Skyline Conference Releases Spring-Sport Preseason Coaches Polls; Softball Picked Sixth
NEW YORK — Following their best league finish in team history and second-straight appearance in the Skyline Conference Championship, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) softball team was picked sixth as the Skyline Conference head coaches have cast their votes on the upcoming season and the league released the preseason coaches poll results on Thursday and Friday. The men's tennis team was tapped ninth while the baseball team was picked 10th.
Bears Softball assembled a 16-20 overall record and 8-8 league mark to earn fifth place in 2019. Despite their best team finish and returning three All-Conference selections and the Player of the Year, they enters this year's poll in sixth with newcomer Manhattanville College picked as preseason league favorite. The Valiants return to the league for the first time since 2007 and are four-time defending MAC Freedom champions and ranked No. 25 in the first poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
Defending league champions Farmingdale State (baseball) and Yeshiva (men's tennis) were picked to repeat as champions of the other two sports.
The softball team heads to Florida to open their 2020 campaign on Wednesday with an eight-game set at The Spring Games. Baseball opens their season on March 7 against Montclair State and men's tennis kicks off their campaign on March 14 against John Jay at the National Tennis Center.
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2020 Skyline Conference Softball Preseason Coaches Poll
Pl., Team (2019 record, 2019 conference record), Pts. (first-place votes)
1. Manhattanville (41-4, 13-1 MAC Freedom), 79 (8 first-place votes)
2. Farmingdale State (20-15, 14-2 Skyline), 73 (2)
3. St. Joseph's-Long Island (20-15, 13-3), 62
4. Mount Saint Mary (16-22-1, 12-4), 60
5. Mount Saint Vincent (15-22, 10-6), 45
6. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn (16-20, 8-8), 42
7. Sarah Lawrence (17-17, 7-9), 32
8. Old Westbury (9-18, 2-14), 27
9. Purchase (11-21, 6-10), 21
10. Yeshiva (3-26, 0-16), 9
2020 Skyline Conference Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll
Pl., Team (2019 Record, 2019 Conference Record), Pts. (first-place votes)
1. Farmingdale State (32-9, 17-1 Skyline), 96 (9 first-place votes)
2. USMMA (28-11, 14-4), 80
3. Manhattanville (24-18, 14-7 MAC Freedom), 78 (1)
4. Maritime (22-18, 11-7), 72
5. Old Westbury (23-16-1, 12-6), 69 (1)
6. St. Joseph's-Long Island (20-17, 9-9), 59
7. Mount Saint Vincent (17-20, 9-9), 48
8. Mount Saint Mary (13-17, 7-11), 42
9. Purchase (17-18, 7-11), 31
10. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn (15-21-1, 4-14), 19
11. Yeshiva (3-26, 0-18), 11
2020 Skyline Conference Men's Tennis Preseason Coaches Poll
Pl., Team (2019 record, 2019 conference record), Pts. (first-place votes)
1. Yeshiva (14-7, 7-0 Skyline), 61 (6 first-place votes)
2. Farmingdale State (12-3, 6-1), 56 (2)
3. Manhattanville (10-7, 6-1 MAC Freedom), 51 (1)
4t. Purchase (10-3, 5-2) and USMMA (6-5, 4-3), 40
6. Mount Saint Mary (9-4, 3-4), 31
7. St. Joseph's-Long Island (4-8, 1-6), 21
8. Sarah Lawrence (2-8, 2-5), 13
9. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn (1-11, 0-7), 11