Fairfield Chosen as the Preseason Favorite in Women's Basketball
MAAC Sports
EDISON, NJ – Fairfield University has been selected as the preseason favorite to win the 2016 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Women’s Basketball Championship, according to a vote of the leagues 11 head coaches. The Stags received five of 11 first place votes for 113 points.
Fairfield is coming off a 2014-15 campaign in which they finished third in the MAAC standings with a 13-7 record in conference play and an overall record of 15-16. Kristin Schatzlein returns for her senior season with the Stags along with redshirt junior Casey Smith. Smith and Schatzlein ranked 14th and 15th overall in scoring last season with 11.9 and 11.6 points per game, respectively. Schatzlein averaged the second most minutes played in the MAAC with 36.2 minutes per game. She ranked eighth overall in the MAAC with 2.1 three-pointers made and 1.3 steals per game. Smith shot 44.1 percent from the field last season to go along with 29 blocks. The duo was named to the All-MAAC Third Team. Fairfield ranked third in the MAAC in scoring defense, holding opponents to 60.8 points per game.
Coming in second are the 10 time MAAC Women’s Basketball Champions, Marist College. The Red Foxes are coming off of a season where they went 15-5 in the MAAC, competed in the 2015 MAAC Championship final game, and played in the postseason WNIT tournament. The Red Foxes return 2014-15 Third Team All-Conference member senior Sydney Coffey. Coffey averaged 12.6 points per game and ranked sixth in the league in free-throw percentage, shooting 77.7 percent from the line. Marist will welcome back 2014-15 First Team All-MAAC member Tori Jarosz after she was granted her sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA. Jarosz was second in the MAAC in scoring with 17.1 points per game. She led the league in blocks with 2.6 rejections per game, and finished second in rebounding with 9.5 rebounds per game and was third in field goal percentage at 49.7 percent.
Defending MAAC champion, Quinnipiac University, was selected third after winning its first MAAC Championship and earning its second NCAA tournament bid in three years. The Bobcats were undefeated in conference play at 20-0 and finished the year 31-4 overall. Reigning sixth player of the year, Maria Napolitano, returns to Quinnipiac after a season where she averaged 6.9 points per game and connected on 50 three-pointers. The Bobcats led the MAAC in assists, steals, blocked shots, scoring offense and scoring margin. 2014-15 MAAC Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year, Tricia Fabbri, looks for repeated success in the 2015-16 campaign.
Iona College was selected fourth by the coaches in the preseason poll. The Gaels were 12-8 in MAAC Play and 15-15 overall last season. Iona will be led by Joy Adams, who was a member of the 2014-15 All-MAAC First Team. Adams was fourth in the MAAC with 14.2 points per game. Adams led the conference with 12.6 total rebounds, 7.6 defensive rebounds, and 5.0 offensive rebounds per game. She ranked second in steals with 2.2 per game, and was third in minutes played, averaging 35.2 minutes per game last season. Aaliyah Robinson enters her senior season after averaging 10.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.9 steals per game for the Gaels as a junior. As a team, Iona was second in scoring offense with 69 points per game. Iona led the MAAC in free-throw percentage at 76.5 percent.
Closing out the top five in the 2015-16 MAAC Women’s Basketball preseason poll is Siena College. Siena is coming off a season where they finished fifth with a 11-9 MAAC and a 22-13 overall record. The Saints are led by reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year Margot Hetzke and junior Meghan Donohue. Hetzke was eighth in the MAAC with 12.7 points per game and fourth in rebounding with 7.4 rebounds per game. Donohue was top 20 in the MAAC with 10.3 points per game and ranked second with a 50.3 field-goal percentage. The Saints, who made it to the MAAC Women’s Basketball semifinal game last season, were top five in the conference in scoring defense, scoring margin, steals, and free-throw percentage. They led the MAAC in rebounding defense and rebounding margin.
The second place finisher in the poll, Marist College, received 103 total points and three first place votes. Quinnipiac finished with 100 points and two first place votes, followed by Iona College with 95 points and one first place vote. Siena rounded out the top five with 78 points, followed by Canisius (51), Manhattan (41), Saint Peter’s (41), Monmouth (36), Niagara (35) and Rider (33).
2015-16 Preseason Coaches’ Poll
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1.
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Fairfield (5)
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113
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2.
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Marist (3)
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103
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3.
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Quinnipiac (2)
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100
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4.
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Iona (1)
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95
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5.
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Siena
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78
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6.
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Canisius
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51
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T7.
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Manhattan
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41
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T7.
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Saint Peter’s
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41
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9.
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Monmouth
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36
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10.
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Niagara
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35
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11.
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Rider
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33
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