After a 12-2 start, Colin Scanlon and the Skyhawks are back in the national polls.

Skyhawks Back In NABC Poll At No. 20

Kansas City, Mo. - After nearly two and a half seasons, Stonehill has returned to the National Basketball Association Coaches' Poll at No. 20, it was revealed when the most recent poll was released on Tuesday.

The Skyhawks are 12-2 overall and riding a six-game winning streak following their 86-77 win over LeMoyne on Saturday.

The last time the Skyhawks were ranked by the NABC was at the end of the 2005-06 season, a year in which they advanced to the Final Four and won a school-record 27 games.

At 7-2 in the Northeast-10, Stonehill sits in a first place tie with Merrimack, a team they defeated 79-75 earlier this year. The two teams will meet again Saturday, January 24 in North Andover.

Defense has been the hallmark of this year's Stonehill team, ranking fourth in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.369) and 12th in points scored (60.6). During their current streak, the Skyhawks are holding their opponents to just 25 percent shooting from behind the arc and allowing just 58.8 points per outing.

Offensively, they feature a balanced attack with four double figure scorers led by senior Matt Hall's (Springfield, Mass.) 12.6 points per game. Junior A.J. Rudowitz (Monroe Township, N.J.), the team's leading rebounder (7.8 boards), drops in 12.4 a night, while sophomore Mike Kernan (Medford, N.J.) has blossomed in his second season, going for 11.1 points and 7.1 rebounds every time out.

Randall Stallworth (Toms River, N.J.), now in his third season at the controls of head coach Dave McLaughlin's offense, is averaging a career-high 11.1 points and 4.6 assists and is third in the Northeast-10 in free throw percentage (.855).

Stonehill (women are ranked 10th) is just one of five teams (Gannon, Pa., South Carolina-Aiken, Arkansas Tech, Minnesota State-Mankato) to have both its men's and women's programs ranked in their respective top 25 polls. Both Stonehill teams are the only Northeast-10 teams ranked.

The Skyhawks return to action on Wednesday when they host St. Michael's at 7:30 p.m.