Ithaca headlines 2018-19 Liberty League Women's Basketball Preseason Poll
Ithaca College, one of three Liberty League women's basketball teams that advanced to last year’s NCAA Tournament has been selected as the 2018-19 league preseason favorite in a vote by the conference’s head coaches. Ithaca finished last season with an overall record of 21-8 and a 14-4 mark in league play, good enough to tie as regular season champions in the Bombers first year with the league. Ithaca reached the second round of the NCAA Championship before falling to Tufts.
Ithaca narrowly edged out RIT by one point to earn the preseason favorite nod with 77 points, which included six first-place votes (caoches cannot vote for their own teams). The Tigers received four first-place votes and totaled 76 points. St. Lawrence University received 60 points to place third while William Smith College and Vassar College each had 54 points apiece to tie for fourth as well round out the league’s top-five teams. Union (39) was selected to finish sixth and the Dutchwomen were followed by Skidmore College (33), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI, 31), Clarkson University (17) and Bard College (9).
The Bombers hope their good fortune continues in the Liberty League as they open their second season with the conference. They are poised to make another run at one of the top seeds of the league tournament after securing the third seed last season. With an incoming class of six and three returning starters, the Bombers will be a mix of veterans and newcomers heading into 2018-19. This year’s squad will be led by the 2017 Liberty League Co-Player of the Year and All-League first team honoree Cassidy O’Malley. O’Malley is one of three starters returning to Ithaca and she started all 29 games for the Bombers last season. She paced the team with 17 points per game (494 total) and 62 blocks (2.1 per game). She also recorded 33 steals and was tops in the league in field goal percentage (.473). O’Malley will be joined by Meghan Pickell, Allie Tunick and Annie Giannone who were among the team’s top-six scorers from a year ago. Pickell was third on the team with 9.3 points per game (269 total) while Tunick and Giannone were responsible for 156 and 155 points respectively (5.4 and 5.3 per game).
RIT is coming off one of its most successful seasons in program history as the Tigers finished last season with a school-best 23 wins (23-7, 14-4 Liberty League). They reached the league championship game for the third consecutive season, earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the third round for the first time before falling to Rochester. The Tigers will look to continue their recent trend of success, thanks to the return of a trio of All-Liberty League selections in Cori Okada (first team), Tara Lynch (honorable mention) and Sabrina Wolfe (All-Rookie team). Okada, a d3basketball.com preseason All-America pick was second on the team in scoring last season, averaging 13.2 points per game while shooting a .457 percentage from the floor. She played in all 30 games for RIT and led the team in assists (4.0 per game). Lynch was also one of the team’s top scorers with 12.1 points per game, good for third. She scored in double-digits 17 times and was third on the team in rebounds (4.9 per game). Wolfe played in all 30 games for the Tigers and was a seven-time Liberty League Rookie of the Week selection. She averaged 10.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in her first season at RIT.
St. Lawrence was a young squad to open last season with three first-year starters but the Saints made the most of it by finishing the year at 17-9 overall (12-6 Liberty League) and fourth in the league standings. They returned to the conference tournament after a one-year hiatus as the fourth seed. They did lose five to graduation but an experienced sophomore class should bode well even with 10 underclassmen on this year’s team. Katie Frederick, the 2018 Liberty League Rookie of the Year headlines that sophomore class after leading the team in scoring last season. She averaged 10.2 points and a league-best 9.9 rebounds per game. Classmate Marlee Gun also had a strong rookie campaign, ranking second among league leaders in assists per game (3.8) and tied for third in assist to turnover radio (1.2). She also contributed 118 points (4.5 per game) and 77 rebounds (3.0 per game). Defense was the Saints’ strength as they finished the year ranked 12th nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to 50.4 points per game. They were league leaders in scoring defense, rebounding defense (31.2 per game), rebounding offense (43.2 per game) and assists (15.5 per game). Junior Anna Pugliese and senior Meghan O’Connor are also key returnees.
Vassar returns to the court with the majority of its lineup intact with the graduation of only three. Four returning starters are back after a season where the Brewers finished 17-10 overall and 11-7 against league opponents. The 17 wins was the most in a season for Vassar since the 2013-14 season and the team earned the fifth seed in the conference tournament, advancing to the semifinals. Vassar will be a seasoned team for the 2018-19 season. The Brewers welcome back Sophie Nick, a 2018 All-League first team selection. Nick played all 27 games and averaged 27.9 minutes per game while leading the team in scoring and rebounding with 13.1 and 7.2 per game respectively. She produced 20 points on five occasions and was the team’s best in free throw percentage (.869). Maeve Sussman is also a significant returnee after playing in all 27 games last season. She totaled 104 points on the year along with 82 rebounds, 51 assists and 21 steals.
