ERIE, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's outdoor track and field team has been picked as the coaches' favorite in the first-ever Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) preseason coaches' poll.

Not only is this the first time the CSAC has done a preseason poll, it is the first season the Lions will be a member of the conference.

Behrend received four of seven possible first place votes and racked up 41 total points, two ahead of Keystone College who was picked to take second at the CSAC Championships.

The Lions are off to a fast start in their indoor season. They have 12 runners, a mix of individuals and relay teams, already top qualifying times to punch their ticket to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships on March 4.

Behrend has broken seven different indoor school records thus far this season. Mitchell Obenrader (Fryburg, PA/North Clarion) has the eight-best shot put distance (53' 9.25") in all of Division III, and the DMR team of Dylan Buffington (Brookville, PA/Brookville), Matthew Grafton (Worthington, PA/Kittanning), Josh Natalie (Erie, PA/Collegiate Academy-Strong Vincent) and Matt McWilliams (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf) has the 12th-best time in the country (10:18.65).

The Lions look to keep running strong through the indoor season and transfer their momentum right into the outdoor season and make a push to capture the CSAC title.

You can find the complete CSAC preseason poll here: http://www.csacsports.org/news/2016/2/19/MTRACK_0219164235.aspx#.Vsc65Kku4ko.twitter