Oct. 29, 2003
WASHINGTON, D.C - The Old Dominion Lady Monarchs are the pre-season favorite to claim the 2004 CAA Championship, according to a poll of media members covering the CAA's annual basketball media day, held at the ESPN Zone in Washington, D.C., this morning.
The Lady Monarchs, who have won 12 consecutive CAA championships, received nine of 10 first-place votes and a total of 99 points in the poll. UNC Wilmington, which received the other first-place vote, was picked second. George Mason was tabbed third ahead of Delaware, James Madison, Virginia Commonwealth and Hofstra. Rounding out the poll, Drexel was selected eighth, followed by William & Mary and Towson.
Old Dominion returns three starters from last season's 21-11 squad that tied for first-place in the CAA regular season standings with Delaware at 15-3. Among the Lady Monarchs' returners are senior guard/forward Monique Coker (Bronx, N.Y.), who was selected to the pre-season All-CAA first team in the media poll, along with junior guard Shareese Grant (Virginia Beach, Va.) and sophomore center Corinna Turner (Miami, Fla.), both second-team pre-season All-CAA selections.
UNC Wilmington senior guard Cherie Lea (Blanch, N.C.) was selected as the CAA Pre-season Player of the Year in the poll. Lea, the only returning member of the 2002-2003 All-CAA first team, led the conference in three point field goal percentage a season ago at 42.9% and ranked eighth in scoring, averaging 13.5 points per game. The Seahawks are coming off a school-record 22-win season and return three starters from last year's squad.
Joining Coker and Lea on the pre-season first team are George Mason senior guard Jen Derevjanik (Staten Island, N.Y.), Delaware junior forward Tiara Malcom (Wilmington, Del.) and George Mason senior guard Vernessa Neamo (Forrestville, Md.).
Accompanying Turner and Grant on the pre-season second team are Virginia Commonwealth senior guard Cyndy Wilks (Bridgeton, N.J.), UNC Wilmington senior guard Jennifer Kapper (Waynesville, Ohio), Drexel sophomore guard Catherine Scanlon (Drexel Hill, Pa.) and UNC Wilmington senior guard Tracy Moran (Cincinnati, Ohio).
The 2003-2004 CAA women's basketball schedule tips off on Friday, Nov. 14, when Old Dominion takes on Sweet 16 participant Colorado in the first round of the WBCA Classic in Boulder, Colo.
PRESEASON MEDIA CAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL POLL
1. Old Dominion (9) 992. UNC Wilmington (1) 853. George Mason 794. Delaware 775. James Madison 526. Virginia Commonwealth 467. Hofstra 398. Drexel 339. William & Mary 2610. Towson 14
(First-Place votes in parentheses)
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Cherie Lea, UNC Wilmington
PRESEASON FIRST TEAM ALL-CAA (As voted by the media)
Cherie Lea, UNC Wilmington Sr. G 5-9 Blanch, N.C./Bartlet Yancey/UNCJen Derevjanik, George Mason Sr. G 5-10 Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter'sMonique Coker, Old Dominion Sr. G/F 6-1 Bronx, N.Y./Monsignor ScanlanTiara Malcom, Delaware Jr. F 6-1 Wilmington, Del./Caravel AcademyVernessa Neamo, George Mason Sr. G 5-10 Forrestville, Md./DuVal
PRESEASON SECOND TEAM ALL-CAA (As voted by the media)
Cyndy Wilks, Virginia Commonwealth Sr. G 5-11 Bridgeton, N.J./BridgetonShareese Grant, Old Dominion Jr. G 5-8 Virginia Beach, Va./Princess AnneCorrina Turner, Old Dominion So. C 6-6 Miami, Fla./Monsignor Edward PaceJennifer Kapper, UNC Wilmington Sr. G 5-7 Waynesville, Ohio/WaynesvilleTracy Morgan, UNC Wilmington Sr. G 6-0 Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak HillsCatherine Scanlon, Drexel So. G 5-11 Drexel Hill, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara