Central Islip, N.Y. - Mercyhurst women's bowling prepares for the new season to begins shortly. Before that, the East Coast Conference announced their preseason poll with the Lakers checking in number one after winning their first ever conference title a season ago. Their list of accolades did not end there as Samantha Strebel was named the preseason Bowler of the Year for the ECC.

Mercyhurst comes off their best season in program history in 2022-23. They finished third place or better in eight of their events a season ago, coming in first in five of them. The team really found their groove down the stretch of the season as they won three straight tournament in the month of February, helping propel them to their first ECC Championship in March.

The team returns the majority of their roster from a season ago with seven bowlers from the 2022-23 team once again bowling for the Lakers among that group is 2022-23 All-ECC First Team member and preseason Bowler of the Year Samantha Strebel. The native of Harrisville, Ut. was one of only two bowlers on the team to average over 19 pins per frame in both formats with 509 strikes to her line, helping her collect All-ECC and NTCA honors.

Mercyhurst begins their season on homecoming weekend on Saturday, October 7th, as they are set to host the Mercyhurst Invitational at Rolling Meadows Lanes in Erie, Pa.