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Connecticut 6 Teams Well Represented In Pre-Season Polls
FAIRFIELD, Conn. - The Northeast Conference announced its pre-season coaches' rankings this morning, completing the poll talk for all of the Connecticut 6 teams in 2009-10. Three of the Connecticut 6 teams were part of that poll.
Quinnipiac University tied for third place with Robert Morris, while Central Connecticut and Sacred Heart took fifth and sixth place, respectively in the Northeast Conference poll.
Quinnipiac, which won 15 overall games, 10 conference contests, and advanced to the conference tournament semi-finals a year ago, received its highest pre-season ranking under third-year Head Coach Tom Moore.
Sacred Heart posted 17 wins during the 2008-09 campaign, and secured a third-place regular-season finish in the Northeast Conference with 12 league wins. Head Coach Dave Bike returns for his 32nd season at the helm, the longest tenure of any Connecticut 6 head coach.
Central Connecticut begins its 14th season under Head Coach Howie Dickenman. Under his guidance, the Blue Devils advanced to the conference tournament quarterfinals and posted 13 wins and eight conference victories.
Earlier in the fall, three other Connecticut teams found their placement in their respective conference polls.
Fairfield University ranked fourth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) pre-season coaches poll with 67 points, placing the Stags in the upper division for the third time in as many seasons under Head Coach Ed Cooley.
Yale University secured fifth in the Ivy League poll with 59 votes under head coach James Jones. The good news is that the program has finished higher than the poll's prediction in three of the last four years. The Bulldogs finished in a tie for second place with Princeton last year.
The University of Hartford stands sixth in the America East pre-season poll under Head Coach Dan Leibovitz. The Hawks played most of last season without the services of Joe Zeglinski, who was out of the lineup due to injury.
