LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) released its men's cross country preseason coaches poll on Wednesday afternoon. West Chester was picked to finish 11th in the PSAC, following an 11th-place finish at the 2022 Championships.

Perennial power Shippensburg was picked to capture the title in 2023 with 12 first-place votes, followed by Slippery Rock with three first-place votes of its own to come in second in the poll. Lock Haven, Indiana (Pa.), and California (Pa.) rounded out the top five, while Kutztown, Gannon, East Stroudsburg, Bloomsburg, and Edinboro comprised the remainder of the top-10.

West Chester returns a number of key pieces from the 2022 squad, including Second Team All-Conference selection Philip Smith (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley), who, along with junior Sean Fisher (North Wales, Pa./North Penn), will captain the Golden Rams in 2023. West Chester also returns Nicholas Falsone (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) and Jason Shumaker (Eagleville, Pa./Methacton), who were the next two finishers behind Smith at the PSAC Cross Country Championships a season ago.

West Chester will begin its 2023 season similarly to how it did a year ago with a visit to Shippensburg on September 1 for the Piper Cross Country Challenge before heading to Kutztown two weeks later for the DII/DIII Challenge. West Chester concludes its September slate on September 30 with a visit to Lehigh for the Paul Short Invitational before traveling to Bloomsburg on October 7 in its final meet ahead of the PSAC Championships later in October. This trip to Bloomsburg will also give the Golden Rams the opportunity to preview the Championship course ahead of the PSAC Championships on October 21.

2023 PSAC Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll (# of first-place votes)
1. Shippensburg (12)
2. Slippery Rock (3)
3. Lock Haven
4. IUP
5. California
6. Kutztown
7. Gannon
8. East Stroudsburg
9. Bloomsburg
10. Edinboro
11. West Chester
12. Pitt-Johnstown (1)
13. Mercyhurst
14. Mansfield
15. Seton Hill
16. Shepherd