ROCK HILL, S.C. — The Belmont Abbey field hockey team was tabbed to finish fifth in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll released by the league office Thursday morning. The poll was voted on by the league's head coaches.
Five Crusaders —Cecilia Müller,
Grace Hines,
Isabella Hite,
Hailey Leatherman and
Sarah Schumacher — were named as Players to Watch by the league.
Newberry was selected as the preseason favorite with six first place votes with Lander and Wingate tying for second by receiving one first-place vote each. Converse was fourth followed by the Crusaders. Lincoln Memorial, Coker and first-year program Barton rounded out the poll.
Belmont Abbey opens the 2025 season with a pair of contests in Pennsylvania against IUP and Shippensburg on September 5 and 6.
The Crusaders begin the home schedule against Newberry at 5 p.m. September 9 at Alumni Field.
The 2025 SAC Championship will be held on November 3 or 4 with the quarterfinals followed by the semifinals and final on November and November 9 at the highest remaining seed.
Field Hockey
| Rank |
School (1st) |
Points |
| 1 |
Newberry (6) |
55 |
| T-2 |
Lander (1) |
47 |
| T-2 |
Wingate (1) |
47 |
| 4 |
Converse |
39 |
| 5 |
Belmont Abbey |
31 |
| 6 |
Lincoln Memorial |
24 |
| 7 |
Coker |
23 |
| 8 |
Barton |
14 |
Players to Watch
Cecilia Müller, Back, Sr.
Grace Hines, Midfielder, Sr.
Isabella Hite, Forward, Jr.
Hailey Leatherman, Forward, Sr.
Sarah Schumacher, Back, Jr.
