Softball | 2/28/2020 9:18:24 AM
St. John Fisher will look for its fourth straight Empire 8 title, as seven teams will battle for the 2020 E8 Championship, as the upcoming season gets underway with Houghton starting in Florida March 2. Sage and St. John Fisher are scheduled to start March 6, while the rest of league will start later in March. The top-four teams will advance to the double-elimination Empire 8 Championship Tournament, which will take place at the home of the regular season champion and top-seed on April 30-May 2. The Empire 8 Champion will receive an automatic berth into the 2020 NCAA Division III Softball Championship.
Fans can watch the action all season long, free of charge on
Empire 8 TV.
Players to Watch (Sorted Alphabetically by Player)
Sarah Garner, Elmira, Sr., C/INF, Syosset, NY/Syosset – Garner hit .324 last season and will be expected to be slotted in the middle of the Soaring Eagles lineup in 2020.
Hannah Haskell, Houghton, So., SS, Binghamton, NY/Susquehanna Valley – Haskell earned All-Empire 8 second team honors in 2019 after hitting .363 with 27 RBIs and 11 stolen bases, while appearing and starting in all 34 games.
Katerina Lagace, Sage, Jr., P, Newington, CT/Newington – Lagace returns after making 22 appearances on the mound for Sage last season, recording seven complete games, five wins and a save.
Kaitlyn Paul, Utica, So., C/1B, Albany, NY/Guilderland – Paul made an immediate impact for Utica in 2019, hitting .346 overall and .447 in conference play to earn All-Empire 8 second team honors. She led the Pioneers with 30 RBIs, 12 doubles, and two home runs.
Samie Torlish, St. John Fisher, Jr., SS, Victor, NY/Farmington – Torlish was an All-Empire 8 first team selection in 2019, after hitting .394 with 13 extra-base hits (including three home runs) and 22 RBIs.
Janelle Walters, Nazareth, Jr., OF, North Syracuse, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse – Walters, a 2018 All-Empire 8 second team selection, hit .402 that season. In 2019, she played in 35 games and stole seven bases.
Jessica Wilcox, Alfred, Sr., P, Forestville, NY/Pine Valley – Wilcox, a 2019 All-Empire 8 second team selection, went 17-10 on the mound with 16 complete games, eight shutouts and 154 strikeouts in 166 innings pitched.
Team Capsules (Sorted by 2019 Standings)
St. John Fisher
St. John Fisher will look to win its fourth straight Empire 8 Championship and eighth league title overall in 2020. Junior shortstop Sammie Torlish returns after hitting .394 last season to earn All-Empire 8 first team honors. She has a .378 batting average with six home runs and 52 RBIs in her first two seasons. Junior Emily Trotman, a 2019 All-E8 first team pick, will look to continue her success after winning 23 games on the mound with seven shutouts, while also hitting .324 in 2019. She hit four homers and drove in 29 runs as a first-year standout in 2018. Sophomores Abby Flakus (2019 All-Empire 8 first team selection) and Rachel Evans enjoyed tremendous success in 2019 and will be counted on to take the next step this season. The Cardinals have plenty of offense to replace, as 2019 graduates Sarah Kubik, Mary Claire Grosvenor, Julia Sortiso and Ashley Prince combined for 28 home runs and 113 RBIs last season alone. Kubik is the Empire 8’s all-time leader with 37 home runs and 147 RBIs.
Alfred
The Saxons found themselves one win away from the 2019 Empire 8 Championship. Alfred will look to get back to the E8 Championship and win its first league title since 2015. The Saxons won 23 games last season and return 11 players and seven starters, including All-Empire 8 selections seniors Jillian Murphy, Jessica Wilcox and sophomores Tatiana Mejia, Alyssa Guitron and Ashley Lugo. Murphy, a 2019 All-Empire 8 first team pick, batted .337 with two homers and 20 RBIs. Wilcox, a 2019 All-Empire 8 second team selection, went 17-10 on the mound with 16 complete games, eight shutouts and 154 strikeouts in 166 innings pitched. Lugo hit .305 and stole 25 bases in 27 attempts for the Saxons last season. Guitron, Lugo and Mejia all hit over .300 in conference play last season.
