Emerson Tops Softball Pre-Season Poll

Emerson College, the 2010 GNAC Championship runner-up, has been selected as the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Softball preseason favorite in a vote conducted by GNAC coaches. The Lions earned the top spot by only four point shy of a perfect score of 144 points. St. Joseph's Maine came in second place, while Rivier, the 2010 GNAC Champions, just edged Simmons College for a third place finish.  Lasell College earned a fifth place pick, followed by St. Joseph CT in sixth; and Mount Ida and Suffolk tied for the remaining two slots in the 2011 preseason poll.

1.       Emerson (140)

2.       St. Joseph's ME (129)

3.      Rivier  (109)

4.       Simmons (107)

5.      Lasell (101)

6.      St. Joseph CT (78)

7.      Mount Ida (72)

         Suffolk (72)

#1 Emerson College

The Lions had a strong finish to the 2010 season, concluding as runner-up in the GNAC Championship with a record of 28-11 overall, and a 20-4 GNAC record. Emerson looks to be a top competitor in 2011 despite losing three talented leaders to graduation; Head Coach Phil McElroy brings eight talented freshmen to the team to provide depth in several key positions.

Leading the Lions this season are captains Lynn Herman, Sierra Wood, and Kendal Peiguss. Both Wood and Peiguss earned 2009 all-conference honors and this year Wood will return behind the plate and Peiguss will start at shortstop. Herman will provide the offensive strength after tying the NCAA DIII record in 2010 with four consecutive home runs in one game.

Returning to the mound for Emerson is 2009 All-Regional pitcher, Kelsey Tuthill, who is coming off an injury plagued 2010 and GNAC Second Team All-Conference pitcher Sara Murray. Also returning to the Lions is 2010 Third-Team All-Conference selection, Jilisa Rawding, who will be moving from the outfield to 2^nd base this season.

Emerson next game is on March 10^th against Whittier College in Whittier, California at 10:00am.

#2 St. Joseph's College of Maine  

Saint Joseph's Maine finished the 2010 season with a record of 30-10 overall and a conference record of 21-3. The Monks have already been ranked 10^th by the New England Intercollegiate Softball Coaches Association (NEISCA) pre-season poll after their incredible record last season. St. Joe's will be led by 2010 GNAC Coach of the Year, Jamie Smyth, who will be coming off of his second 30-win season.

Although losing All-Conference selection, Liddy Van Der Linden, and two other starters to graduation the Monks have 23 players on their 2011 roster with 18 returning from last season including four 2010 all-conference players.

The Monks will be led by captains Alyssa Dunn, Natasha Howard, Maria Labbe and Maddie Kluna. First baseman Alyssa Dunn, also a 2010 First- Team All Conference selection hit .369 (41-11) with 19 runs, 10 doubles, five homers and 30 RBI last season. Leading the Monks offense, will be senior Emily Leverone, the GNAC 1^st Team, All-ECAC New England Second Team and NEISCA Second Team honoree, led the Monks in nearly every offensive category including batting average (.450, 58-129), hits (58) and RBIs (60) last season. Returning to the mound for the Monks is Maddie Kluna, who posted a 1.79 ERA and earning second-team all-conference honors in 2010. Senior Kiera Walsh will also be adding innings on the mound for the Monks after posting a 2.72 ERA in 2010 with 53 strikeouts in 79.2 innings pitched. Providing strength to the outfield is Danyelle Shufelt who was selected as second-team all-conference last year and contributed offensively with a .368 batting average with 46 hits and 30 runs scored.  

The Monks begin their season against UMass.-Dartmouth on Monday March 14th at 9:00 AM.

#3 Rivier College

Rivier College finished the 2010 season as GNAC Champions, marking the second time in three years that the Raiders took the crown. Rivier also set a school record of 33 wins in a season, and winning a NCAA tournament game. The Raiders will begin the 2011 season with a new Head Coach, Dave Morrisette, and Assistant Coach Mike Holloran; while returning six players from 2010 but adding nine freshmen.

Despite losing ace pitcher, Monica White to graduation, the Raiders will look to the leadership of senior captain Amanda Ryan and junior captain Karen Waterman to lead this young team to a successful season. Ryan will split between both first base and catcher while Waterman will start at second base. Rivier will look to a talented rookie pitching staff to provide strength on the mound, and add speed in the outfield.

Rivier next game is against Cedar Crest @ Orlando, FL on March 11^th at 8:00am.

