Patriot League announces preseason poll

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Patriot League announced its preseason poll and awards for women’s basketball on Wednesday. The Mountain Hawks were picked to finish fifth, receiving 46 votes. Defending regular season champion Bucknell received the most votes, with 92 overall, including 10 of 16 first place votes. The Bison’s Hope Foster, the reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, was picked as the preseason Player of the Year.

Army was selected second in the poll, receiving 83 total votes and four first place votes. The Black Knights finished last year with the best overall record (24-6) and were just one game behind Bucknell for first place in the league. Army was upset by Lehigh, 57-53, in the first round of the Patriot League tournament last year. Senior guard Cara Enright was named to the preseason All-League team. The 2005-06 Patriot League Player of the Year averaged 14.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game last year.

Last year’s Patriot League tournament champion Holy Cross was picked to finish third, receiving 77 total votes and one first place vote. The Crusaders finished last year with a 15-18 (7-7) record and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Duke. Holy Cross returns three starters from last year’s team, including Patriot League Rookie of the Year Bethany O’Dell. The sophomore guard was also selected to the preseason All-League team, after averaging 12.4 points and 2.7 three-point field goals per game last year.

American was selected to finish fourth, receiving 62 votes and one first place vote. The Eagles Liz Hayes was named to the preseason All-League team, after a strong 2006-07 season in which she averaged 14.4 points and 2.9 assists per game.

Following American was Lehigh with 46 votes. The Mountain Hawks finished last season with an 11-19 (5-9) record and upset Army in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament before falling to eventual champion Holy Cross in overtime. The Brown and White return three starters from last year’s team and two more from the 2005-06 team. Sophomores Alex Ross and Kristen Dalton received postseason awards last season, as they were named to the Patriot League All-Rookie team.

Rounding out the poll was Lafayette and Navy tied for sixth with 33 votes each and Colgate in eighth with 22 votes.

Lehigh starts the 2007-08 season on November 10 at Stabler Arena when it hosts the St. Joseph’s Hawks at 8 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 610-7LU-GAME, by visiting the Lehigh Athletics Ticket Office or by logging onto Lehighsports.com at anytime.

2007-08 Patriot League Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll

	Team (First Place Votes)	Points
1.	Bucknell (10)	92
2.	Army (4)	83
3.	Holy Cross (1)	77
4.	American (1)	62
5.	LEHIGH	46
6.	Lafayette	33
6.	Navy	33
8.	Colgate	22

Preseason All-League Team

Hope Foster, Sr., C/F, Bucknell (Player of the Year)

Liz Hayes, Sr., G, American

Cara Enright, Sr., G, Army

Amanda Brown, Jr., G, Bucknell

Bethany O’Dell, So., G, Holy Cross

Related Links

Patriot League Preseason Poll and Awards

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Monmouth on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 62, to, 72

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at #2 Holy Cross on March 15, 2026 , Loss , 70, to, 77

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus #1 Navy on March 12, 2026 , Win , 81, to, 76 , OT

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus #5 Loyola University Maryland on March 9, 2026 , Win , 68, to, 54

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus American on March 4, 2026 , Loss , 60, to, 62

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Bucknell on February 28, 2026 , Loss , 45, to, 57

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Boston University on February 21, 2026 , Win , 76, to, 61

Lehigh University Athletics

Related News

Related Videos