Nazareth
Nazareth returns 12 players, including seven starters from last season’s squad that advanced to the Empire 8 Tournament. Junior Gabriella Corasaniti is Nazareth’s top returning pitcher after accounting for eight of the team’s 14 wins in 2019. Fellow first-year hurlers Emily Daciw and Justine Brooks will also vie for time in the pitching circle. The Golden Flyers will look for Janelle Walters and Kristen Simmons to be top-of-the-order table setters. Junior third baseman Katherine Ruoff is back to take on a larger role. Nazareth will look to replace the offense of 2019 All-Empire 8 selections Marissa Tortora (.395) and Madison Joseph (seven homers).
Utica
The Pioneers return 11 players from the 2019 squad that won 18 contests and tied for fourth in the Empire 8 standings. Utica will look to earn a postseason berth in 2020. Junior third baseman Sara Stransky batted .337 and earned All-Empire 8 first team honors in 2019. Sophomore catcher/first baseman Kaitlyn Paul made an immediate impact for Utica in 2019, hitting .346 overall and .447 in conference play with two homers and 30 RBIs to earn All-Empire 8 second team accolades. Senior Jacqueline Aronin is back after hitting .354 in 2019. Junior hurler Gabriella Caccamo was an All-Empire 8 honorable mention selection for the second straight season. She has 18 career wins in two years. First-year standout Jordyn Conte will be expected to see time in the pitching circle. Utica will look to replace four-time All-Empire 8 selection Nicole Rice, the 2018 Co-Player of the Year, who finished her career with a .407 batting average, 202 hits and 91 RBIs.
Houghton
The Highlanders return 10 players, including eight starters from last season’s team that won 13 games. Sophomore shortstop Hannah Haskell, an All-Empire 8 second team selection in 2019, is back after hitting .363 with 27 RBIs and 11 stolen bases, while appearing and starting in all 34 games as a first-year standout. Fellow sophomore Andrea Taboni, also a 2019 All-Empire 8 second team selection at second base, will solidify the middle of the infield, Outfielders Mackenzie Marti, a senior and junior Kate Jones will be counted on to lead the way as well. The Highlanders will look to replace 2019 graduate Taylor Sile, who hit .362 with team-best totals of four homers and 28 RBIs, while going 7-5 on the mound with three shutouts last year.
Elmira
There is a changing at the guard for the 2020 season, as head coach Randie Torgalski takes over for Rhonda Faunce, who won 401 games in 31 seasons with the Soaring Eagles. The Soaring Eagles return 10 players from last season’s squad, including senior catcher/infielder Sarah Garner and utility Samantha Jenkins. Garner hit .324, while Jenkins batted .425. Both starting pitchers are back in the circle, as senior Mckenzie Slaven and junior Ally Barr look to record the majority of innings. Slaven had five wins and 54 strikeouts last season, while Barr recorded a team-best 2.92 earned run average and logged 12 complete games. First-year outfielder Madison Brown-Bloom and utility standout Jillian Cortez will see plenty of time in 2020.
Sage
The Gators look to make their ascent in the Empire 8 standings this season, as eight players, including five starters return from last season’s squad. Senior outfielder Kristen Silk as well as classmate Alicia Swavely to help lead the squad on and off the field. Swavely and junior Katerina Lagace combined to make 39 appearances and 24 starts for the Gators last season. The duo combined for 10 of Sage’s 11 wins. Freshmen infielders Sam Shallcross, Erika Markowski and Katelyn Rice will look to make an immediate impact.
Final 2019 Empire 8 Softball Standings
Stevens (22-18, 12-2 Empire 8) *
St. John Fisher (27-17, 12-2 Empire 8) – League Champions
Alfred (23-20, 9-5 E8)
Nazareth (14-22, 6-8 E8)
Utica (17-19, 6-8 E8)
Houghton (13-21, 5-9 E8)
Elmira (9-15, 3-11 E8)
Sage (11-25, 3-11 E8) %
*Stevens moved to the MAC Freedom Conference effective for the 2020 season
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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