Minnesota Duluth, which graduated only one letterwinner and returns its top three scorers, was chosen to finish third in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference preseason poll released Wednesday.
Minnesota State-Mankato received 11 of 15 first-place votes to earn the role of league favorite, while Winona State received the other five first-place votes (coaches in the 16-team league may not vote for their own team).
UMD was 11-6-1 overall and 10-3 in the conference last season. The Bulldogs open the season Aug. 30 against Northern Michigan in Marquette, Mich.
