Time flies when you're having fun.

It seems like only yesterday that it was March, and the familiar strains of Walk The Moon's "Shut Up and Dance" blared through the speakers of Island Federal Credit Union Arena after Jameel Warney and the men's basketball team brought home their first America East title. Has it really been five months since Courtney Murphy made NCAA history by scoring her 100^th goal and women's lacrosse finished with its highest national ranking at No. 6?

We're having a lot of fun at Stony Brook these days. We're also making history. Expect more barriers and glass ceilings to be broken in the weeks, months and years ahead.



Consider our women's soccer team. Entering tonight's game at New Hampshire, your Seawolves have won five consecutive games and currently sit atop the America East Conference standings with a 5-1 record. The five-game winning streak is the longest since Stony Brook moved to Division I in 1999.

Our football team is off to its best start since 2012 when Stony Brook was still a member of the Big South Conference. After joining the top football conference in FCS – the Colonial Athletic Association – in 2013, our team continues to build for the future. With wins over ranked opponents North Dakota and Richmond this year, the Seawolves are ranked No. 22 heading into a critical road contest on Saturday at Delaware. The win over then No. 2 Richmond marked the highest-ranked opponent that Stony Brook has ever beaten.

By the way, our women's soccer team was selected sixth in the preseason America East Coaches' Poll. The football team was picked to finish eighth in the CAA.

Every day is an opportunity to make history. Our student-athletes, coaches and staff firmly believe that statement, which is why we continue to experience incredible moments. All of our fall sports teams – cross country, football, men's soccer, women's soccer and volleyball – have opportunities to create history-making moments over the next month.

As for the weeks ahead, we will move forward with our plans to expand the north end zone of LaValle Stadium, build the Stony Brook Indoor Training Center and hire a women's swimming and diving coach to resurrect our program. We will help student-athletes rehabilitate their injuries with the help of our new water treadmill that is being installed as we speak. A new fueling station and student-athlete lounge are also in the works.

We are making history every day at Stony Brook. I encourage you to be a part of it. We need you to join Seawolves United or buy season tickets. History is best shared with good friends!

Don't Sleep On Seawolves Basketball

The America East released the preseason polls for men's and women's basketball today. As I have stated before, I am not a fan of preseason polls but I appreciate the fact that they provide fans with some type of barometer heading into the season. It is an exciting time of year with basketball season just around the corner and, with so many strong teams in the America East, it promises to be another electrifying season.

Yesterday, the league announced its All-Conference teams for the men and women. Not a single Seawolf was listed among the 12 student-athletes chosen for the men's and women's teams. It isn't a slight because we truly have some dynamic players in our league, but it is an opportunity for our student-athletes to prove themselves.



I understand that those who vote in any poll only have access to the information available to them, including which players have graduated or moved on. On the inside, I have the benefit of seeing how our teams prepare for the upcoming season as well as the investments that we have made to provide greater resources for our student-athletes. I am also able to witness the intensity of offseason workouts and practices, the impact our new coaches are having as well as the skills of players who simply haven't had an opportunity to showcase their talents.

For what it's worth, the women were picked to finish fifth. The men were selected seventh. All that matters is which teams are cutting down the nets in March.

Kylie Ohlmiller Making Noise with US National Team



Junior Kylie Ohlmiller has quickly made a name for herself as one of the top players in Division I women's lacrosse. She continues to impress at the national level and was recently named by US Lacrosse as one of 25 players to the training team for the 2017 Federation of International Lacrosse Women's World Cup, which will be held July 13-22 in Guildford, England.

Kylie has become a regular on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays for her acrobatic behind-the-back goals, most recently during the United States' exhibition win over North Carolina two weeks ago.


Together We Transform!
 
Warm regards,
 

Shawn