November 2017 My Fellow Pioneers, First and foremost, please join me in congratulating our women’s cross country team on winning the 2017 NEC Championship! Our Pioneers reclaimed the conference crown for the first time since completing their three-peat in 2015. Four student-athletes placed in the top five and senior Kate Svensen won the individual title. Seniors Tara Connelly and Lindsey Lucas, sophomore Jody DiCicco, and graduate Hannah Chamblin also earned all-conference honors. Our men’s cross-country team was the runner-up at the NEC Championships for the third consecutive season. Joined by sophomore Gilmar Barrios and fellow senior Andrew Handfield as All-NEC selections, Trevor Guerrera became the first male in program history to earn all-conference honors in each of his four seasons. Both of our programs return to action tomorrow at the NCAA Division I Northeast Regional Cross Country Championships at the University of Buffalo. Overall, our men’s and women’s cross country and track and field programs have combined for fifteen NEC championships, including eleven titles in the last five years. Our programs continue to be the conference standards and I could not be more proud our success under the leadership of head coach Christian Morrison. Our women’s track and field team is seeking their fifth indoor and fourth outdoor conference titles in a row this year! The college basketball season is here! Our men’s basketball team will tip-off their season at 6:00 PM tomorrow night at home vs. Holy Cross. Head coach Anthony Latina enters his fifth season on the Pioneers bench and will lead us into conference play on Friday, December 29, at St. Francis Brooklyn. Senior Joseph Lopez was selected to the All-NEC Preseason Team and our squad was picked to finish fifth in the NEC Coaches Preseason Poll. Fifth-year head coach Jessica Mannetti and our women’s basketball team will open their season on the road vs. Monmouth tomorrow and tip-off their conference schedule at home vs. Saint Francis U on December 29. The reigning NEC Most Improved Player of the Year Katherine Haines was named to the All-NEC Preseason Team and our program was projected to place fourth in the NEC Coaches Preseason Poll. Season tickets for men’s and women’s basketball, as well as men’s ice hockey at Webster Bank Arena, are available for purchase online at sacredheartpioneers.com/tickets or by phone at 203-396-TIXX. I am also excited to announce the launch of Pioneer Pregame Receptions at select weekday men's and women's basketball home games this season (click here for schedule). The pregame receptions are available for purchase to all season ticket holders, faculty, and staff for $30 (nine games). Packages are also available for men's games only ($20 for five games) and women's games only ($15 for four games). I know that I can count on our loyal alumni, parents, and friends to support our programs this season on their roads to the postseason! In what promises to be an excellent addition to our external affairs staff, it is my pleasure to introduce Ajah Hawley-Alexander as our new Assistant Director of Athletic Communications! Ajah brings a tremendous amount of experience in both professional and collegiate sports to SHU Athletics and most recently served as the Sports Information Assistant at Hartwick College. At Sacred Heart, she will serve as the primary media contact for women’s basketball, women’s rowing, women’s rugby, softball, and wrestling. Please join me in welcoming Ajah to our SHU Athletics family! On behalf of all our student-athletes, coaches, and administrators here at Sacred Heart University, we would like to wish you and your family a happy and healthy Thanksgiving! As always, thank you for your continued support of SHU Athletics and Go Pioneers! |