NAPERVILLE – Three-time defending College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) champion Chicago is the women’s lacrosse coaches’ choice to win a fourth consecutive league title in 2024, according to a poll released by the league office on Monday morning.

2024 CCIW Women's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches' Poll 

Team (First-place votes)	Points
1. Chicago (6)	36
2. Carthage	28
3. Carroll (1)	27
4. Illinois Wesleyan	23
5. North Central	16
6. Augustana	11
7. Elmhurst	6

The Maroons received six first-place points and the maximum 36 points in ballots submitted by CCIW head coaches late last month. UC was 16-3 overall last season, swept the conference schedule for the second consecutive season and played in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. In all, Chicago has won 12 consecutive regular-season CCIW contests since April 25, 2021.
 
The team ranked second in Monday’s poll was Carthage, which secured 28 points from the coaches’ votes. The Firebirds were second on the ballot after last season’s 11-7 overall record with a 4-2 mark for third place in the final conference standings.
 
One first-place vote went to Carroll, which landed third with 27 points in the preseason poll. The Pioneers were 13-4 last season, 5-1 in the league for second place and advanced to the CCIW Tournament final for the second time in league history.
 
Illinois Wesleyan picked up 23 points for fourth position in Monday’s announcement. IWU, which won back-to-back league titles in 2018 and 2019, advanced to the CCIW Tournament semifinals last spring for the seventh consecutive time after winning seven contests and splitting the league schedule at 3-3.
 
North Central (16 points), Augustana (11 points) and Elmhurst (six points) were slotted in the fifth, sixth and seventh positions, respectively. The Vikings will be under the new leadership of first-year head coach Jordan Tice, while the Bluejays will begin the first season of the Sloane Baumgartner coaching era.
 
Carthage will be the first team to play in 2024 when the Firebirds travel to DePauw on Friday, Feb. 16 for a 7 p.m. start. All seven teams are scheduled to begin the campaign by Saturday, March 2.
 
The league schedule begins Saturday, April 6. The top four teams in the final conference standings will qualify for the CCIW Tournament, scheduled to begin with the semifinal round on Wednesday, May 1 and conclude with the title game on Saturday, May 4.