The No. 4 Grand Valley State University softball team was tabbed as the favorite to win the conference championship this spring in the 2014 GLIAC Softball Preseason Poll.

The league’s head coaches took part in the balloting but were not allowed to vote for their own team.

The Lakers received six first-place votes and totaled 159 points in the poll. Wayne State University also received six first-place votes but finished second with 156 points. Ashland University, which had 147 points, came in third.

The back-to-back GLIAC title-winning Laker squad was one of the final four teams remaining in all of the NCAA Division II last season at the 2013 College World Series in Salem, Va.

GVSU (2-2) will return to the diamond for 12 games next week during its weeklong trip to the NTC Spring Games in Clermont, Fla.