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GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Virginia Tech women's basketball team was selected to finish 12th, according to separate polls of the league’s Blue Ribbon Panel and its 15 head coaches as announced Wednesday by the Atlantic Coast Conference office.

Three-time defending champion Notre Dame is once again the Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Basketball preseason favorite. This marks the fourth consecutive season that the Fighting Irish have been rated the ACC preseason favorite since joining the conference prior to the 2013-14 season.

Notre Dame received 44 first-place votes from Blue Ribbon panel members to emerge as the clear-cut favorite. Louisville received eight first-place votes and placed second. Florida State (two first-place votes) placed third.

Syracuse, fresh off its appearance in the 2016 NCAA Final Four, placed fourth in the Blue Ribbon panel voting, followed by Miami (fifth), Duke (sixth) and NC State (seventh). North Carolina, Georgia Tech and Virginia finished eighth, ninth and 10th respectively. Wake Forest (11th), Virginia Tech (12th), Pitt (13th), Boston College (14th) and Clemson (15th) rounded out the voting.

The ACC Coaches’ balloting mirrored that of the Blue Ribbon panel in predicted order of finish, with these exceptions: Georgia Tech was ranked No. 8 and North Carolina No. 9, while Boston College was ranked No. 13 and Pitt No. 14.

Notre Dame received 13 coaches’ first-place votes, while Louisville and Florida State each received one.

Junior forward Myisha Hines-Allen of Louisville was named the 2016-17 ACC Preseason Player of the Year in both the Blue Ribbon Panel and the coaches’ balloting. The 2015-16 ACC Player of the Year selection by the Blue Ribbon Panel, Hines-Allen started 30 of the 33 games in which she played last season and averaged 17.6 points on .547 percent shooting and 8.4 rebounds. Selected an honorable mention All-American by the Associated Press and WBCA, she ranked third in the ACC last season in scoring, rebounding, and field goal percentage, seventh in free throw percentage (.800), second in defensive rebounds (5.4) and tied for sixth in offensive rebounds (3.0).

Hines-Allen is joined on both the 2016-17 Blue Ribbon Panel and the Coaches’ Preseason All-ACC teams by Notre Dame’s Brianna Turner (the ACC Coaches’ 2015-16 ACC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year) and Lindsay Allen, Duke’s Rebecca Greenwell, Florida State’s Leticia Romero and Shakayla Thomas (two-time ACC Sixth Player of the Year), Louisville’s Asia Durr and Mariyah Moore, Miami’s Adrienne Motley and Syracuse’s Alexis Peterson.

The Blue Ribbon Panel’s and ACC Coaches’ Newcomer Watch List features Duke’s Lexie Brown and Leaonna Odom, Florida State’s Chatrice White, and Notre Dame’s Erin Boley and Jackie Young.

Predicted Order of Finish (as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel)
1. Notre Dame, 795 (44 first place votes)
2. Louisville, 758 (8 first place votes)
3. Florida State, 674 (2 first place votes)
4. Syracuse, 646
5. Miami, 584
6. Duke, 516
7. NC State, 479
8. North Carolina, 415
9. Georgia Tech, 376
10. Virginia, 296
11. Wake Forest, 264
12. Virginia Tech, 224
13. Pittsburgh, 209
14. Boston College, 176
15. Clemson, 68

Preseason Player of the Year (as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel): Myisha Hines-Allen, Jr., F, Louisville

Preseason All-ACC Team (as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel)
Rebecca Greenwell, R-Jr., G, Duke
Leticia Romero, Sr., G, Florida State
Shakayla Thomas, Jr., G, Florida State
Asia Durr, So., G, Louisville
Myisha Hines-Allen, Jr., F, Louisville
Mariya Moore, Jr., F, Louisville
Adrienne Motley, Sr., G, Miami
Lindsay Allen, Sr., G, Notre Dame
Brianna Turner Jr., F, Notre Dame
Alexis Peterson, Sr., G, Syracuse

Newcomer Watch List (as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel)
Lexie Brown, Jr., G, Duke
Leaonna Odom, Fr, F, Duke
Chatrice White, Jr., C, Florida State
Erin Boley, Fr., F, Notre Dame
Jackie Young, Fr., G, Notre Dame

Predicted Order of Finish (as selected by the head coaches)
1. Notre Dame, 221 points (13 first place votes)
2. Louisville, 209 (1 first place vote)
3. Florida State, 194 (1 first place vote)
4. Syracuse, 178
5. Miami, 162
6. Duke, 144
7. NC State, 132
8. Georgia Tech, 110
9. North Carolina, 108
10. Virginia, 85
11. Wake Forest, 74
12. Virginia Tech, 72
13. Boston College, 48
14. Pittsburgh, 47
15. Clemson, 16

Preseason Player of the Year (as selected by the head coaches): Myisha Hines-Allen, Jr., F, Louisville

Preseason All-ACC Team (as selected by the head coaches)
Rebecca Greenwell, R-Jr., G, Duke
Leticia Romero, Sr., G, Florida State
Shakayla Thomas Jr., G, Florida State
Myisha Hines-Allen, Jr., F, Louisville
Mariya Moore, Jr., F, Louisville
Asia Durr, So., G Louisville
Adrienne Motley, Sr., G Miami
Brianna Turner, Jr., F, Notre Dame
Lindsay Allen, Sr., G, Notre Dame
Alexis Peterson, Sr., G, Syracuse

Newcomer Watch List (as selected by the head coaches)
Lexie Brown, Jr., G, Duke
Leaonna Odom, Fr, F, Duke
Chatrice White, Jr., C, Florida State
Erin Boley, Fr., F, Notre Dame
Jackie Young, Fr., G, Notre Dame

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