The Midwest Conference released its 2022 Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll on Tuesday and Lake Forest College was third in the rankings.
Voting is done by the MWC head men's soccer coaches. Each coach votes for the other eight schools in the league in order of predicted finish. Points are assigned in reverse order of voting (eight points for first, seven for second, etc.). Coaches may not vote for their own teams.
The Foresters garnered a first place vote and had 41 points. Five coaches in the league put Knox College atop the ballot and the Prairie Fire's 53 points were five more than second-place Cornell College, who received a pair of top votes. Grinnell College was fourth just a point behind Lake Forest.
The 2021 Foresters posted a 4-4-0 record in league play and finished fifth in the standings. Current junior forward Elliot Hull and goalkeeper Szymon Mocarski were named Second Team All-MWC.
Lake Forest will officially open the 2022 season this weekend at St. Norbert College, where the Foresters will take on Gustavus Adolphus College on Saturday and Luther College on Sunday. The team's league schedule will begin at Lawrence University on Saturday, September 24, and conclude on October 29 at Grinnell College. The top four teams in the conference will advance to the MWC Tournament, which will be hosted by the league champion November 4-5.
Coach Dan Andrews returns for his eighth season as head coach at the College. Under his direction, the Foresters advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament in 2015 and 2017 and claimed the program's league record 17th MWC title in 2016.
| PLACE | TEAM (First Place Votes) | POINTS |
| 1 | Knox College (5) | 53 |
| 2 | Cornell College (2) | 48 |
| 3 | Lake Forest College (1) | 41 |
| 4 | Grinnell College | 40 |
| 5 | Lawrence University | 33 |
| 6 | Illinois College | 28 |
| 7 | Ripon College | 18 |
| 8 | Beloit College | 15 |
| 9 | Monmouth College | 12 |
