CC Preseason Poll | 2017-18 Guide
LANCASTER, Pa. – The Ursinus College women's basketball was picked to finish sixth in the Centennial Conference preseason poll.
The Bears received 110 points, just two shy of fifth-place Dickinson. Three-time defending champion Muhlenberg sits atop the poll. The Mules received nine first-place votes, while Haverford came in second, garnering eight first-place ballots. Gettysburg rounded out the top three, grabbing five first-place votes, and Johns Hopkins was fourth.
Ursinus is looking to take the next step in the 2017-2018 season, as a group of young players now has a solid foundation of experience under its belt after narrowly missing the CC playoffs each of the last two seasons.
Coach Margaret White has four starters back from last season, including leading scorer and second team All-CC selection Lydia Konstanzer. The sophomore is coming off a season in which she averaged 14.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. She shot 46.9 percent from the field, which placed her fourth in the conference, while her 358 points put her in fifth and her rebounding total positioned her in seventh. The reigning CC and D3hoops.com Mid-Atlantic Region Rookie of the Year – the first in school history to earn either accolade – will look to power the Bears to their first playoff berth since the 2011-2012 season.
While Konstanzer leads the offense, it will be her classmate Toni Suler in the middle of the defense. The sophomore compiled 95 blocks on the season – good enough for a 3.8 per-game average. Both totals placed her atop the CC leaderboards and among the top 10 in the nation (T-8th in total blocks, 9th in blocks per game). Suler started every game a year ago, averaging 5.2 points per game to go with her impressive defensive numbers, which included the only triple-double in school history when she compiled 13 points, 14 rebounds and a conference-record 11 blocks in a win against Swarthmore (2/7).
Rachel Guy is one of two seniors on the roster, but returns as a captain for the second season in a row. She has proven to be an all-around asset for the Bears on the floor, shooting a nifty 73.5 percent from the charity stripe and averaging 8.0 points per game last year. Guy also got it done in other areas, contributing 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game. Her veteran leadership will shine on a young team, as it did last year.
Rounding out the group of returning starters is junior Kaci McNeave, who will serve as the team's primary point guard again. Her name was written in ink on the lineup card, as she started every game last season, and the offense will run through her. McNeave averaged 5.4 points per game but proved to be a threat from beyond the arc when she got the chance, hitting on just under 30 percent from that range. She showed that her shooting ability can take over any game, especially last season against Haverford, where she shot 4-for-4 from 3-point range en route to a season-high 18 points, and McNeave also hit the game-winning runner at the buzzer at Haverford in last year's CC opener.
Junior Brielle Clarke will fill the final spot. She has had some starting experience after doing so seven times last season while playing in every contest. Clarke totaled 4.6 points and 2.6 rebounds per game when she was on the court.
Sophomore Marisa DiLeo is one of the leaders on the bench and will likely see plenty of minutes among the subs. DiLeo played in 24 games last year, averaging 3.2 points per game.
White will look to rotate in some new faces as well, as the Bears welcome seven freshmen to the roster, including Aliyah Stephens. The rookie is the all-time leading scorer in Paul VI High School history and should stand out as a dynamic player on both ends of the court. The duo of Marisa Morano and Maya Kornfield will garner time at the point guard position while Alexis Hnatkowsky gives the team a dangerous outside shooter off the bench.
Although they are young, the Bears' defensive prowess will look to catch teams off guard, while the depth of the roster will give them an advantage throughout the season.
Last year, Ursinus was second in the conference in holding opponents to a 25.7-percent clip in 3-point field goal percentage. Preventing opponents from getting good looks reflected heavily on the final score, as teams scored an average of just 52.1 points per game against the Bears – again good for second in the conference. The offense is looking to take the necessary jump to improve the win-loss ratio, as the inside-out game can catch defenses out of position.
The team's depth will come in handy as the season progresses, as senior Liana Weishaar, junior Paulina Boyer and sophomore Francesca Bogiatzis will join freshmen Elizabeth Burke, Katherine Eckhoff and Sydney Fail to provide important minutes.
The Bears open up the season on the road against Alvernia (11/15) before heading to the Rinso-Marquette Tournament hosted by Lebanon Valley. Their home opener is against Haverford on November 21.