Danes picked fourth in league coaches poll
Ualbany coming off 9-21 season but has three starters returning
Despite the uncertainty of the COVID -19 pandemic, the America East released its preseason women’s basketball coaches poll Tuesday, and the University at Albany was picked to finish fourth among the 10 conference teams.
All Ualbany athletic programs are currently on pause as the school tries to address the rising number of coronavirus cases in the Capital Region.
The Great Danes are coming off a 9-21 season but have three starters back and their deepest roster in the three-year tenure of coach Colleen Mullen.
For the third consecutive year, Maine was selected as No. 1, receiving six first-place votes. Stony Brook got the other four first-place votes and was picked to finish second, ahead of No. 3 Umass-lowell.
“Maine and Stony Brook are both experienced and talented as they return key contributors in their front and backcourts,” Mullen said in a new release from the school. “I anticipate many exciting weekend matchups with so much parity among the teams. We’re all focusing on doing whatever it takes to keep our players safe, healthy, and prepared to give them the opportunity to have a complete and successful conference season.”
All America East games this season will be two-game weekend series against the same opponent at the same site. Conference play begins Dec. 19.
Maine also became the first school in a decade to have three
preseason all-conference selections. Ualbany senior guard
Kyara Frames made the preseason team last season but was not among the five selected this season.