Oct. 18– Concordia-St. Paul was the unanimous choice in the 2007-08 NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll while senior center Amanda Behnke (Eagan, Minn.) was named the NSIC Preseason Player of the Year.

The 2006-07 regular season and team champions received first place votes from all nine other league coaches to earn 90 points. The last time there was a unanimous preseason favorite was back in 2004-05 when the same Golden Bears received seven first place votes.

The similarities between the two teams are striking, as the 2004-05 team returned virtually all of their key contributors, the 2006-07 team has the same luxury, returning all five starters and  their three co-captains (pictured, right: Behnke, Katie LaViolette, Whitney Smetana).

The Golden Bears will be led by a group of six seniors, including their captains, that will attempt to successfully defend their NSIC Championships from a year ago. Concordia, which has previously won the NSIC Regular Season Championship (2003-04) and Tournament Championship (2004-05), has never defended either title.

Behnke, who was named a preseason national Super 16 Selection by Women's Division II Bulletin, was the NSIC Player of the Year in 2006-07 when she led the league in scoring with 17.2 points per game while scoring a school record 551 points. She also averaged 8.2 rebounds per contest, earned three NSIC Player of the Week honors and was selected to two all-America honorable mention posts.

The Golden Bears also return the NCAA Division II assist leader in LaViolette. The point guard from Manitowoc, Wis. shattered every school and conference assist record last season, averaging 9.3 assists per game while finishing second on the team in scoring with 12.2 points per game. She was a second team all-North Central Region selection.

Concordia will also look to extend two important program streaks: six consecutive season with at least 20 wins and five straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. Last year, the Bears finished 22-10 overall and 15-3 in the NSIC, winning 20 of their last 23 games and reaching the NCAA Regional Semifinals for the fourth straight season.

MSU Moorhead was picked second for the second straight year as they tallied 82 points and the lone other first place vote (coaches cannot vote for their own team). Bemidji State and Northern State both came in with 62 points for a third place tie while Winona State edged out Wayne State 56-55 for the fifth spot. The University of Mary was seventh with 53 points while Southwest Minnesota State (35), Upper Iowa (27) and Minnesota, Crookston (18) rounded out the ten teams.

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