THOMASVILLE, N.C. -- The Anderson College men's golf team tied for seventh with St. Andrews Presbyterian in the CVAC preseason coaches poll released Friday. The Trojans, who finished second in one fall tournament, will be led by junior Kyle Owings. Owings won the AC Invitational last September in a playoff. The Trojans, who return their entire starting lineup from last spring, will be seeking their second consecutive trip to the NCAA regionals. Pfeiffer University, last year's CVAC tournament champions, tops the 2003 preseason poll. Pfeiffer has won seven of its last nine tournaments (dating back to last season). The Falcons won an NCAA record nine tournaments last season (14 wins over the last year and a half) including 11 wins over Division I teams last year. During the 2002 season, the Falcons set a school record 286.6 scoring average (almost two under par as a team). The Falcons will be led this season by seniors Andrew McArthur ranked #1 in division II, Russ Jones #5 in division II, and Luke Potter who holds the #10 in Division II. Barton College takes the second slot in this year's preseason coaches' poll. Barton, coming off its third straight NCAA Regional appearance, finished second, first and fifth in three of its four fall tournaments, rising as high as No. 5 nationally in the Golfstat poll. The Bulldogs are led by co-captains Ben Bridgers (Sr. Conway, NC) and Courtney Faircloth (Jr. Wilson, NC), who both averaged just over 73 in the fall. Barton, which returned its entire starting lineup and added several talented freshmen, ranks ninth in D-II scoring at 74.38 and has averaged averaged 293 as a team through the fall. "The golf in our league has improved tremendously in the last few years," sixth-year Barton head coach John Hackney said. "Some of the best golf teams in the country now tee it up in the CVAC. We just want to remain consistent in our play, challenge for the CVAC title and qualify for the D-II Nationals in Oregon. To do that, we'll have to remain very focused over the next few months." Coker College is a solid pick for third in the 2003 preseason poll. Coker placed second at the 2002 CVAC Tournament behind the play of Chris Taylor, who placed second overall in the event. Taylor returns from a stellar junior campaign in which he qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships and was named an All-American. Taylor leads a team which is almost intact from a year ago, losing just one of its top five golfers. In addition to Taylor, second-team All-CVAC honoree Keno Turnquest is back and will be counted on to be a more consistent scorer during his senior year. With a pair of outstanding returnees and a group of talented new faces, the Cobras hope to take the next step and qualify as a team for the national championships. Rounding out the golf preseason poll 4-11 were: Belmont Abbey, Longwood, Queens, Anderson, St. Andrews, Mount Olive, Limestone, and Lees-McRae respectively. CVAC Men's Golf Poll (First place votes in parenthesis) 1. Pfeiffer University (10) 100 2. Barton College 89 3. Coker College (1) 76 4. Belmont Abbey College 71 5. Longwood University 62 6. Queens University of Charlotte 51 T-7. Anderson College 45 T-7. St. Andrews Presbyterian College 45 9. Mount Olive College 25 10. Limestone College 24 11. Lees-McRae College 17