CALDWELL TOPS 2011 CACC SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL

February 16, 2011

CALDWELL TOPS 2011 CACC SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL

New Haven, CT (2/16/11) Caldwell College has been selected first in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) preseason softball poll for the third consecutive season and collected 12 of a possible 14 first-place votes. The poll was voted upon by the 14 head coaches. The Cougars garnered 194 points and was followed by Dominican College with 174 points and one first-place vote, while Georgian Court University finished third with one first-place tally and 168 points.

New Haven, CT (2/16/11) Caldwell College has been selected first in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) preseason softball poll for the third consecutive season and collected 12 of a possible 14 first-place votes. The poll was voted upon by the 14 head coaches. The Cougars garnered 194 points and was followed by Dominican College with 174 points and one first-place vote, while Georgian Court University finished third with one first-place tally and 168 points.

Head coach Dean Johnson, who was the CACC and ECAC Coach of the Year in 2010, returns five starting fielders and four pitchers among 15 letterwinners for Caldwell. Headlining the returning players is three-time All-CACC pitcher Brittany Pulido. Pulido, who ranks second on Caldwell's all-time list for victories with 56, was chosen the CACC Pitcher of the Year in 2010 and was a first team Daktronics All-East Region selection after posting a 20-7 record and an earned run average of 1.23. Junior outfielder Kelly Ryan is a two-time All-CACC and All-Region performer who batted .316 with a team-high 16 stolen bases. Sophomore second baseman Dia Cascone made the All-CACC second team after leading the Cougars with 47 runs as a freshman. Caldwell shared the CACC regular-season championship with Dominican last season with a 23-3 mark, while going 42-16 overall. Caldwell concluded the season by making its sixth appearance in the NCAA Regional Tournament in the last seven seasons.

Dominican is the defending CACC Tournament Champion and made its second straight appearance in the NCAA Regional Tournament last season. The Chargers went 37-16 and tied for the conference regular-season championship with a 23-3 record. DC returns the 2010 CACC Rookie of the Year in pitcher/outfielder Delaney Childers, and second team All-Conference selection, sophomore DP Ashley Corrao. Childers hit .387 at the plate as a rookie with 48 runs scored and 37 runs batted in while going 22-9 with 1.67 ERA as a pitcher. Starting SS Julie Plante is also back after earning All-CACC honorable mention status as a freshman. Junior OF Deidre Jeppson will also be welcomed back after hitting .345 last season.

Georgian Court compiled a 39-19 record (19-7 CACC) last season, which included five consecutive victories in the CACC Tournament and a finals appearance against Dominican. The Lions also made its fourth straight trip to the NCAA East Regional and winning one game. The Lions return three first team All-Conference selections in junior DP Brooke Hull, junior 2B Rachel Ruch and senior CF Jessica Comiskey. Also back are a pair of second team picks, including junior 3B Kelsey Cutler and senior pitcher Diana Sansevera. Sansevera led the conference with 26 wins last season, while Ruch was fourth with a .399 batting average. Furthermore, Hull and Ruch were All-Region selections.

Philadelphia was picked fourth and will look to improve on a record-setting 2010 season, during which the Lady Rams recorded their most wins under the guidance of head coach John Kelly (26). PhilaU returns three All-Conference players in junior hurler Ali Schmidt, senior outfielder Jen Richard and junior catcher Katie Renner. Schmidt was a first team selection after going 18-9 with a 1.89 ERA. Renner was named to the second team and Richard was an honorable mention selection. Renner was also named to the 2010 CACC All-Tournament team.

Concordia was selected fifth with 138 points, just one vote behind Philadelphia. The Clippers will be led by first team All-CACC outfielder Alexa Rosella, second team shortstop Jaime Lorenzo and catcher Victoria Pisciotta, who earned honorable mention All-CACC status in 2010. The Clippers went 22-17 overall last season, 17-9 in conference action and notched a pair of wins in the CACC Tournament before being eliminated.

The 2011 season is slated to begin on February 27 as Concordia, Dominican and Georgian Court commence their campaigns in Florida. Conference play will start on March 19 with USciences traveling to take on Dominican in a double-header. The eight-team CACC Softball Tournament will be hosted by Georgian Court on May 5-7 in Lakewood, N.J.

The 2011 CACC softball preseason poll is listed below.

CACC Softball

2011 Preseason Coaches' Poll

	School	2010 Records	Points
1.	Caldwell (12)	42-16/23-3 CACC	194
2.	Dominican (1)	37-16/23-3	174
3.	Georgian Court (1)	39-19/19-7	168
4.	Philadelphia	26-20/18-8	139
5.	Concordia	22-17/17-9	138
6.	Wilmington	20-24-1/12-14	115
7.	Bloomfield	14-25/10-16	108
8.	USciences	15-28/12-14	97
9.	Holy Family	24-23/18-8	96
10.	Post	16-30/12-14	74
11.	Goldey-Beacom	16-23/8-18	62
12.	Felician	15-28/8-18	54
13.	Chestnut Hill	2-36/2-24	25
14.	Nyack	2-37/0-26	24

()-First Place Votes

The aim of Dominican University New York is to promote educational excellence, leadership, and service in an environment characterized by respect for the individual and concern for the community and its needs. Founded by the Dominican Sisters of Blauvelt, the university is an independent institution of higher learning, Catholic in origin and heritage. In the Dominican tradition, it fosters the active, shared pursuit of truth and embodies an ideal of education rooted in the values of reflective understanding and compassionate involvement. Committed to building its programs upon a strong foundation in the liberal arts and sciences, the university maintains a student-centered climate and serves a diverse community of students in undergraduate and graduate programs. The university empowers this community of learners to excel, lead and serve with integrity and to engage responsibly in the pursuit of a more just, ethical and sustainable world. Dominican also sponsors 18 varsity intercollegiate sports that compete at the NCAA Division II level. To learn more about Dominican University New York, please visit www.duny.edu.