MINNEAPOLIS -- After a three-year hiatus, the Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference (UMLC) will have an automatic qualifying bid to the 2018 MCLA National Championships powered by Under Armour in Division I, and Missouri is the preseason favorite to grab the spot.

The Tigers (10-6), which finished first in the West division of the now-defunct Great Rivers Lacrosse Conference (GRLC), lead a contingent of former GRLC programs to the UMLC. Mizzou took the top ranking with four first place votes and 328 points.

Missouri was followed in the 11-team conference by Indiana, Purdue and Illinois -- all former members of the GRLC. The Hoosiers, Boilermakers and Illini all snagged a pair of first place votes.

Iowa State, the lone holdover from the original UMLC-I, checked in sixth, eight points behind Kansas.

UMLC Division I Preseason Coaches Poll