Hempstead, NY - The 17th-ranked Hofstra Men's Lacrosse team has been picked to finish first in the Colonial Athletic Association and junior attackman Sam Llinares has been selected the CAA Preseason Player of the Year as the conference announced its 2015 preseason poll of the league's six head coaches.

Hofstra finished with 29 points and sits atop the poll while No. 16 Drexel, the defending CAA champions, received 25 points and was predicted to finish second. The Pride is coming off an 11-5 season, a CAA regular season title, and a trip to the CAA Championship game in 2014. Hofstra returns 26 players, including five starters, from that squad and has five Preseason All-CAA selections, including Llinares.

After Hofstra and Drexel, CAA newcomer Fairfield was third in the preseason poll with Towson, Massachusetts and Delaware rounding out the predicted order of finish.

Llinares (Hauppauge, NY) posted career highs and led the Pride in points (53) and assists (32), while scoring 21 goals last season. A USILA All-American honorable mention, he led the CAA and ranked 10th in the nation in assists per game (2.13). He was third in the conference and 29th in the country in points per game (3.53). Llinares, who played and started in 15 games, had six multi-goal games and 11 multi-assist contests.

Joining Llinares on the 2015 CAA Preseason Men's Lacrosse Team are senior midfielder Mike Malave (Wading River, NY), senior long-stick midfielder Ryan Rielly (East Northport, NY), junior defender Finn Sullivan (West Roxbury, MA) and senior goalie Chris Selva (Parkland, FL).

Malave tallied a career-high 26 goals and finished with 33 points last year. Rielly, an All-CAA first team selection last year, picked up 49 ground balls and forced 23 turnovers. Sullivan, another of Hofstra's three All-CAA first team picks last season, tallied 30 ground balls and 14 caused turnovers. Selva led the CAA and finished sixth in the country with an 8.29 goals against average. He also posted 133 saves and an 11-5 record.

The CAA men's lacrosse season will begin February 1 when Delaware heads to High Point (NC). The Pride will begin their 2015 regular season on Saturday, February 14 when they host Marquette University at James M. Shuart Stadium at noon.
 
The 2015 CAA Men's Lacrosse Championship is set for April 29 with semifinal games hosted by the two highest seeds. The CAA Championship Game will be held on May 2 and hosted by the highest remaining seed.