CARMEL, Ind. – Rose-Hulman has been voted to win their third consecutive HCAC Championship in the HCAC Preseason Poll.
 
The Fightin' Engineers were picked as the unanimously favored champions as they hauled in all nine first place votes they were eligible for. Rose-Hulman finished with 81 total points, which is the highest score a team can receive.
 
Manchester finished second in the poll as they accumulated 73 points with the final first place vote. Franklin rounds out the top three, as the team recorded 64 points.
 
Head Coach Derick Lawrence looks to lead the Fightin' Engineers to their fourth HCAC title in his five years with the program. He returns seven All-HCAC First Team selections, including five athletes who competed in the 2025 NCAA Division III National Championships.
 
Seniors Chris Lynn, Eduardo del Rosal, Will Boschen and Rhys Phelps, as well as sophomore Ben Tuckis each recorded top ten finishes at the 2025 HCAC Championships.
 
Lynn placed fifth overall with a time of 25:25.28, while del Rosal recorded a seventh place finish with a time of 26:34.94. Boschen added an eighth place finish in 26:44.32 and Phelps took ninth place with a time of 26:46.14. Tuckis rounded out the top ten with a time of 26:58.12, where he was named the HCAC Newcomer of the Year. Phelps would also add a 189th-place finish at the national championships, achieving a time of 25:55.70.
 
Rose-Hulman will lead off the season at the Franklin Grizzly Invitational on Saturday, September 5 at 10 AM.
 
HCAC PRESEASON POLL RESULTS:

1. Rose-Hulman – 81 (9)
2. Manchester – 73 (1)
3. Franklin – 64
4. Hanover – 56
5. Anderson – 46
6. Berea – 38
7. Transylvania – 30
8. Earlham – 25
9. Bluffton – 23
10. Mt. St. Joseph – 14