In the coaches poll, the Redhawks received 33 points and one first place vote and in the media poll, received 48 points. Both polls predicted SU finishing in the top half of league standings.
The reigning WAC tournament champions, New Mexico State, were picked to finish first, receiving a majority of the first place votes in both polls. The Aggies’ Brianna Freeman was chosen Preseason Player of the Year by both groups.
NM State and CSU Bakersfield were chosen to finish first and second in both polls while Seattle U and UTRGV swapped between third and fourth place in the only discrepancy between the two polls. Grand Canyon (5th), Utah Valley (6th), UMKC (7th), and Chicago State (8th) rounded out the bottom half of the polls.
In the coaches poll, Taelor Ross (Vancouver, Wash.) represented SU on the preseason First Team while Crystal Allen (Fort Worth, Texas) was named to the Second Team. In the media poll, Ross was named to the Second Team.
Ross led Seattle U with 12.3 ppg and 7.4 rpg in 2014-15, setting new career highs in scoring (21 points – Dec. 4, 2014 vs. UW) and rebounding (17 rebounds – Mar. 13, 2015 vs. NM State) during her junior campaign. Leading the WAC in blocked shots last year, she was named Second Team All-Conference and to the WAC Tournament team.
Allen was named to the WAC All-Newcomer Team as a freshman in 2014-15, shooting 82.2 percent from the free-throw line, good for second in the conference through the regular season. A career game with 21 points and eight rebounds in a win over Utah Valley, Allen earned WAC Player of the Week honors for the week of Jan. 5-11, 2015.
Seattle U will open the regular season on Friday, Nov. 13 at 4:30 p.m. vs. Montana State in a doubleheader with the men’s basketball team at KeyArena (7:30 p.m. vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff). The Redhawks look forward to a season during which they will open a newly renovated Connolly Center and Coach Bonvicini is slated to pick up her 700th career win.