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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Perennial NCAA Division II men's soccer powerhouse Fort Lewis College was ranked second in the preseason Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference coaches' poll, RMAC Assistant Commissioner Eric Danner announced today.

Fort Lewis, which finished the 2010 season with an 11-5-4 overall record and 10-2-2 in RMAC games, received 18 points in the poll. Last year's RMAC regular season and postseason champion, Colorado Mines (17-2-2, 12-1-1), was picked to repeat as league champs. The Orediggers received eight points in the voting and eight first place votes.

The Orediggers defeated the Skyhawks in both regular season meetings in 2010, and then ousted FLC in a penalty kick shootout following a 0-0 draw in double overtime in the RMAC championship tilt.

Trailing CSM and FLC in the poll were Metro State (12-6-2, 8-4-2), Regis (14-3-4, 9-2-3), Colorado Mesa (10-7-2, 6-6-2), Colorado State-Pueblo (7-11-1, 6-7-1), UC-Colorado Springs (5-12-1, 4-9-1), Colorado Christian (1-18, 1-13), and Adams State (1-16, 1-13). The Roadrunners received one first place vote.

Fort Lewis College senior defender Fabian Kling was picked as the Preseason RMAC Defensive Player of the Year. Mines' Chike Sullivan was tabbed the Preseason RMAC Player of the Year.

“Fabian is our captain this year,” said third-year FLC head coach Oige Kennedy. “He's had three great seasons with us and we're looking forward to another great year on the field. He's clearly the best defensive player in the conference and, to be fair, could have won this award the last two years. He's a big contributor scoring goals for us as well.”

The preseason acknowledgement is just the latest honor bestowed upon Kling, a 6-foot-3 senior defender from Holblein High School in Augsburg, Germany. Last season, he led the Skyhawks in goal scoring (eight) and ranked second in total points (16) while taking home team Most Valuable Player honors. In 2010, he was named to the NSCAA/Performance Subaru and Daktronics All-America third teams, the NSCAA/Performance Subaru and Daktronics All-Central Region first teams, the All-RMAC second team and the RMAC All-Tournament Team.

As a sophomore in 2009, he was named to the NSCAA All-Central Region first team, the Daktronics All-Central Region second team, and the All-NCAA Division II Final Four Team while guiding the Skyhawks to their second NCAA Division II championship in five seasons.

Kling earned first team All-RMAC honors as a true freshman in 2008.

Senior midfielder Thomas Hoang joined Kling as the only Skyhawks on the 11-person Preseason All-RMAC squad. For Kling, 2011 marked his third straight season on the Preseason All-RMAC team.

“Thomas has come on a lot,” said Kennedy. “Once he got his opportunity as part of the '09 team, he grabbed it with both hands.”

The Skyhawk skipper said Hoang is a team leader, not just in scoring goals, but in setting up teammates. “A big part of our attack will focus on Thomas this year,” he said.

Hoang, a 5-foot-11 senior midfielder from Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, led the Skyhawks in total points (19), assists (nine), and shots (70) in 2010, earning NSCAA/Performance Subaru NCAA Division II All-Central Region second team honors. Earlier in his junior campaign, he was named to the RMAC All-Tournament Team, the All-RMAC third team and was picked as the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 5, 2010.

After winning NCAA Division II national titles in 2005 and '09 and finishing as national runners-up in '99 and '06, the Skyhawks saw their string of six consecutive appearances in the NCAA playoffs snapped last fall. FLC was narrowly edged by Regis for the second and final berth awarded to teams in the Central Region.

Fort Lewis hosts Otero Junior College in exhibition play at 4 p.m. this Friday at Dirks Field. The Skyhawks hold their annual alumni game at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 27, before opening regular season play at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 1, against Montana State-Billings at Dirks Field.