Coaches pick Seahawks to finish third in CCC
NEWPORT, R.I. - The Salve Regina University field hockey team has been voted to finish third in the Commonwealth Coast Conference(CCC) in a preseason poll conducted by the coaches.
The University of New England will try to continue its streak of four straight CCC Tournament Championships this season and comes into the year as the preseason favorite.
The Nor'easters, which went 11-1 in conference (18-5 overall) in 2017, earned 47 points in this year's poll, including five of a possible seven first place votes cast by the seven CCC field hockey head coaches.
In 2017, UNE earned the top seed in the CCC Tournament for the fifth year in a row and captured its fourth straight league title with a 2-1 win over Endicott in the Championship. It advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth year in a row, earning a 2-1 win and against Saint Joseph's (Maine) before falling to Middlebury, 5-0.
The Gulls, which also had an 11-1 conference (17-4 overall) record landed in the second slot in the year's poll with 44 points and the remaining two first place votes. They have made it to the CCC Tournament Championship in three of the past four years.
Salve Regina earned 31 points in this year's voting to earn the No. 3 spot on this year's ledger, followed by Western New England, which earned 25 points.
Roger Williams (22 points), Nichols (15), and Gordon (12) rounded out the poll in that order.
2018 CCC Field Hockey Pre-season Coaches' Poll
- U. of New England 47 (5)
- Endicott 44 (2)
- Salve Regina 31
- Western New England 25
- Roger Williams 22
- Nichols 15
- Gordon 12
Head coach Jennifer Foster returns for her 12th season at the helm of the Seahawks. Her squad has reached the CCC Semifinals in each of the past four seasons. Salve Regina will have some big shoes to fill with the graduation of the class of 2018 but has a lot of eager and talented returners as well as a solid freshman class who will have the opportunity to make immediate contributions. The team will rely on its four captains, Ashley Cody (Pawling, N.Y.), Olivia St. Jean (Goffstown, N.H.), Ally Daly (Peabody, Mass.) and Emma Gaudio (Chesire, Conn.) on both the offensive and defensive ends of the field.
Read the full release from the Commonwealth Coast Conference at http://cccathletics.com/sports/fh/2018-19/releases/2018FHPoll
Salve Regina University
Salve Regina athletics sponsors 20 NCAA Division III varsity sports for men and women. The Seahawks compete in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC - baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, field hockey, football, men's ice hockey, men's and women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis, women's track and field, women's volleyball), New England Hockey Conference (NEHC - women's ice hockey), New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association (NEISA - sailing). Beginning in 2017-18, Salve Regina will also sponsor equestrian as a varsity sport, and adds junior varsity programs for baseball and men's lacrosse.