Wednesday, October 24, 2007

TUSCULUM WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PICKED FOURTH IN SAC COACHES' POLL

"Oliver, Neptune Named to Preseason All-SAC Team"

Ashli Oliver	Stephany Neptune

HICKORY, N.C. --- The Tusculum College women's basketball team garnered 42 total points and is picked to finish fourth in the South Atlantic Conference according to the 2007-08 SAC Coaches' Poll, announced Wednesday at the conferences' annual Basketball Media Day in Hickory, N.C.

The Pioneers return six letterwinners from last season's 16-13 squad, including Preseason All-SAC honorees Ashli Oliver and Stephany Neptune.

Newberry College, the two-time defending Food Lion SAC Tournament champions, is the favorite to win this year's regular-season title, receiving five first-place votes and 56 total points. Carson-Newman College is second with 53 points and two first-place votes, while Lenoir-Rhyne College received the final first-place nod and is third with 46 points. Tusculum is fourth, followed by Catawba College (40), Mars Hill College (22), Wingate University (16) and Lincoln Memorial University (13).

Oliver, a 5-10 guard from Kokomo, Ind., was Tusculum's top offensive threat from a year ago, was named to the Preseason All-SAC First Team. Oliver, who has already shattered the TC record book in three-point shooting, earned All-SAC Second Team recognition in 2006-07 as she poured in 13.5 points and grabbed 3.6 rebounds in her 29 starts. She was deadly accurate from three-point territory, shooting 41.2 percent from beyond the arc.

Neptune, a 5-9 forward from Wallkill, N.Y., was named to the Preseason All-SAC Second Team, even though she missed last year due to a knee injury. She had a solid rookie debut in 2005-06 where she averaged 10.7 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, while earning a spot on the SAC All-Freshman team.

Tusculum will host an inner-squad scrimmage on Nov. 3 beginning at 6 p.m. from Pioneer Arena. The Pioneers will also play a pair of exhibition games against NCAA Division I foes Tennessee Tech University (Nov. 5) and Furman University (Nov. 14).

The Pioneers open the regular season Nov. 16-17 when they host the Ferguson Enterprises Classic.

- SAC -

South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll
Rk.	Team (1^st Place Votes)	Pts.
1	Newberry (5)	56
2	Carson-Newman (2)	53
3	Lenoir-Rhyne (1)	46
4	TUSCULUM	42
5	Catawba	40
6	Mars Hill	22
7	Wingate	16
8	Lincoln Memorial	13

Preseason All-South Atlantic Conference Team

First Team

Ne'Keithia Howard, Catawba

Amber Holt, Lenoir-Rhyne

Denise Moore, Lenoir-Rhyne

Allison Schafer, Mars Hill

Tonique Frasier, Newberry

Ashli Oliver, Tusculum

Second Team

Shari Buford, Carson-Newman

Jami Safrit, Lenoir-Rhyne

Jessica Blanford, Mars Hill

Ashlee Wright, Newberry

Stephany Neptune, Tusculum

Anna Atkinson, Wingate