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Somerset, NJ -- The Northeast Conference women’s softball coaches have tabbed LIU Brooklyn as the preseason favorite in the annual poll. The Blackbirds, who will be looking to win their first NEC Tournament crown since 2012 and add to their NEC-high 13 titles, received seven first place votes.
After capturing last season’s NEC regular season title, Robert Morris was slotted second, while Bryant followed in third with one first place vote. Defending NEC champion Central Connecticut was tabbed fourth and also earned a lone first place vote. Saint Francis U and Fairleigh Dickinson took the fifth and sixth spots, respectively. Sacred Heart, Mount St. Mary’s and Wagner rounded out the nine-team poll.
Under longtime head coach Roy Kortmann, the Blackbirds will look for redemption this season after falling by a 9-8 score in extra innings to Central Connecticut in last year’s classic NEC title game.
The high powered LIU offense totaled 43 home runs last season, matching the NEC single-season mark. Senior infielder Celinna Cosio (San Diego, CA/Bona Vista) was one of those power sources, finishing second on the team in home runs (seven). She was named to the NEC All-Tournament team after homering twice in the postseason.
Also returning for the Blackbirds are sophomore catcher Victoria Zamora (Orange, CA/El Modena) and senior outfielder Whitney West (West Hills, CA/El Camino Real). Zamora was named the NEC Rookie of the Year and one of two freshmen to earn All-NEC honors. She led the league in on-base percentage (.447), and finished with six homers and 25 RBIs. West paced the Blackbirds and ranked seventh in the NEC with a .342 batting average. She was second in the NEC in hits (54) and triples (four), and was tabbed to the NEC All-Tournament team after hitting 8-13 (.615) over four games.
After guiding Robert Morris to the program’s eighth NEC regular season crown in 2015, Craig Coleman and his assistants were named the NEC Coaching Staff of the Year. Returning for the Colonials is senior outfielder Ashley Gerhart (Imperial, PA/West Allegheny), a first team All-NEC honoree who ranked third in the league in batting average (.351) and fourth in on-base percentage (.426). All-NEC second teamers Jordan Gurganus (Chesapeake, VA/Hickory), Haileigh Stocks (Jamison, PA/Central Bucks South) and Kristen Gabelt (Ligonier, PA/Ligonier Valley) are also back in the fold for RMU. Gurganus is a junior infielder/catcher who paced the NEC with a .384 average and 63 hits. Gabelt, a senior outfielder, led the Colonials and ranked third in the NEC with nine homers. She also finished fourth in slugging (.620) and fifth in batting (.343). Stocks, a senior infielder, drew a team-high 16 walks and had the fourth best on-base percentage (.358) on the club. RMU must replace three-time NEC Pitcher of the Year Nicole Sleith.
Returning for Bryant is 2015 NEC Most Improved Player and All-NEC first team outfielder Taylor Burger (Killingworth, CT/Haddam Killingworth). Burger lifted her average more than 150 points last season, when she hit a team-high .350 and ranked second in the NEC with 11 homers. She also slugged .790 and drove in 30 runs. Bryant also brings back a pair of All-NEC second teamers in senior pitcher Elle Madsen (Wheat Ridge, CO/Wheat Ridge) and classmate Hayley Bottino (Canyon Country, CA/Canyon). A three-time All-NEC honoree, Madsen won 11 games on the mound and also starred at the plate with a league-leading 12 home runs. She ranked third in the conference with 36 RBIs. Bottino, a pitcher/infielder, wrapped the 2015 season among Bryant leaders in homers (six), doubles (11) and RBI (27).
Central Connecticut will look to defend its conference title, but must replace a number of vital pieces, including NEC pitching legend Laura Messina. Sophomore infielder Tori Constantin (Norfolk, MA/King Philip Regional) will look to be a force at the plate. She is the CCSU’s top returnee in batting average (.273), slugging percentage (.430) and home runs (five). Senior outfielders Katie Schmidt (Norwalk, CT/Norwalk) and Evie Rentzel (Dillsburg, PA/Northern York), along with sophomore infielder Brittany Camera (Merrimack, NH/Merrimack), will also be key players. Schmidt was fourth on the team in batting average (.272) and second in on-base percentage (.364) a year ago. Rentzel drove in 20 runs and Camera was second on the Blue Devils with 43 hits.
Points of #NECPride
Saint Francis U infielder/pitcher Alexis Bower (Logan Station, PA/Williamsport Area) is back for the Red Flash after an impressive sophomore campaign. Bower posted a .318 batting average, and led the Red Flash in home runs (six) and on-base percentage (.421). She was tabbed to the All-NEC first team at first base. Sophomore third baseman Madison Cabell (Ivor, VA/Southampton) was the lone rookie to earn first team All-NEC honors last season after she drove in 38 runs to rank second in the league.
Fairleigh Dickinson will be under the direction of Katherine “KJ” Kelley, who comes to the team after guiding the University of Mary to 57 wins the last two years. Senior catcher Madelaine Wilen (Bakersfield, CA/Ridgeview) was a first team All-NEC award recipient last season. She slugged a league-high .690, and ranked second in hitting (.353) and third in homers (nine). The nine dingers set the Knights’ single season home run record and she also holds the FDU career mark with 18 clouts.
Wagner was recognized by the NFCA for finishing top-10 in team GPA among NCAA Division I programs. The Seahawks posted a 3.583 GPA during the 2014-15 academic year to rank sixth out of the 295 Division I teams.
Angie Churchill, a former standout player at the University of Michigan, replaces Glen Payne as head coach at Wagner. Payne spent 20 years at the helm of the Seahawks and is the winningest coach in program history.
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 35th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.