#4 Simmons College

Simmons College finished the 2010 season with an overall record of 21-12 overall and a conference record of 16-8. The Sharks 2010 season included a fourth place GNAC finish and a 13-game winning streak led by Head Coach Annie Hennigan. Simmons will return all but one starter from the 2010 season, and will utilize the strengths of four newcomers in the field.

Leading the Sharks in their 2011 campaign are senior captains, Courteney Collier, Emily Nalband and Annie Thompson. Collier will start on the mound this year after earning First-Team all-conference honors last season after recording 15 wins with 138 strikeouts in 140 innings pitched. Thompson will return to shortstop after posting a .459 batting average with 56 hits, which both ranked 3^rd in the GNAC in 2010, while also being named to the First-team all-conference. Nalband will return to catcher after collecting Third-Team all-conference honors last season for her role behind the plate while contributing with a .316 batting average. Simmons will also look for great contributions from three additional seniors, outfielder Emily Colligan, pitcher Sammi Letizio and outfielder Steph Murray.

Simmons next game is against Wesleyan University @ Clermont, FL on March 10^th at 11:30am.

#5 Lasell College

Lasell College finished the 2010 season with an overall record of 19-20-1 and a conference record of 15-9. The Lasers will be led by seven year veteran Head Coach Tom DeFilippo for the 2011 season.

Leading the Lasers are captains, senior Kelly Silvia and junior Jacqueline Saluti. Silvia will split time between second base and catcher, where Saluti will return to the mound after starting 18 games for the Lasers in 2010. Saluti pitched a perfect game in 2010 against Albertus Magnus and concluded the season with a 3.51 ERA. Returning for the Lasers is senior Ashley Laramie who was selected as Second team All-Conference in 2010 for her .359 batting average including 42 hits and her .988 fielding percentage with only three errors on the season. Also returning for Lasell is sophomore Third team All-Conference honoree, Rachelle Haas. Haas will return to the outfield this season after concluding 2010 with the Lasers' highest batting average of .373 with 41 hits. Lasell will also look to seniors Kristen Mammola, Kerrie Starkey, and Michelle Torres to provide the needed strength for Lasell to have a competitive 2011 campaign.

The Lasers will begin their season on March 13^th vs. Worchester State @ Fort Myers, FL at 9:00am.

#6 St. Joseph CT College

St. Joseph College finished 2010 with a 24-18 overall record and 14-10 in GNAC play. The Blue Jays concluded the regular season with a sixth place finish but earned a fifth place spot in the GNAC tournament. Jim McKinnon will return for his sixth season as Head Coach of St. Joseph College.

Leading the Blue Jays are seniors Melanie Bush, Kristin Parente, April Campanella, and Susan Waters. Sophomore pitcher, Emily Hummel, will return to the mound after earning a spot on the GNAC Third Team All-Conference in 2010. Hummel went 14-7 in her rookie season with a 2.16 ERA while also leading the team in batting average with .377 and 49 hits. St. Joseph College will return nearly all of their starters for the 2011 season and will look for achieving a higher seed in the GNAC tournament with the leadership and experience of the upper classmen.

The Blue Jays will begin their season on March 12^th vs. Concordia @ Clermont, FL at 3:30pm.

#7 Mount Ida College

Mount Ida College went a program best 17-19 overall and 10-14 in the conference games. The Mustangs finished their season by making it to the first round of the GNAC tournament, but getting knocked out by higher seeded St. Joseph CT. Katie Zuman will resume her role as Head Coach of the Mustangs for her fourth season, after the most successful year Mount Ida ever had in 2010. Zuman will look to continue that streak in 2011 after having three all-conference players returning

Leading the young squad is junior Erica Belleveau, who earned Second Team All-Conference honors in 2010. Belleveau will return to shortstop for the Mustangs and is coming off a 36 RBI season. Third Team All-Conference selection, sophomore pitcher, Devan Meeker will return to the mound for the Mustangs. Meeker posted a 2.53 ERA, with only 21 walks, which ranked 20^th in NCAA D.III.  Also returning for the Mustangs is Third-Team All-Conference selection, Tiffany Hamann. Hamann will return to second base in 2011, after breaking the school record for hits with 47 in 2010 and posting a batting average of .379. Also providing leadership for Mount Ida are juniors Erin Dufficy and Tracy Koukol.

The Mustangs begin their season on March 14^th vs. Ripon @ Clermont, FL at 8:30am.