Skyline Conference Releases Basketball Preseason Polls

Men's Skyline Release
Women's Skyline Release

Written by Andrew Capitelli (SJC-LI Sports Information)

New York, NY| The St. Joseph's College (L.I.) men's and women's basketball teams were selected to finish fifth and seventh, respectively, according to the Skyline Conference's preseason coaches polls released on the conference's website on Wednesday morning.

The men earned 60 points, eight fewer than fourth-place SUNY Old Westbury and one more than sixth-place Mount St. Mary College, which, according to the conference's coaches, would see them qualify for the six-team playoff in February.

In 2016-17, the men produced a 10-6 Skyline record (10-16 overall) and qualified for the conference championship tournament as the sixth seed. Despite winning four of their final five regular-season games, the Golden Eagles were eliminated in the first round by third-seeded Old Westbury.

Collecting 30 total points, the women were forecasted to finish one spot outside of a playoff position in 2017-18. In seventh, SJC was awarded 10 fewer points than sister-school St. Joseph's (Brkln) and four more than SUNY Purchase in the eighth spot.

Head coach Kelley Watts steered her team to a 5-13 conference mark in her second season at the helm a year ago but missed out on a playoff berth in the wake of an eighth-place finish. The Golden Eagles finished the season with a 6-19 overall record.

Both teams kick off their 2017-18 seasons on November 15 on the road. The men travel to Purchase, NY to face Manhattanville College at 7:00 pm (live video/stats) and women will be in Brooklyn, NY to take on Medgar Evers College, also at 7:00 pm (live video).

2017-18 Skyline Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Farmingdale State (10 first-place votes) - 100 pts.
2. Purchase (1) - 88
3. Yeshiva - 71
4. Old Westbury - 68
5. St. Joseph's-Long Island - 60
6. Mount Saint Mary - 59
7. Maritime - 58
8. Mount Saint Vincent - 33
9. Sarah Lawrence - 31
10. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn - 21
11. U.S. Merchant Marine Academy - 16

2017-18 Skyline Conference Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Old Westbury (5 first-place votes) - 72 pts.
2. Mount Saint Mary (1) - 68
3. Farmingdale State (2) - 67
4. Mount Saint Vincent (1) - 58
5. U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (1) - 56
6. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn - 40
7. St. Joseph's-Long Island - 30
8. Purchase - 26
9. Yeshiva - 21
10. Sarah Lawrence - 12