CALDWELL SELECTED FIRST IN CACC SOFTBALL PRE-SEASON POLL
New Haven, CT (2/17/10) Caldwell College has been selected first according to the 2010 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Pre-season Softball Poll, which was voted upon by the league’s 14 head coaches. The Cougars corralled seven first-place votes and 186 total points, just ahead of Dominican College, which finished second with three first-place tallies and 177 points. Defending CACC Tournament Champion, Georgian Court University, was tabbed third with 166 points and three first-place votes.
New Haven, CT (2/17/10) Caldwell College has been selected first according to the 2010 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Pre-season Softball Poll, which was voted upon by the league’s 14 head coaches. The Cougars corralled seven first-place votes and 186 total points, just ahead of Dominican College, which finished second with three first-place tallies and 177 points. Defending CACC Tournament Champion, Georgian Court University, was tabbed third with 166 points and three first-place votes.
Caldwell received votes in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) pre-season poll, a year after advancing to the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament for the fifth time in six years. The Cougars went 37-18-2 last season and finished second in the CACC regular-season with a 20-4 record. Caldwell also advanced to the CACC Tournament Championship game. Head coach Dean Johnson, who starts his 16th season, returns eight starters among 12 letterwinners, including three-time All-CACC shortstop Danielle Genovese. Genovese ranks 10th all-time at Caldwell in hits (170) and ninth in career batting average (.356). Senior first baseman Kyrie Timbrook, junior pitcher Brittany Pulido and sophomore outfielder Kelly Ryan also return after All-Region and All-CACC campaigns in 2009. Additionally, sophomore third baseman Marisa Tamez received All-CACC honorable mention.
Dominican was tabbed second after winning the CACC regular-season championship last season with a 22-2 record to go with a program-best 39-16 overall mark. The Lady Chargers earned a berth to the NCAA East Regional for the first time and nearly upset the overall top overall seed, Le Moyne College, before being eliminated. Leading the way for DC this season is Cara Piasecki, a two-time All-CACC first team selection. Piasecki ranked eighth in the CACC with a .348 batting average in 2009 while adding eight home runs and 37 RBI. Junior captain Nicole Scarillo is a returning All-CACC and All-Region catcher, and sophomore Deidre Jeppson earned All-CACC second team honors as a rookie after finishing with a .344 batting average and leading the CACC with 23 stolen bases.
Georgian Court, the reigning CACC Tournament Champion, came within one victory of advancing to the NCAA Division II World Series last season, while finishing the season ranked #13 nationally by the NFCA. GCU, which will be under the direction of first-year head coach, Freddy Flores, ended the 2009 season 40-17 overall and 17-7 in conference play. Headlining the list of returning players is junior pitcher Diana Sansevera. Sansevera garnered numerous accolades last season, including CACC and Daktronics East Region Pitcher of the Year, along with NFCA First-Team All-America honors. Also back is 2009 CACC Rookie of the Year, Rachel Ruch, and Daktronics Honorable Mention All-American, Courtney Cuevas.
Philadelphia University is fourth in the poll and looks to be a team on the rise with eight starters returning, including junior Jen Richards, who was a first team All-CACC pick. Also back is sophomore pitcher, Ali Schmidt, who claimed second team All-CACC and All-Tournament distinction in 2009. Senior All-Tournament pick Maggie Desmond is also back for the Lady Rams, who finished 25-21 overall last season and 13-11 in CACC play.
Wilmington University was selected fifth in the poll with 129 points and returns eight starters from a team that went 22-24 last season and 13-11 in CACC action. Among the eight returning starters is All-CACC and All-Region 3B, senior Lindsay Watson. Junior Amanda Cordrey, who was an All-Conference and All-Region pick last season, also returns for the Wildcats.
The rest of the poll is rounded out by Holy Family University (117 points), Bloomfield College (106), which received one first-place vote, Post University (89), University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (87), Goldey-Beacom College (68), Felician College (67), conference newcomer Concordia College (49), Nyack College (31) and Chestnut Hill College (25).
The 2010 season is slated to begin on Feb. 25-26 when Goldey-Beacom travels to North Carolina to play Johnson C. Smith University and Pfeiffer University. Conference play will commence on March 20 with 12 of the 14 CACC institutions in action.
The complete 2010 CACC softball pre-season poll is listed below.
CACC Softball
2010 Pre-season Coaches' Poll
| School | 2009 Records | Points | |
| 1. | Caldwell (7) | 37-18/204 CACC | 186 |
| 2. | Dominican (3) | 39-16/22-2 | 177 |
| 3. | Georgian Court (3) | 40-17/17-7 | 166 |
| 4. | Philadelphia | 25-21/13-11 | 136 |
| 5. | Wilmington | 22-24/13-11 | 129 |
| 6. | Holy Family | 22-28/15-9 | 117 |
| 7. | Bloomfield (1) | 33-15/17-7 | 106 |
| 8. | Post | 25-20/12-12 | 89 |
| 9. | USP | 12-30/8-16 | 87 |
| 10. | Goldey-Beacom | 19-23/8-16 | 68 |
| 11. | Felician | 10-33/7-17 | 67 |
| 12. | Concordia | 14-16/7-11* | 49 |
| 13. | Nyack | 3-33/3-21 | 31 |
| 14. | Chestnut Hill | 4-39/1-23 | 25 |
()-First Place Votes
*-Record as member of ECC