Women’s Soccer Picked Third in Northeast-10 Preseason Poll
SOUTH EASTON, MA. – The Merrimack women’s soccer
team has been picked to finish third in the Northeast-10 Conference
preseason poll.
Led by longtime head coach Gabe Mejail and tri-captains
Nikki Abruzzese (Morris Plains, NJ), Jennifer Conway
(Douglas, MA) and Caitlin Hall (Westminster,
MA), the Warriors will look to improve off of last
season’s fourth-place finish that saw them selected to their
eighth career NCAA appearance.
| Northeast-10 Women's Soccer Poll |
| first place votes in parenthesis |
| 1- Franklin Pierce (8) 218 |
| 2- Saint Rose (7) 217 |
| 3- Merrimack 190 |
| 4- UMass Lowell 158 |
| 5- Saint Anselm 141 |
| 6- New Haven 128 |
| 7- Southern Connecticut 125 |
| 8- Stonehill 118 |
| 9- Le Moyne 111 |
| 10- Southern N.H. 95 |
| 11- Assumption 94 |
| 12- Bentley 66 |
| 13- Saint Michael's 65 |
|
14- American International 46 |
| 15- Pace 28 |
Gabrielle Gramprey (Brockton, MA), who led the
Warriors in 2007 in goals (10), assists (9) and points (29),
returns for her junior season, while Shannon Rowan (Fair
Haven, NJ), who received a medical redshirt, returns to
anchor the net. Playing all but 112 minutes in 2007, Rowan was
12-5-4 with a 1.07 goals-against and eight shutouts.
Merrimack defeated UMass Lowell 1-0 in the first round of the NCAA
Tournament before falling to top-seed Saint Rose 3-1 in the second
round.
Franklin Pierce, who won the Northeast Region in 2007, edged Saint
Rose for the top spot in the poll. The Ravens earned eight
first-place votes and 218 overall to seven and 217 for the Golden
Knights. Merrimack was third with 190 points, while UMass Lowell,
Saint Anselm, and New Haven round out the top six.
The Warriors open their season Friday August 29th against Molloy
College at 2 p.m. in the Doubletree Classic in Colchester, VT.
After playing the first six games on the road, the Warriors return
to North Andover on September 17th when they host Bentley at 6:30
p.m.
