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2017 Northeast Conference Women's Cross Country Preseason Coaches Poll            1. Saint Francis U (3)            2. Central Connecticut (4)                Sacred Heart (3)            4. Bryant            5. Robert Morris            6. Mount St. Mary's            7. Wagner            8. Fairleigh Dickinson            9. St. Francis Brooklyn            10. LIU Brooklyn             First place votes in parentheses

 
   
Somerset, NJ -- In perhaps the closest preseason poll in Northeast Conference women’s cross country history, defending champion Saint Francis U was tabbed the preseason favorite by a razor-thin margin over Central Connecticut and Sacred Heart.

The Red Flash, who last fall won their first NEC title since 2004 and sixth in program history, received three of the 10 first place votes by league head coaches.

Oddly enough, the Blue Devils collected four first place votes, but still finished tied for second in the poll with perennial contender Sacred Heart. The Pioneers earned three first place nods in what should be an exciting race for the top spot come October.

Bryant was tabbed fourth in the poll, followed in order by Robert Morris, Mount St. Mary’s, Wagner, Fairleigh Dickinson, St. Francis Brooklyn and LIU Brooklyn.

With three finishers in the top-10, Saint Francis U edged CCSU by seven points in winning the NEC Championship a year ago. All three student-athletes are back in the fold for Doug Hoover, who was named the 2016 NEC Coach of the Year. Most notably, the Red Flash return senior Danae Peters (Manheim, PA/Manheim Central), the 2016 NEC runner-up who clocked in at 19:37.4 over the 5K course. She is set to be joined by classmates and fellow All-NEC runners Hannah Dorian (Johnstown, PA/Westmont Hilltop) (20:06.8) and Morgan Kiebler (Export, PA/Kiski Area) (20:07.8). Dorian and Kiebler are both two-time All-Conference performers who placed eighth and ninth, respectively, at the league meet last October. Dorian was also named the 2014 NEC Rookie of the Year.

CCSU is home to the NEC’s premier harrier in senior Brittany Mendelson (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug). Mendelson is the two-time defending NEC individual champion and a three-time All-NEC honoree. The Southbury, CT native crossed the tape in 19:33.2 last year to become the sixth runner in conference annals to win back-to-back NEC titles. Juniors Madeline Mondo (Marlborough, CT/RHAM) and Dawn Hubbell (North Haven, CT/North Haven) also return for the Blue Devils. Mondo finished sixth (20:02.6) and Hubbell tenth (20:08.6) en-route to All-NEC accolades last year. Under the direction of Eric Blake, CCSU is in the market for its first title since the 1999 campaign.

Sacred Heart had its three-year NEC title reign snapped last fall with a third place finish, but the cupboard isn’t exactly bare for Christian Morrison and Pioneers, who will look to a pair of veterans to help return them to the top the ladder. Lindsey Lucas (Paramus, NJ/Paramus) (20:14.82) finished 12th and Tara Connelly (Holmdel, NJ/Saint John Vianney) (20:20.47) took 14th to nab All-Conference plaudits last season.

Along with the parity at the top of the conference, this year’s NEC Championship will feature one of the deepest fields of elite talent in recent memory with the top 12 finishers and 13 of the 14 All-Conference honorees from last season set to return. St. Francis Brooklyn senior Annais Cummiskey (Tenafly, NJ/Tenafly) (19:45.9), Robert Morris senior Maggie Prorok (Franklin, PA/Rocky Grove) (20:01.6), Fairleigh Dickinson senior Mae Thompson (Esher, England/Hinchely Wood School) (20:01.9) and Mount St. Mary’s sophomore Maddie Kole (Gettysburg, PA/Gerrysburg) (20:05.8) finished third, fourth, fifth and seventh, respectively, at the 2016 meet. Cummiskey now has two top-five finishes on her resume and was the 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year. Kole followed her as 2016 NEC Rookie of the Year after she posted the best time among all first-year runners. Prorok improved 17 spots from her sophomore to junior year, while Thompson jumped 14 spots. Bryant senior Melissa Lodge (Hopkinton, MA/Hopkinton) rounds out of the list of returning All-NEC runners following an 11th place finish last October.

The 2017 NEC Women’s Cross Country Championship will be hosted by Central Connecticut in New Britain, CT on October 28.

NEC-toids

A third NEC individual title for CCSU’s Brittany Mendelson (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug) this fall would tie her with Wagner’s Tara Maguire for the most in league history.

Sacred Heart’s Christian Morrison is a five-time NEC Coach of the Year, including three straight honors from 2013-15. He is the most decorated coach in women’s cross country annals.

Sacred Heart has posted top-three finishes at the NEC Championship in each of the last nine years.
 
About The Northeast Conference
Now entering its 37th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).  Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat, all @NECsports.