Cowgirls Picked Fifth In Preseason Big 12 Poll

Courtney Dike

August 10, 2016 | Cowgirl Soccer

IRVING, Texas — Oklahoma State is the preseason pick to finish fifth in the Big 12 Conference standings in 2016, it was announced today by the league office.

In a vote of the league's head coaches, who were not allowed to select their own team, four-time defending conference champion West Virginia was the unanimous choice as the Big 12 favorite. Following the Mountaineers are Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Baylor, which finished just one point ahead of the Cowgirls. Rounding out the nine-team list are Texas, Kansas, TCU and Iowa State.

OSU returns seven starters from last season's 9-9-2 squad that finished eighth in the league with a 2-4-2 mark. Leading the way for head coach Colin Carmichael's Cowgirls are All-Big 12 seniors Courtney Dike and Natalie Calhoun.

The Cowgirls will host Texas A&M in a preseason exhibition game Saturday at 7 p.m. before opening the regular season Aug. 19 at Georgia.