Griffin teams are back on the Hill and ready to compete for their respective titles in this 2015-2016 season. Few feelings that come close to suiting up with your teammates in warm weather and getting after it almost every day of the week. Most every fall sport, both men and women, has been ranked high in the PSAC preseason polls.
The two highest sports ranked in the preseason are men’s soccer at third and women’s volleyball at fourth. Both of these teams finished with a very respectable record in the PSAC and were in contention for the conference title.
Volleyball is a strong favorite for competing for the PSAC championship along with the likes of California University of Pennsylvania, Gannon, and Clarion who is ranked number one in the polls. Men’s soccer also has a very good shot at gunning for the title behind junior Joe Smith who led the team last season with 14 points and Rory McKinnon who lead the team offensively with 6 goals.
The Griffins football squad has been picked sixth in the PSAC preseason poll, however they have much higher hopes than ending up in that position by the end of the season. Coach Collins and his coaching staff changed the team mentality over the past couple years to make the Griffins contenders in the PSAC.
Despite their record of 3-8 last year, the incoming freshman class and senior leadership have a great possibility of improving the record for these men in the 2015-16 season. The first game for the Griffins was September 5th against Shippensburg University. Their first home game was against Lock Haven on September 12th, which was also their PSAC opener.
Women’s field hockey is also another sport that is looking to compete in the PSAC as they were ranked 11th in the preseason poll. Despite their losing record last year they were able to pull off two impressive wins in their two preseason scrimmages here up on the hill. The team looks excited to keep competing all season, lead by a strong junior class and new freshmen.
Ten of the lady Griffin field hockey players were named to the National Academic Team at the end of the 2014 season. These names include Lillian Bear, Alisha Bell, Madeline Dagenhart, Carissa Davenport-Smith, Brittany Davis, Nicole DeLuca, Taylor Dohar, Jade Eberhardt, Jaydyn Morrison and Mackenzie Nalepa. These women, along with the rest of the team were key contributors to all of the Griffin athletic teams earning the highest GPA in the PSAC.
The women’s soccer team was ranked 10th in the PSAC preseason poll and returned three of their top scorers from last season, which includes the likes of Megan Warman, who recorded 4 goals and 3 assists, Breanna Novosel, who went for another 4 goals and 2 assists, and Alex McIntosh who added 3 goals and 2 assists.
These front liners can very well go head to head with any other team in the PSAC. They are lead by a strong senior class of 6 and will be a force to be reckoned with in Pennsylvania.