THOMASVILLE, N.C. -- Anderson College, last year's CVAC's Regular Season and Conference Tournament champions, tops the 2003 preseason poll as voted on by conference coaches. The Anderson College men's tennis team is missing four players from last spring's Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference championship team, but head coach Brett Simpson is confident his team will be competitive against an extremely challenging schedule. "We don't have quite the experience we had last year, but we have equal talent," said Simpson, who has led the Trojans to an overall record of 63-24 since AC joined the CVAC in 1998. "It's a matter of working hard and having the guys who have already been there to help the new guys understand what it takes to be successful." The key returnees for the Trojans are sophomores Olof Hallstrom (13-5), Sid Sudhakar (15-3), and Karan Doctor (13-4) Lees-McRae College grasps second in the preseason poll. After a second place finish in the CVAC tournament in 2002, the Bobcats look to go one better this year. The Bobcats lineup features a more experienced team, with eight returning players and the addition of two freshmen. After concluding the Fall ranked 17th in the Division II national poll, the Bobcats will be led into the Spring season by senior captain Jaco Kruger and junior Andres Intriago. Kruger is currently ranked fifth in the nation in singles and thirteenth nationally when partnering with Intriago in doubles. Head Coach Randy Bloemendaal says, "With almost everyone returning from last year's team, our goal is to get back to the top of the CVAC." Barton College looks confident as they settle into third place in the 2003 preseason poll. Barton will face a rebuilding year after graduating three key players from last year's 21-4, 9-1 CVAC team. Veterans John Marte and Jamie Rushton return to anchor the lineup, and DI transfer Joel Scalzi should help the Bulldogs remain competitive. Rounding out the men's tennis preseason poll 4-11 were: Belmont Abbey, Mount Olive, Longwood, Limestone, Erskine, Queens, and Pfeiffer respectively. CVAC Men's Tennis Preseason Poll (First place votes in parenthesis) 1. Anderson College (5) 77 2. Lees-McRae College (5) 75 3. Barton College 66 4. Belmont Abbey College 54 5. Mount Olive College 46 6. Longwood University 37 7. Limestone College 36 8. Erskine College 29 9. Queens University 16 10. Pfeiffer 14