Women's Hockey | 9/20/2016 8:00:00 AM

ROCHESTER, NY — The RIT women's hockey team, who is set to begin its fifth season of competition in Division I, has been selected to finish fifth in the College Hockey America (CHA) preseason coaches poll, announced by the league on Monday, Sept. 19.

The Tigers finished the 2015-16 season with eight wins, advancing to the first round of the CHA Tournament. This season, they will be looking for their third CHA Championship in the past four seasons.

Syracuse is the number one choice in this season's preseason poll, receiving five first place votes for a total of 25 points. Mercyhurst, last year's CHA Tournament Champion, tallied one first place vote and picked up 20 points. Robert Morris was chosen to finish third with 16 points. Penn State is picked to finish fourth with 15 points, while RIT and Lindenwood have been picked for a tie for fifth, with seven points apiece.

"With a relatively young team it's not surprising to have the coaches pick us to finish there," said Bruce B. Bates Women's Hockey Head Coach Scott McDonald, now entering his 11th year at RIT. "But as we've proven before, it's not where you're picked at the beginning of the year that counts. It's how you compete throughout the season that matters most."

The 2017 CHA playoffs will have a new look this season. The first round, including the three through six seeds, will play one game, as opposed to the opening round best-of-three series in the past. The top two teams will still receive a first round bye. The tournament will include five games played in three days on the weekend of March 2-4, and all games will be played at HARBORCENTER in downtown Buffalo, N.Y.

RIT will open the 2016-17 season with an exhibition contest against Guelph, taking place on Sept. 23 at the Gene Polisseni Center at 6:05 p.m. The Tigers will then hit the road for a weekend series at Minnesota State on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, before returning home for four straight home games, against Providence and Union. The Tigers play 10 of their first 15 games in at home, including "Throwback Thursday night" at Ritter Arena on Oct. 27 against Penn State. They will face each CHA opponent four times (two home and two away) during the 2016-17 season, including the final 12 games of the season.

2016-17 College Hockey America Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Syracuse (5 first place votes) - 25 points
2. Mercyhurst (1) - 20
3. Robert Morris - 16
4. Penn State - 15
T5. RIT - 7
T5. Lindenwood - 7