For the third straight season, the two-time defending NCAA champion Wisconsin women's hockey team will open the year as the preseason No. 1 team in the country. The Badgers earned all 19 first-place votes in the USA Today/Usa Hockey Magazine Poll, released on Tuesday.
Wisconsin was joined in the top 10 by three other teams from the WCHA: Minnesota-Duluth (fifth), Minnesota (seventh) and Ohio State (10th). Mercyhurst earned the No. 2 spot while New Hampshire and St. Lawrence rounded out the top four.
Mark Johnson's (pictured) Badgers have now been ranked No. 1 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll for five straight weeks.
The Badgers also were named the preseason favorites to win the WCHA title. Wisconsin secured seven of eight first place votes from the WCHA coaches to earn the top spot for the third straight season.
The Badgers make their 2007-08 debut this weekend with a non-conference series at Union College in Schenectady, New York.
