Ithaca and RIT selected preseason favorites in 2017-18 Liberty League Women’s Basketball Poll
Ithaca College and the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) women’s basketball teams have been selected as the 2017-18 Liberty League preseason favorites in a vote by the conference’s head coaches. Ithaca, which joined the Liberty League in July 2017, is coming off a 25-4 season and a 14-2 mark in the Empire 8. The Bombers advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. RIT won its first-ever Liberty League women’s basketball championship and the Tigers finished the year with a 19-9 overall record (10-6 Liberty League), falling to Ithaca in the NCAA first round.
Ithaca received six first-place votes for a total of 70 points while RIT was selected first four times and also totaled 70 points. Skidmore was chosen to finish third with 68 points, close behind the preseason favorites. The Thoroughbreds also had two first-place votes, matching Vassar College, to round out the top four. The Brewers compiled 58 points, just one point ahead of William Smith (57). The Herons were followed by Clarkson (38), St. Lawrence (30), Union (29), RPI (21) and Bard (9).
Ithaca had a lot of success over the past four years (90-26 overall record), including three trips to the NCAA tournament, an appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight and two Empire 8 conference titles. The Bombers hope that success translates well into the move to the Liberty League as they open the 2017-18 season with three returning starters from a year ago. Junior Jordan Beers as well as seniors Erin Woop and Julie Yacovoni headline this year’s squad. Beers, an All-Empire 8 first-team selection, saw action in 28 of 29 games, while making 27 starts. She ranked third on the team in field goals made (109) while also leading Ithaca in three-pointers (51). Beers was second on the team in scoring, just under 11.0 points per game (10.9). Woop made 25 starts for the Bombers in 2016-17, she compiled 72 points and registered a 35.4 field goal percentage (28-of-79). She was also fourth on the team in rebounds (94). Yacovoni played in 28 games, averaging 8.7 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
RIT returns after winning the 2016-17 Liberty League Women’s Basketball Championship in February and reeling off nine wins in their final ten games of the season before advancing to the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history. This season, the Tigers return to the court with a fully loaded roster as only three players from last season graduated. RIT will be led by All-Liberty League first team selection junior Cori Okada along with All-Liberty League second team honorees classmate Tara Lynch and senior Jessica Glaz. Okada was the team’s leading scorer during the 2016-17 campaign, averaging 14.6 points per game, good for fourth among league leaders. She was also tops in the league in assists per game (2nd, 4.6) and field goal percentage (2nd, .479). Glaz and Lynch were both impact players for the Tigers last season as the duo both averaged over 12 points per game in 28 games played. They were also among the top-10 league scoring leaders at seventh and ninth respectively. Lynch paced RIT in rebounds (5.0 per game) and Glaz was second on the team in steals with 37 to Okada’s 38. As a team, the Tigers led the league in scoring (72.8 points per game), field goal percentage (.433) and assists (15.9 per game).
The Thoroughbreds open the 2017-18 season in defense of their first Liberty League regular season title since 2009-10.
Skidmore (17-9, 13-3 Liberty League) advanced to the league tournament before falling in the semifinals last season. Kelly Donnelly, a two-time All-American and Liberty League Player of the Year, is back for her senior campaign and it will be her fourth year as a starter. Last season, she set a program record with 543 points in 26 games and made Skidmore’s 1,000 career points list in January. She led the Liberty League in scoring (20.8 per game) as well as rebounding (11.0 per game), while also ranking among the best in all of Division III. Also returning for Skidmore is senior Veronica Moceri (10.0 points per game), who led the team in field goals made with 39, and junior Haley English. English averaged 4.9 points per game and accounted for 23 steals on the year.
Vassar (12-13, 9-7 Liberty League) was a young squad last season with 10 underclassmen and a year of experience on the court in 2016-17 should translate well in 2017-18. The Brewers did not lose anyone to graduation and will have all five starters from a year ago to open the season. Last year, Vassar narrowly missed the Liberty League tournament and the Brewers will look to make a return to the postseason for the first time since 2013-14. Senior Ariella Rosenthal, a 2016-17 All-Liberty League first team pick and sophomore Sophie Nick, the 2016-17 Liberty League Rookie of the Year, headline the team. Rosenthal boasted a team-high 14.9 points per game and was second on the team in rebounds (8.5). Nick led the team in rebounding with 8.5 boards per game and blocking (14 total), while averaging 12.1 points per game. Among league leaders, she was ranked fourth in rebounds per game and fourteenth in blocks per game (0.6) among league leaders. Seniors Kim Romanoff and Samarah Cook also return to bolster the lineup.
The Herons had a strong 2016-17 campaign as they earned the second seed in the Liberty League tournament for the first time since 2010-11 before falling in the semifinals.
