PARK RIDGE, Ill. — The 13-time defending Big Ten champion Penn State women’s soccer team was tabbed by its conference coaches to win yet another title in 2011. The Nittany Lions were picked atop the pack of the 12 conference teams, six of which made the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
A co-champion in 2010 with NCAA College Cup representative Ohio State, Penn State returns eight of 11 starters from a year ago that reached the NCAA Second Round. The Nittany Lions went 8-2-0 in Big Ten play to achieve a 13th straight title.
The Buckeyes were picked second following their run to the NCAA Semifinals. Fellow NCAA Tournament teams Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan were picked third through fifth, respectively. Michigan State was tabbed sixth and newcomer Nebraska seventh in its debut season. Sweet 16 representative Minnesota was chosen eighth, while Purdue, Northwestern, Indiana and Iowa round out the conference in order.
In addition to the preseason poll, Penn State’s Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.), Tani Costa (Honolulu, Hawaii) and Carly Niness (Berwyn, Pa.) were named to the Players to Watch List in the conference. Nairn is an All-American and was named to the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy List, while Cost was an All-Big Ten Second Team honoree in 2010 after leading Penn State in scoring. Niness has been a rock on defense for PSU and was the team’s 2010 Defensive Player of the Year. The Nittany Lions travel to No. 2 Stanford on Friday for a 10 p.m. ET showdown.