The Auburn soccer team was picked to win the Southeastern Conference’s Western Division by a narrow margin over defending division champ LSU in a preseason poll, which was released on Monday.

Auburn picked up six first-place votes and 61 total points, while LSU earned four first-place votes and 58 total points.

Auburn last captured the division crown in 2008 when it shared the title with LSU, its sixth division crown under head coach Karen Hoppa, now in her 12th season at Auburn.

Coming off of a fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and a run to the semifinals in the SEC Tournament, Auburn returns eight starters from last year’s squad, which went 10-9-3 (6-5-0 SEC). Included in that group are preseason All-SEC selections midfielder Katy Frierson and defender Sammy Towne.

Florida was selected as the favorite to claim the 2010 SEC title, the 13th year that it has been given that distinction by the league coaches.

The 2010 season begins Friday when Auburn plays host to Tennessee Tech at 7 p.m. at the Auburn Soccer Complex. Conference play is set to begin on Sept. 24 when Auburn faces Mississippi State at Auburn.

Clanton, Fernandez on World Amateur teams
Auburn rising senior Cydney Clanton and incoming freshman Diana Fernandez have been selected to represent their respective countries this fall in the World Amateur Team Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Teams will come from all over the world to compete for the Espirito Santo Trophy within three different zones: Asia Pacific, America and Europe and Africa. The event will take place from Oct. 15-23 at the Olivos Golf Club and Buenos Aires Golf Club.

Clanton, a native of Concord, N.C., will represent the United States in the event. She is the first Auburn golfer ever to represent the U.S. in the World Amateur Team Championship.

Clanton was a member of the United States’ victorious 2010 Curtis Cup Team and last month she won the North & South Women’s Amateur. She tied for third at the 2010 NCAA Championship and was selected as a NGCA All-American for the second time in three years.

Clanton has also qualified for the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open, played in the 2010 LPGA Kraft Nabisco Championship and advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2009 and 2010 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.

Fernandez, a native of Asuncion, Paraguay, will represent her home country in the tournament. At ages 15, 16 and 17, was the top ranked junior golfer in Paraguay and was the winner of the 2009 National Match Play Championship. Competing in the United States, she finished in a tie for sixth at the 2009 AJGA Girls Championship and tied for fifth at the 2008 Doral-Publix Junior Golf Classic.

Clanton and Fernandez are the third and fourth Auburn golfers ever to compete in the event, joining Celeste Troche, who played for Paraguay in 2000, and Maria Martinez, who played for Venezuela in 2004.