ROCK HILL, S.C. --- The South Atlantic Conference unveiled its 2022 Women's Lacrosse preseason coaches poll on Thursday.

Tusculum University attack Megann McKinney was selected second-team preseason All-Conference in voting by the conference's media relations offices. The Pioneers were picked to finish 11th in the league by the conference's head coaches after finishing 1-6 last season and 0-6 in the SAC, but Tusculum returns nine starters from last season's squad for first-year head coach Jenna Agostino.

McKinney appeared in five matches for the Pioneers in 2021, scoring 15 goals and adding an assist for 16 points. She ranked third on the team in both goals and points and led the team in shooting accuracy, putting 24 of her 26 shot attempts on target for a 92.3 accuracy rate. The graduate student from Waxhaw, North Carolina has appeared in 26 games spanning three seasons for the Pioneers, scoring 38 goals and nine assists for 47 points. McKinney has added 15 ground balls, 13 draw controls and four caused turnovers.

Queens (14-2), which has won six of the last seven SAC regular-season championships and seven straight tournament titles, received 10 first-place votes and 110 votes to earn the top spot in the preseason poll. Limestone (12-3) was picked second with 99 points, followed by Wingate (11-3) with the other first-place vote and 94 points. UVA Wise (8-6) is fourth with 80 points, trailed by Lenoir-Rhyne (5-7) in fifth with 77 points and Lincoln Memorial (2-4) in sixth with 57 points.

The rest of the poll consists of Newberry (5-7) in seventh with 53 points, Mars Hill (3-9) eighth with 47 points, Catawba (0-5) ninth with 46 points, Coker (3-8) in 10th with 30 points and the Pioneers with 22 points.

Tusculum plays its season opener on Wednesday, Feb. 9 at Lee, and opens SAC play on Saturday, March 5 at home against Mars Hill.

2022 SAC Women's Lacrosse Preseason Poll

All-SAC First Team
A – Katie Allen, UVA Wise
A – Elizabeth Muscella, Limestone
A – Suzy Smith, Lenoir-Rhyne
A – Sydney Trask, UVA Wise
MF – Sydney Bracken, Queen
MF – Leah Knowles, Wingate
MF – Kyleigh Masteran, Queens
MF – Chloe Wood, Newberry
D – Bailey Stumpf, Limestone
D – Cassie Lafler, Lenoir-Rhyne
D – Sydney Hussey, Queens
D – Erin Smith, UVA Wise
GK – Megan Biase, Wingate

All-SAC Second Team
A – Megann McKinney, Tusculum
A – Kaitlyn Cavanaugh, Lenoir-Rhyne
A – Caroline Pearce, Queens
A – Ali Van der Ziel, Lincoln Memorial
MF – Gracie DePaul, Limestone
MF – Sydney Joyce, Mars Hill
MF – Becca Ruiz, Wingate
MF – Shannon Donovan, Queens
D – Grace Guglielmo, Queens
D – Emily Phipps, Wingate
D – Caroline Heffner, Wingate
D – Isabelle Dunnam, Lenoir-Rhyne
GK – Madelyn DeSoto, Limestone