NEW YORK, N.Y. - Villanova junior midfielder Jack Curran (Fair Haven, N.J.) has been selected to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team as announced by the conference office on Thursday afternoon. The Wildcats were also chosen to finish third in the league and garnered 17 points overall while Denver and Georgetown rounded out the top two slots in the BIG EAST Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches Poll.

Wes Berg and Christian Burgdorf of Denver were selected as the BIG EAST Preseason Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year for 2015, respectively. Both were unanimous picks for the preseason major awards and the All-BIG EAST Preseason Team prior to the start of the season.

Curran earns his first preseason honor after being named a Second Team All-BIG EAST selection following the conclusion of his sophomore season where he registered 17 goals and 16 assists for 33 points. The Fair Haven, N.J. native appeared in 15 games just a year ago while making nine starts as part of the Villanova midfield. Curran returns to the Main Line for his junior season where he was named a team captain for the 2015 slate.

The six men's lacrosse members of the BIG EAST participate in a five-game, single round-robin format, playing each opponent once each year. The 2015 season will mark the fourth for the BIG EAST Championship and will be held April 30th and May 2nd at Villanova University. The top four teams in the conference standings determined and seeded by winning percentage in conference play at the conclusion of the regular season, will advance to compete in the postseason.

The Wildcats return to action in just a few short weeks when they host Johns Hopkins on February 14th at Villanova Stadium. Game time is slated for 1 p.m.

2015 Preseason Lacrosse All-BIG EAST Team and Awards

Preseason Offensive Player of the Year - Wes Berg, Denver, Sr., Attack ^
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year - Christian Burgdorf, Denver, So., Defense ^

Preseason All-BIG EAST
^ Ryan LaPlante, Denver, Sr., GK
^ Wes Berg, Denver, Sr., A
^ Zach Miller, Denver, So., A
Jack Bobzien, Denver, Jr., A
^ Eric Adamson, Denver, Sr., M
^ Christian Burgdorf, Denver, So., D
Peter Conley, Georgetown, So., M
Kyle Whitlow, Marquette, RS-Jr., M
^ B.J. Grill, Marquette, RS-Jr., D
^ Liam Byrnes, Marquette, RS-Jr., LSM
Jarrod Neumann, Providence, So., D
^ Mark DiFrangia, St. John's, Sr., D
Jack Curran, Villanova, Jr., M

^ - denotes unanimous selection

Preseason Coaches' Poll First place votes in ( )
1. Denver - 25 pts. (5)
2. Georgetown - 18 pts.
3. Villanova - 17 pts.
4. Marquette - 16 pts. (1)
5. St. John's - 9 pts.
6. Providence - 5 pts.