William Smith finished the season with an overall mark of 17-9 (11-5 Liberty League). There will be some big shoes to fill with the departure of Melanie Patterson, an All-Liberty League first team selection. She led the Herons in points 14.3 per game), assists (3.1 per game) and steals (1.7 per game) last season. However, they do welcome back the team’s top rebounder from last season in junior Mia Morrison. Morrison was also an All-Liberty League first teamer, a starter in 22 of 24 games for William Smith, she averaged 7.3 rebounds per game. She also recorded a team-best 14 blocks on the year. Other key returnees include juniors Natalia Baum and Olivia Hughes. The Herons also have four incoming players that will complement their 11 returners.
Clarkson (16-11, 10-6 Liberty League) closed out last year as the fourth seed in the 2016-17 Liberty League tournament. The Golden Knights pulled off the upset win in the semifinals over the league’s top seed and advanced to the championship game for the second straight year before falling to RIT. They did lose three to graduation but the return of seniors Madison Shea and Devin Sorell as well as sophomore Molly Stewart should keep them in the mix. All three were ranked among the team’s top-four scorers last season and Sorell was tops on the team with 16.2 points per game, good for second among league leaders. Shea paced the team in assists (105) and steals (75). She was also third on the team in scoring (10.3 points per game) and Stewart was also key to the offense with a scoring average of 8.2 as well as a rebounding average of 3.4. The Golden Knights welcome an incoming class of seven to Potsdam to kick off the 2017-18 season.
St. Lawrence (9-15, 6-10 Liberty League) will be a young team to open the 2017-18 season with nine underclassmen on its roster. The veteran presence of the Saints’ three seniors will be key as Cara Waterson, Kaelyn Kohlasch and Jenny Scudder all return. The trio were among the team’s top-six scorers from 2016-17, ranking second (8.0 points per game), fifth (6.9 points per game) and sixth (5.5 points per game) respectively. Kohlasch led the team in steals with 21 and Scudder made the most three-pointers for the Saints with 16. Annabella Pugliese is also a contributor to the Saints’ offense, she earned a spot on the All-Liberty League Rookie Team last season. She played all 24 games for St. Lawrence, including 14 starts, she compiled 104 points (4.4 per game) and 116 rebounds (4.8 per game) in her rookie campaign. She also had 10 steals and a team-high 34 blocks.
The Dutchwomen will look to improve upon a 12-12 overall record and an 8-8 mark in Liberty League play.
Union will be a mix of veterans and newcomers with an incoming class of six and 10 returners. The Dutchwomen open 2017-18 with only two starters from a year ago. They will be led by senior Sophie Borg and junior Jenni Barra. Borg paced the team in scoring and rebounding all season long, averaging 10.7 points and 6.7 boards per game. She was also tops in free throws with 51 made out of 72 attempts for a .729 free throw percentage. Barra, the 2015-16 Rookie of the Year, is the Dutchwomen’s scoring threat from the three-point line as she was second on the team with 40 last season. She also averaged 8.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.
RPI will look to improve upon a 10-15 overall record (5-11 Liberty League) in 2017-18 as the Engineers were young last year with seven underclassmen. However, with the graduation of two and an additional year of experience should be demonstrated on the court this season. Juniors Sam Krumbhaar, Elizabeth Eckhardt and Shaina Iton headline this year’s team after ranking as the team’s top-three scorers a year ago. Krumbhaar, an All-Liberty League second team honoree, led the team offensively with a team-high 12.6 points per game with Eckhardt and Iton not far behind at 10.8 and 8.5 respectively. Iton paced the team in rebounds with 256 (10.7 per game) and blocks (58).
Bard welcomes new head coach Casi Deonlean to Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. to start the 2017-18 season. She comes into Bard with two returning starters from last year in sophomore Caleigh DiCaprio and junior Sarah Morris. DeCaprio averaged 6.8 points per game and Morris averaged 6.1. The duo combined for 162 rebounds while Morris was third on the team with 4.7 per game. They were the team’s leading stealers with 41 (DiCaprio) and 32 (Morris). Erin Kennedy and Katie Espisito are two of the team’s four newcomers and another key returnee for the Raptors is Elena LeFevre, who made 19 starts for the team in 2015-16.
With the addition of Ithaca, there will now be 10 teams competing in Liberty League men’s basketball and there will be a format change to the league tournament. Six teams will now qualify for the postseason. This year, the quarterfinals take place on Tuesday, Feb. 20 at the site of the third and fourth seeds of the tournament. The first and second seeds will receive a bye into the semifinals. The semifinal games will take place on Saturday, Feb. 24 and the championship game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 25. 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 2017 NCAA tournament.
2017-18 LIBERTY LEAGUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL
1t. Ithaca, 70 (4)
1t. RIT, 70 (2)
3. Skidmore, 68 (2)
4. Vassar, 58 (2)
5. William Smith, 57
6. Clarkson, 38
7. St. Lawrence, 30
8. Union, 29
9. RPI, 21
10. Bard, 9
(First-place votes are in parentheses)