GNAC Releases Softball Pre-Season Poll

BOSTON, Mass. – The Saint Joseph's College (ME) Softball team has been selected as the 2013 GNAC Softball Pre-Season Coaches' Poll favorite, receiving seven first place votes and a total of 163 points. The Monks claimed their second consecutive GNAC Championship last April and will look to make it a three-peat later this spring. Coming in a close second was Emerson College with 157 points and five first place votes while Simmons College finished third with 139 points and the remaining first place nod.

One key to the Monks success last season was the play of junior outfielder/pitcher Theresa Hendrix (Scarborough, Maine). Hendrix was a First Team GNAC selection while also earning a spot on the ECAC First Team as a sophomore. With the bat, she paced the Royal Blue in on-base percentage (.481), triples (7) and walks (15) and ranked second on the squad in batting average (.418, 48-116), hits (48) doubles (14), total bases (91), and slugging percentage (.784). As a hurler, Hendrix went 4-0 with a pair of saves and fanned 29 batters while yielding just 15 hits and five walks in 33 innings and tossed the first seven-inning perfect game in program history, sitting down all 21 batters she faced in a 2-0 win over Simmons College on April 21st.

Emerson will look to return to the top after a three year hiatus from a GNAC Championship (2009). The Lions bring back the dynamic junior outfield duo of Bianca Buono (El Cajon, Calif.) and Brittany Rochford (Irvine, Calif.). Last year, Rochford led the GNAC while ranking fourth in the nation with a .517 batting average while Buono wasn't far behind, batting .442 to rank fifth in the GNAC and 77^th in the nation.

The Simmons College Sharks, ranking third in the poll with 139 points and one first place vote, will look to build around the arm of sophomore pitcher Laruen Backhaus (Windsor, Conn.). The 2012 GNAC Rookie of the Year posted 15 wins during her rookie campaign en route to being named to the 2012 DIII Northeast Regional Second Team.

After posting a 28-16 overall record and 19-7 mark in the GNAC last year, Johnson & Wales University earned the fourth ranking with 122 points. The Wildcats advanced to the GNAC Semifinals last season and will look to get back in the mix with the help of junior pitcher Tayla Gardner (Orangeburg, N.Y.). Gardner led the team with a .336 batting average while also posting 12 wins and a team-low 1.97 ERA last year.

Rivier University rounded out the teams receiving over 100 points in the poll, finishing in fifth place with 108 points. The Raiders, who captured the 2010 GNAC Championship, welcome back senior Marissa Mercier (North Smithfield, R.I.) and junior Nicole Peacock (Warwick, R.I.). Mercier enjoyed a fantastic junior campaign with a .467 batting average while Peacock was right on her heels batting .413 on the season.

Just missing the 100 point marker was the University of Saint Joseph (CT) squad, finishing with 99 points in sixth place while Norwich University registered 92 points in seventh place. Suffolk University rounded out the top eight with 63 points.

The nine through 12 spots were separated by just two total points as there was a tie for the ninth spot between Albertus Magnus College and Anna Maria College with 55 points. Emmanuel College came in 11^th with 54 total points while Lasell College was just behind the Saints with 53 points in 12^th place. Rounding out the 2013 poll in 13^th were the Anna Maria College AMCATS with 23 points.

2013 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Softball Pre-Season Coaches' Poll