Albany, Stanford Tabbed as Divisional Favorites in 2018 #AEFH Preseason Poll
BOSTON – As teams aim to build off of last year's success, the 2018 America East field hockey preseason poll features Albany and Stanford as the divisional favorites. It is the third time in four years the Great Danes and Cardinal top the preseason poll. The voting was conducted by the conference’s nine head coaches, who only voted for teams within their own division and were not permitted to vote for their own teams.
The Cardinal have won back-to-back #AEFH championships and are unanimous favorites to win the West Division, totaling nine points in the poll. The Great Danes, who made the NCAA semifinals in 2014, have won three East Division regular season titles in the past four years. They narrowly edged Maine with three first-place votes for a total of fifteen points.
Here is the full poll:
2018 America East Field Hockey Preseason Poll
East Division
No. School Points (1st Place Votes)
1. Albany 15 (3)
2. Maine 14 (2)
3. New Hampshire 10
4. UMass Lowell 6
5. Vermont 5
West Division
No. School Points (1st Place Votes)
1. Stanford 9 (3)
2. Pacific 6
3. California 5 (1)
4. UC Davis 4
Home to some of the best field hockey programs in the country, America East was one of four conferences to have three teams nationally ranked at the end of last season (Stanford, Albany and Maine). In 2015, both the Cardinal and Great Danes qualified for the NCAA tournament, marking the sixth time America East received multiple bids. In 2014, Albany became the third America East program to reach the national semifinals.
Twenty-six student-athletes who earned All-Conference or All-Rookie honors last year return for the 2018 season, including nine All-Conference selections in the East Division. Among the returnees are Pacific’s Kriekie van Wyk (Offensive Player of the Year), Albany’s Frederike Helmke (Defensive Player of the Year), Stanford’s Kelsey Bing (Goalkeeper of the Year) and Stanford’s Corinne Zanolli (Rookie of the Year). Bing was also the Rookie of the Year in 2016 while van Wyk was a repeat selection as Offensive Player of the Year.
The 2018 season begins on Friday, Aug. 24 and all nine teams play at least one non-conference game that weekend. The 32-game divisional schedule begins Friday, Sept. 28. The eight-team America East Championship will feature the four West Division teams and the top four teams from the East Division and will be held Nov. 1-4 at Stanford University.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
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