Oct. 24, 2007
Following a vote taken by the Patriot League's eight head coaches and sports information directors, Navy was selected first in the 2007-08 Patriot League Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving preseason polls. The Midshipmen received 14 first-place votes and 98 overall points on the men's side, while the women garnered 12 first place votes and 96 overall points. Coaches and sports information directors cannot vote for their own team.
The Army Black Knights received the other two first-place votes in the men's poll, and combined that with 85 overall points to earn the No. 2 position in the poll. Bucknell wasn't far behind, finishing with 74 overall points. Rounding out the rest of the men's preseason poll were Colgate (51 points), Lehigh (48 points), American (40 points), Lafayette (36 points), and Holy Cross (16 points).
On the women's side, the remaining four first-place votes went to the Colgate Raiders, who also finished with 85 points to secure the second-place position in the poll. Similar to the men's poll, Bucknell finished third with 77 points. Rounding out the rest of the women's preseason poll were Army (56 points), Lafayette (46 points), Lehigh (38 points), American (36 points), and Holy Cross (14 points).
The Navy men are coming off their fourth consecutive Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championship, and will look to become the first team to win five in a row since Army won seven straight titles from 1992-98. The Mids are once again led by veteran Head Coach Bill Roberts, as well as Joe Suriano, the 2007 Patriot League Diving Coach of the Year. The Navy men welcome back 25 letterwinners from a season ago, including five 2007 First-Team All-Patriot League performers.
Army's men's team finished the 2007 Patriot League Championship meet in second place for the third consecutive year, and will rely on the return of 20 letterwinners to try and get over the hump. 2007 Patriot League Coach of the Year Mickey Wender will welcome back two First-Team All-Patriot League performers from a year ago. Bucknell finished the 2007 season in third place, which is where they will begin the 2007-08 season as well. 2007 Patriot League Championship Rookie of the Meet Luke Trafton returns for the Bison, along with 21 other letterwinners from last year.
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Colgate rounds out the top half of the men's preseason poll, and will look to improve on last season's fifth-place championship meet finish. The Raiders return only seven letterwinners from last year's team, but will add ten newcomers into the fold this winter. The Lehigh Mountain Hawks finished fourth in the League to end the 2007 season, and will look to continue to build success under second year Head Coach Rob Herb. American, Lafayette and Holy Cross will aim to improve on last season's results, as the Eagles will have the services of ten newcomers this winter, while the Leopards and Crusaders welcome back 18 and 23 student-athletes, respectively.
The 2007-08 version of the Navy women's swimming and diving team are picked to once again set the standard in the pool for the Patriot League. The Mids won their first Patriot League Championship since 2002 last season, and will be the favorite to pull off the repeat feat. 2007 Patriot League Coach of the Year John Morrison returns a seasoned group of swimmers and divers, including Kelly Zahalka, Katie Griffin, and Mallory Dietrich, who earned Patriot League Championship Swimmer of the Meet, Diver of the Meet and Rookie of the Meet, respectively.
Colgate finished third at last season's championship meet under Head Coach Stephen Jungbluth, but will start the season picked to finish second in '07-08. The Raiders will have the benefit of returning six All-Patriot League honorees from a season ago.
The Bucknell women's team returns 24 letterwinners from last season, which saw them finish runner-up to Navy at the championship meet. Of those 24 returnees from the '07-08 Bison, six earned Second-Team All-Patriot League honors as a result of their performance at the League championship meet.
Army returns Lindsay Adao to the pool for the '07-08 season following her Second-Team All-Patriot League performance a year ago. Lafayette returns 18 and welcomes 11 student-athletes to this year's team under veteran Head Coach Jim Dailey. Lehigh and American each welcome back 12 student-athletes from last season, while Holy Cross will look to improve with the veteran leadership of 19 returnees.
The 2007-08 Patriot League Championship meet will occur Thurs. - Sat., Feb. 21 - 23 at Lejeune Hall on the campus of the United States Naval Academy, located in Annapolis, Md. For more information on the 2007-08 Patriot League Swimming and Diving season, please visit the Swimming and Diving page on the Patriot League website.
Men's Preseason Poll
1) Navy 98 (14)
2) Army 85 (2)
3) Bucknell 74
4) Colgate 51
5) Lehigh 48
6) American 40
7) Lafayette 36
8) Holy Cross 16
Women's Preseason Poll
1) Navy 96 (12)
2) Colgate 85 (4)
3) Bucknell 77
4) Army 56
5) Lafayette 46
6) Lehigh 38
7) American 36
8) Holy Cross 14
