Morgan Place being chosen the 2009 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference's Preseason Female Athlete of the Year by league's cross country coaches Monday should hardly come as a news flash.

After all, the University of Minnesota Duluth sophomore, whose debut season with the Bulldogs in 2008 was nothing short of riveting, is the defending NSIC individual champion .

The Ellsworth. Wis. native finished first among all runners in six of her nine races last fall (including the NSIC Championships) and went on to place seventh -- the best showing ever by a Bulldog -- and attain All-American honors at the NCAA Division II nationals. Place, who helped lead UMD to a school-best eighth place finish at that national event, was also was a two-time All-American performer at last March's NCAA II Indoor Championships (fourth place in 5,000 meters and third in the distance medley). She qualified for the NCAA II outdoors two months later in both the 10,000 (ninth) and 5,000 meters (ninth) and is the reigning NSIC 3,000-meter indoor and the NSIC 10,000-meter outdoor titleholder.

The Bulldogs were picked as the No. 2 favorite behind Augustana Collge in the NSIC Women's Cross Country Preseason Poll, receiving three first-place votes and 92 points to the Vikings' seven votes and 96 points.

On the men's side, UMD was forecasted for a fourth-place finish (along with Minnesota State University-Moorhead) while defending champion Minnesota State University-Mankato received the all nine possible first-place votes and tallied 81 points, 11 ahead of runnerup Augustana College.

The Bulldogs will open their 2009 season by hosting the Campus Quest VI on Sept. 12 on the UMD campus.

Complete Poll