Ladyjacks Third in Preseason NTCA Poll
10/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Bowling
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Stephen F. Austin has been picked third in the 2015-16 preseason National Tenpin Coaches Association poll, announced today by the league office.
The Ladyjacks garnered 844 total points, including a pair of first place votes, finishing 97 points back of first-place Nebraska and 21 points shy of second-place Arkansas State. SFA was joined by Fairleigh Dickinson and Vanderbilt in the top-five with Sam Houston State, Wisconsin-Whitewater, Central Missouri, McKendree and North Carolina A&T rounding out the preseason top-10.
SFA is coming off the most successful season in program history in 2014-15, earning its first NCAA tournament berth and making the most of the opportunity, garnering national runner-up honors to top-ranked Nebraska. Led once again by NTCA Coach of the Year Amber Lemke, the Ladyjacks return their entire team from last year’s NCAA run, including All-Americans Stephanie Schwartz and Paige Kraushaar.
The Southland Bowling League continues to establish itself as one of the top leagues in the country as seven of the SBL’s eight teams are among the preseason top-25. Arkansas State, SFA, Vanderbilt and Sam Houston State check in among the top-10 with Valparaiso (No. 15), Tulane (No. 19) and Monmouth (No. 23) also represented in the poll.
SFA’s 2015-16 season gets underway in a little over two weeks, heading to Kenner, Louisiana, for the 2015 Allstate Sugar Bowling Collegiate Invitational October 16-18. It is the first of nine regular season tournaments, leading into the 2016 Southland Bowling League Championship in Kenner, Louisiana, March 26-27.
2015-16 NTCA Preseason Poll
| No. | Team | Pts. (1st) |
| 1. | Nebraska | 941 (17) |
| 2. | Arkansas State | 865 (5) |
| 3. | Stephen F. Austin | 844 (2) |
| 4. | Fairleigh Dickinson | 827 (1) |
| 5. | Vanderbilt | 757 |
| 6. | Sam Houston State | 719 |
| 7. | Wisconsin-Whitewater | 655 |
| 8. | Central Missouri | 587 |
| 9. | McKendree | 577 |
| 10. | North Carolina A&T | 543 |
| 11. | Maryland-Eastern Shore | 539 |
| 12. | St. Francis (Pa.) | 417 |
| 13. | Sacred Heart | 391 |
| 14. | LIU-Brooklyn | 363 |
| 15. | Valparaiso | 258 |
| 16. | Saint Francis (N.Y.) | 247 |
| 17. | Delaware State | 201 |
| 18. | Kutztown | 182 |
| 19. | Tulane | 151 |
| 20. | Norfolk State | 136 |
| 21. | Prairie View A&M | 90 |
| 22. | Adelphi | 78 |
| 23. | Monmouth | 69 |
| 24. | Bowie State | 36 |
| 25. | Alabama State | 26 |
-SFA-
