Ithaca Chosen to Repeat as Empire 8 Softball Champions
ROCHESTER, NY – Ithaca College, which regained the conference title last season, was chosen to take the title again in the Empire 8 Softball Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bombers, who shared the regular season title with Alfred University with a 13-1 conference mark last year, earned their ninth trip in 15 years to the NCAA Division III World Series.
Ithaca is ranked 12th in the first National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division III regular season poll. The Bombers return all five first-team all-conference players from last year. Senior second baseman Kait Dolan led the team in 2010 with a .380 batting average and 34 runs scored, while adding 25 runs batted in.
Classmates Kerry Barger (.370, 15 extra-base hits, 26 RBI), Brittany Lillie (.323, 32 runs scored, team-leading six home runs and 33 RBI), and Allison Greaney (.252, 24 runs, 22 RBI) all return. Sophomore third baseman Molly O’Donnell earned all-conference honors in her rookie season after hitting .287 with 22 runs scored and 25 RBI.
Alfred, the coaches’ second choice, is ranked 23rd in the NFCA poll and return seven starters from last year’s team that won a school-record 37 games and advanced to the regional final in its first NCAA Division III Championship appearance.
Junior Nicole Hedrick, the reigning Empire 8 Player of the Year honors, posted a 19-4 record on the mound with a 1.32 earned run average, leading the team with a .429 batting average, .721 slugging percentage, nine home runs, and 25 stolen bases.
Senior Chelsey Cary, the Alfred leader in pitching wins and shutouts, finished 18-3 with a 1.09 earned run average and school-record 138 strikeouts to be named to the all-conference first team. Junior outfielder Angela Netta earned first-team honors, hitting .378 with 45 hits and 25 runs scored, and Emily Fenton was named Empire 8 Rookie of the Year after hitting .328 with 22 runs scored and 28 RBI.
St. John Fisher College, which captured back-to-back championships in 2008 and 2009, was chosen to finish third in the preseason poll. Junior Jennifer Vanek garnered a first-team all-conference selection after hitting .357 with 45 hits. Sophomore third baseman Kayla Goodberlet, a second-team selection as a rookie, also hit .357 with 45 hits and led the team with six home runs.
Nazareth College and Rochester Institute of Technology were selected by the coaches to battle for the fourth and final spot in the conference championship tournament. The Golden Flyers return junior hurler Kelly Kocher, the 2010 Empire 8 Pitcher of the Year who led all NCAA Division III pitchers in strikeouts per seven innings, fanning 277 batters in 137.1 innings. She finished 13-7 with a 1.12 earned run average.
RIT senior Emily McPherson, who earned second-team honors last season after being named to the first team as a shortstop the previous season, hit .330 with a team-best 37 hits. Senior Carlissa Cole was named to the all-conference second team as a utility player for the second consecutive year, and sophomore Tori Nadow was named to the second team in her rookie season.
Elmira College and Utica College were picked sixth and seventh, respectively, in the coaches’ preseason poll. Junior Erin Pruess is already the Soaring Eagles’ all-time leader with 13 home runs. Senior outfielder Kim Martin of the Pioneers has earned first-team accolades in each of her first three seasons, including last year when she hit .411 with 37 runs scored. Sophomore first baseman Bridgette Plummer received first-team all-conference recognition in her first season, posting a .368 batting average with six home runs and 40 RBI.
Stevens Institute of Technology won eight games in its first varsity season, highlighted by a conference victory over RIT. Sophomore outfielder Lauren Hurley was named to the all-conference second team after leading the Ducks in batting average (.351), runs scored (22), hits (39), doubles (11), home runs (4), and slugging percentage (.577).
2011 Empire 8 Softball Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Ithaca College (5 first-place votes) 47 points
2. Alfred University (2) 43
3. St. John Fisher College (1) 38
4. Nazareth College 27
5. Rochester Institute of Technology 24
6. Elmira College 20
7. Utica College 16
8. Stevens Institute of Technology 8