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                                                                             Skyhawks Picked to Win NE10 Title This Fall

MANSFIELD, Mass. – Stonehill was picked by the Northeast-10 Conference's Field Hockey coaches to win this year's title the league announced today. The Skyhawks received 156 points to edge defending NE10 regular season champion Saint Anselm in this year's voting. Both teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament a year ago and will be looking to do so once again this fall.

For complete results of the poll, please see below.

Stonehill and Saint Anselm each received five first place votes, with defending NE10 champion LIU Post picking up three. The Pioneers were slotted third in this year's coaches' poll earning 149 points with Merrimack (128 total points) picked to finish fourth. The Warriors also received a first place vote. Pace earned 123 points in the coaches' voting to finish fifth in this year's poll.

Rounding out the top ten in this year's NE10 Coaches' Poll are: Assumption, Southern New Hampshire, Adelphi, Bentley, and Franklin Pierce.

Stonehill finished 13-7 a year ago, including 10-2 in NE10 play. The Skyhawks return the defending national player of the year in high-scoring forward Kacie Smith. Smith is also the two-time defending conference player of the year. Last year, she set a new NCAA Division II record with her 41 goals, leading all three levels of NCAA field hockey in goals and points. Smith finished the year with an NE10-record 99 points, just three shy of the allt-time NCAA Division II mark, also adding a Stonehill record 17 assists to lead Division II in that category as well. She also led the NE10 with nine gamewinning goals – one shy of the program's single-season record.

The 2018 field hockey season officially kicks off on Friday, August 31 as both Franklin Pierce and Saint Anselm will take the field in non-league action. The First Round of the NE10 Championship are scheduled for Tuesday, November 13, while the Semifinals are slated for Friday, November 16. The NE10 Championship Final will take place on Sunday, Nov. 18.

ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 15 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.

Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.