Bowling Selected Seventh in DII/DIII Preseason Poll
RINDGE, N.H. (October 4, 2016) – The Franklin Pierce women's bowling team was selected seventh in the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) 2016-17 DII/DIII Preseason Poll it was announced Monday afternoon.
The Ravens were picked as the fifth best Division II program in the poll and earned 228 points. Fellow Northeast-10 school Adelphi was selected fifth in the poll and received 365 points. Last year, the Ravens were named seventh in the same poll.
Last season, the Ravens placed fourth in the inaugural East Coast Conference Championship and Jessica Davies (Cape Coral, Fla.) was named to the All-Tournament Team. Davies earned an All-ECC First Team honor while returners Colleen Kelly (Quincy, Mass.) and Nicolette Vucak (Garfield, N.J.) were chosen to the All-Second Team.
McKendree University of Lebanon, Ill., was unanimously voted the DII/DIII pre-season favorite. Coming in second is the University of Central Missouri. The Jennies made their 13th consecutive NCAA Bowling Championship appearance in 2016, tied for the longest streak with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater finishes out the top three with the return of the NTCA DII/DIII Player of the Year.
NCAA bowling competes as National Collegiate sport, in which all three divisions compete for one National Championship. Tulane University will host the 2017 NCAA Bowling Championship in Baton Rouge, La., from April 13-15. Eight schools will be selected at-large to participate in the championship.
NTCA voters rank the top 15 Division II and Division III teams on their ballot. Each position has a designated point value, ranging from 22 points for first place and one point for twenty-fifth place. To be ranked teams need to equal or surpass the minimum vote criteria, which is one vote for every eight ballots submitted. The actual ranking position is determined by using the adjusted point standings, which lists in priority order the total points a school has accumulated after the highest and lowest votes are dropped.
The specific point values follow: 1st place = 22 points, 2nd =19, 3rd =17, 4th =15, 5th =13, 6th =11, 7th =9, 8th =8, 9th =7, 10th =6, 11th =5, 12th =4, 13th =3, 14th =2, 15th =1
The Ravens open the season on Saturday, October 15 when they travel to Kutztown University for the KU Fall Bud Whitman Memorial.
For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce bowling apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).