FIELD HOCKEY SELECTED FIRST IN MAAC PRESEASON POLL

EDISON, NJ –The Monmouth University field hockey team, winners of four-straight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Regular Season Titles, were selected by the league's head coaches to repeat as champions in 2018, MAAC officials announced Tuesday. Senior Georgia Garden Bachop and junior Josephine van der Hoop were tabbed as Co-Preseason Players of the Year and were joined by senior Kelly Hanna on the Preseason All-MAAC Team. The Hawks, who return 11 from last year's championship team, accumulated 33 points and three first-place votes in the poll to edge defending conference tournament champions, Fairfield, who also claimed a trio of first-place nods. Bryant was slotted third with 18 points, followed by Rider, a point behind. Sacred Heart earned 15 points to finish fifth, while LIU Brooklyn rounded-out the six-team league with 11 tallies. van der Hoop, the 2017 MAAC Offensive Player of the Year, had a breakout season in 2017. The Netherlands native finished the year with 31 points on the strength of 13 goals and five assists. The forward, who was named the league's offensive player of the week on three occasions, was tabbed to the All-MAAC First team and NFHCA All-Mid-Atlantic Second Team as season ago. Fresh off her first appearance on the All-MAAC team, Garden Bachop started all 19 games for the Blue and White last season. The All-ECAC Honorable Mention, had a career-best 10 goals, including the overtime winner over Indiana, and four helpers to finish the year with 24 points. Hanna will look to build upon a strong junior campaign which saw the forward compile 35 points on 14 goals and seven assists. Hanna made her first appearance on the All-MAAC first team last season had two-game winning goals and registered four multi-goal games including a pair of hat tricks in games against Bucknell and Siena. The Seaville, NJ native is the Hawks' leading returning scorer from last year's team. Monmouth will open its final season in the MAAC on Friday, August 24 when it travels to Saint Joseph's for a 4 p.m. tilt. The Hawks will open their newly renovated So Sweet A Cat Field on Sunday, August 26th at noon against Ohio.