William Smith closed out last season with a 15-11 record (9-9 Liberty League) and thanks to a three-game winning streak to end the regular season, snagged the sixth and final spot in the newly expanded league tournament. The Herons are ready to improve upon that finish with four returning starters, including All-Liberty League first team honoree and All-America Mia Morrison as well as two All-Liberty League Rookie team selections (Juliana Gamboa and Stavriana Dimitrakopoulou). Morrison was the team’s top offensive weapon as she averaged team-bests in scoring (18.8) and rebounding (9.1). She was second among league leaders in scoring and rebounding average as well as field goal percentage (.427). Morrison scored more than 10 points in all but one of her 26 starts last season. In 25 games, Gamboa averaged 7.8 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while recording a team-best 66 assists (2.6 per game), ninth among league leaders. Dimitrakopoulou made 24 appearances for William Smith, averaging 8.7 points per game. She was the team’s top shooter from beyond the arc with 34 three-pointers (.351 three-pointer shooting percentage). Senior Olivia Hughes and junior Emma Gallagher also return.
Union finished the year at 7-14 and the Dutchwomen will be a young team this season with eight underclassmen, including six first-year players. There will also be some big shoes to fill with the departure of Jenni Barra, the team’s top offensive threat last season however the team does come back with four of their top-five scorers from a year ago. Nicole Conley headlines the team after ranking second on the team in scoring last season with 10.1 points per game (222 total). She led the team in rebounds with 173, averaging a team-high 7.9 per game, while also boasting a team-best 57 blocks. Conley was also tops on the team from the charity stripe, making 38 of her 47 attempts (.809 free throw percentage). Conley will be joined by Elly Vaughn and Lindsay Corina, who both averaged 5.0 points per game. The duo combined for 181 points. Sophie Borg will also be key after only playing in 10 games last season, where she had 44 points, 57 rebounds, 8 steals and 4 blocks.
Skidmore (18-10, 14-4 Liberty League) is the league’s 2017-18 defending champions after winning its second championship title in four years. The Thoroughbreds enjoyed a program-best 14 league wins en route to the title and second-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. It could be a rebuilding year for Skidmore with the graduation of three-time Liberty League Player of the Year and two-time WBCA All-America selection Kelly Donnelly as well as two other impactful seniors and the addition of new head coach Jessica Turner, a former assistant at Middlebury. Turner will look to the experience and leadership of senior captains Haley English and Taylor Ong to open this season. English started all 28 games last year, where she averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Ong played in all 28 games, producing 5.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. A pair of juniors—Lilly Berg and Jessica Centore are also back to help bolster the bench and the Thoroughbreds welcome an incoming class of four.
RPI wrapped up the 2017-18 season with an 11-14 overall and a 7-11 league record. The Engineers graduated only two players in May and they will be an experienced team this year even with a first-year class of seven. A trio of senior captains headline the squad—Elizabeth Eckhardt, LaKissa Martin and Sam O’Keefe. Eckhardt and Martin were among the team’s leaders in scoring, averaging 11.8 and 10.8 points per game while O’Keefe paced the team in assists (55, 2.3 per game) last season. Eckhardt played and started all 25 games for RPI while posting team-highs in scoring, field goals (110) and three-pointers (53). Martin played in all 25 games and made 23 starts. She was second on the team in total points with 271. She also recorded 36 steals and 117 rebounds. O’Keefe had her strongest season with RPI thus far as a junior with 153 points (2.2 per game), 119 rebounds (5.0 per game) and 55 assists.
Clarkson will look to improve upon a 10-15 overall record this season. However, it could be a tough year for the Golden Knights with the graduation of Madison Shea and Devin Sorell, both of whom were tops on the team in scoring. They will also be a young team with only three upperclassmen, including junior Molly Stewart. Stewart played in all 25 games last season and was third on the team in scoring with 218 points and 8.7 points per game. She also had 103 rebounds and 22 assists. Hannah Earl is back for her sophomore campaign after averaging 4.6 points per game and ranking among the team’s leaders in rebounds (2nd, 125) and assists (3rd, 47) in 2017-18.
It is head coach Casi Deonlean’s second year behind the bench for
Bard as they finished the 2017-18 season on a high note with a win on senior night to snap a losing streak. The Raptors return to the court with four starters from a year ago and with the graduation of only three, expectations are high this year. Caleigh DeCaprio highlights the returnees after leading the team offensively with 9.7 points per game (243 on the year). She also paced the team in assists (48) and steals (35). Kate Esposito, the team’s leading rebounder last season is also back (172 total, 6.9 per game) last season. She also averaged 6.6 points and 1.4 assists per game. Sarah Morris will be a key contributor this year after accounting for 139 points (6.3 per game) in 2017-18. The Raptors also welcome five newcomers to the squad from the Class of 2022.
Last year, the Liberty League moved to a six-team postseason tournament for the first time. This year, the first-round games take place on Tuesday, Feb. 19, as the third seed hosts the sixth seed and the fourth seed hosts the fifth seed. The first and second seeds will receive a bye into the semifinals. The semifinal games will take place on Saturday, Feb. 23 and the championship game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 24. All three games (two semifinals and championship) will be hosted by the top seed. The winner of the championship earns the Liberty League’s automatic berth to the 2019 NCAA tournament.
2018-19 LIBERTY LEAGUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL
1. Ithaca, 77 (6)
2. RIT, 76 (4)
3. St. Lawrence, 60
T-4. Vassar, 54
T-4. William Smith, 54
6. Union, 39
7. Skidmore, 33
8. RPI, 31
9. Clarkson, 17
10. Bard, 9
(First-place votes are in parentheses)