	38
6. North Park	31
7. Carthage	24
8. Millikin	22
9. Elmhurst	8

Thursday’s announcement marked the second consecutive August the Cardinals have been chosen to win the league. NCC finished second in the CCIW race last season and fell in the CCIW Tournament title match last November, but went 4-0-4 against CCIW opponents to become the first side to finish the league slate unbeaten since Wheaton in 2019.
 
Powered by two first-place votes and 56 total points, Illinois Wesleyan was chosen second on Thursday. The Titans won their second consecutive CCIW regular-season title in 2022 before downing North Central 4-1 in the CCIW Tournament final for their first NCAA Tournament bid since 2019. IWU ultimately advanced to the second round of the national postseason.
 
Augustana and Wheaton tie for third place in the preseason poll with 41 points each. Both programs qualified for the CCIW Tournament for the fourth consecutive time last season, including a 20th consecutive semifinal appearance for the Thunder.
 
Carroll – which one its first-ever CCIW Tournament match last season – secured the fifth position in the 2023 poll. The Pios tallied 38 points. North Park’s 31 total points placed the Vikings sixth.
 
Carthage (24 points) was seventh, followed by Millikin (22 points) and Elmhurst (eight points).
 
All nine teams begin the regular season on Friday, Sept. 1 across Massachusetts, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois. League competition opens on Saturday, Sept. 23.