RICHARDSON, TEXAS - Hardin-Simmons' women's soccer team has been picked to win its third-straight American Southwest Conference title as they received 11 of 14 first-place votes in the coaches preseason poll.

Hardin-Simmons, winners of seven of nine ASC titles including the last two league, totaled 191 points to outdistance second-place preseason pick University of Texas at Dallas by 10 points.

A year ago HSU went undefeated in the conference regular-season (13-0-0), won the conference championship tournament vs. Texas-Dallas on penalty kicks and advanced to the Sectional semifinals of the NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship where they lost 2-1 to Puget Sound. The Cowgirls finished 19-2-1 for the year, and will open the 2005 season ranked seventh among all Division III squads in the National Soccer Coaches Association preseason poll.

The 14 ASC head coaches voted Texas Lutheran University third (161 pts.) while Mississippi College and the University of Texas at Tyler tied for fourth-place (142 pts.). Sixth-place East Texas Baptist University (128 pts.) and seventh-place Austin College (104 pts.) complete what would be the projected six-team ASC Women's Soccer Championship Tournament field (Texas-Tyler is ineligible for the ASC Tournament as a third-year Division III provisional member).

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor listed eighth (91 pts.), followed by University of the Ozarks at ninth (75 pts.), LeTourneau University at No. 10 (73 pts.) and McMurry University 11th (57 pts.). Concordia University at Austin (42 pts.), Schreiner University (37 pts.) and Louisiana College (21 pts.) listed 12th, 13th and 14th, respectively.

American Southwest Conference women's soccer teams begin the 2005 season as early as September 1. The conference championship tournament is scheduled November 4-6 with the league's top six seeded teams vying for the title and the ASC automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship.

--Chad Grubbs