Boston College Athletics
Women's Basketball Tabbed Fifth In BIG EAST Preseason Poll
October 30, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Oct. 30, 2003
NEWARK, N.J. - The Boston College women's basketball team finished fifth in the 2003-04 BIG EAST Women's Basketball Preseason Poll, while senior Jessalyn Deveny (Westford, Mass.) was voted to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team, the conference office announced today.
The Eagles, who made the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in five years, and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time, received 120 votes in the poll, which is determined by a vote of the league's coaches. Boston College finished tied for third-place in the BIG EAST last year.
Defending national champion Connecticut was chosen to win the regular season title receiving all 13 possible first-place votes to finish with 169 points in the poll.
Rutgers earned the remaining first-place vote and 156 points for a second-place finish in the poll. Rounding out the top four were Notre Dame (139 points) and Virginia Tech (124 points).
Deveny, the Eagles' leading scorer last season, was selected to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team. Deveny averaged 16.9 points and 5.9 rebounds last season. Joining her on the preseason second team are Syracuse's Julie McBride, Villanova's Courtney Mix and Connecticut's Ann Strother and Barbara Turner.
The Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team consists of Notre Dame's Jacqueline Batteast, Gerogetown's Rebekkah Brunson, Miami's Tamara Jones, Virginia Tech's Ieva Kublina, Rutgers' Cappie Pondexter and Connecticut's Diana Taurasi. Bruson, Kublina, Pondexter, and Taurasi were all unanimous selections. Taurasi also was named the BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year while Notre Dame forward Crystal Erwin and UConn center Liz Sherwood share the Preseason Freshman of the Year honor.
Boston College's season gets underway Saturday, November 22 when it plays host to Oakland at 2 p.m.
