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Junior Kelsey Simonds returns after missing last season with an injury. |
North Easton, Mass. - Following a 22-9 season that saw the Skyhawks advance to the NCAA Quarterfinals, Stonehill was picked fourth in the annual preseason poll of Northeast-10 head coaches it was announced by the conference office on Wednesday.
The Skyhawks received 176 points and one first-place vote, just ahead of fifth place Franklin Pierce (174). In addition to the conference poll, Stonehill received 16 points in the WBCA (Women's Basketball Coaches Association) Preseason Poll also released on Wednesday.
Bentley, the squad that ousted Stonehill in the NCAA tournament
a year ago was selected first with 200 points and five first-place
votes, was followed by defending national champion Southern
Connecticut (196) and American International, a 21-8 team a season
ago.
Assumption College (148), The College of Saint Rose (141), Pace
University (117), Bryant University (116) and the University of
Massachusetts Lowell (76) round out the top 10.
The remainder of the field included, in order, Merrimack College
(73), Saint Michael's College (61), Le Moyne College (54), Southern
New Hampshire University (47) and Saint Anselm College (32).
The Skyhawks will have to replace 1,400-point scorer Alisha Collins but return junior Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass.), who was the 2005-06 Northeast-10 Rookie of the Year and missed all of last season due to injury and Megan Methven (Corning, N.Y.), a standout during her freshman season who scored 10.8 points per game.
The Skyhawks open their season on Friday, November 16 versus Concordia at the Assumption Courtyard Classic.