Wednesday, January 22, 2020

PORTLAND, Ore. – A year after advancing to the NCAA West Region championship game, Western Oregon emerged as the narrow favorite in the 2020 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Softball Preseason Coaches Poll.

The Wolves picked up four of eight first-place votes and finished with a total of 54 points. One of three GNAC teams selected for the NCAA West Regional in 2019, Western Oregon finished with a 33-18 overall record and in second place in the GNAC at 19-9. After going two-and-out at the GNAC Championships, the Wolves advanced to the regional final before being ousted by host Concordia Irvine.

Coaches expect it to be a tight race, however, with the top four teams in the poll separated by just eight points and the top-five by just 14 points. Western Washington, which tied for fourth in 2019 and missed the GNAC Championships field by virtue of a tiebreaker, received one first-place vote and is picked second with 50 points. Concordia, the winner of the GNAC Championships, is picked to repeat in third place with 48 points and two first-place votes. Central Washington, which won the 2019 regular-season title, received the last first-place vote and is picked fourth with 46 points.

Northwest Nazarene is picked fifth with a total of 40 points. Rounding out the poll is Saint Martin’s (6th, 18 pts.), Montana State Billings (7th, 17 pts.) and Simon Fraser (8th, 15 pts.).

Among teams receiving votes in the NFCA Division II Top 25 Preseason Coaches Poll. Western Oregon surged in the final two weeks of the regular season to secure its GNAC Championships berth, winning its last six games to finish in second place. After being shut out in both GNAC Championships games, the Wolves rode an at-large regionals berth to a pair of 1-0 shutouts in pitcher’s duels with Concordia and San Francisco State before losing in the regional final to Concordia Irvine.

The starting group is led by junior outfielder Ayanna Arceneaux, who earned All-American honors after leading the GNAC and ranking 14th in Division II with a .460 batting average. She finished the year with 64 hits, 31 RBI and a .655 slugging percentage. Sophomore Maddie Mayer, the GNAC Freshman of the Year, is the conference’s top returning pitcher. The lefty ended the year with a 12-4 record and 2.19 earned run average. She allowed just 44 runs while holding opponents to a .256 batting average.

Also among the Western Oregon returners is junior outfielder Tyler Creach, who hit .312 with 24 runs, 34 RBI and 10 stolen bases.

Western Washington aims to return to the GNAC Championships for the first time since 2017 after just missing the field in 2019. The Vikings bring back one of the conference’s most experienced teams with 16 total returners and eight starters. The group is led by senior designated player Paityn Cyr, who earned Honorable Mention All-GNAC honors with a .370 batting average, 50 hits, six home runs and 32 RBI. Senior outfielder Jackie Lucino ended 2019 with a .307 batting average, five home runs and 23 RBI while junior outfielder Lauren Lo batted .306 with 10 RBI.

Junior pitcher Anna Kasner returns to the circle after a year away from the program. The 2017 GNAC Pitcher and Freshman of the Year, Kasner finished 2018 with six wins, a 3.41 earned run average and 102 strikeouts.

Taking advantage of the unexpected move of the GNAC Championships to Portland, Concordia parlayed its third-place regular-season finish into a tournament championship and the conference’s automatic berth in the NCAA West Regional. Finishing the season with a 31-24 overall record, the Cavaliers lost both of their games in the West Regional by a combined two runs.

Concordia also returns 16 players from last year’s roster, including eight starters. Senior catcher/infielder Hannah Self earned Second Team All-GNAC honors after she batted .331 with 49 runs, nine doubles, 13 home runs and a .696 slugging percentage. Junior infielder Marisa Stockton is back after an Honorable Mention All-GNAC season where she finished with a .355 batting average, seven home runs, 28 RBI and a .627 slugging percentage.

In the circle, senior Sally Bowles was named the GNAC Newcomer of the Year and earned Second Team All-GNAC honors after amassing 12 wins and a 2.87 earned run average. She limited opponents to a .274 batting average and was fifth in Division II with 0.64 walks per seven innings.

Central Washington captured its fourth straight regular-season championship with a 21-7 record and advanced to the GNAC Championships final for the first time since 2016, falling in a pair of one-run games to Concordia. The Wildcats also advanced to the NCAA West Regional and finished with a 33-20 overall record. The Wildcats led the GNAC with a .325 batting average.

Change is in the air for the Wildcats, however, as head coach Mike Larabee returned to the Division I ranks and was replaced by Alison Mitchell. Leading her nine returning starters is junior catcher Theresa Moyle, who finished with a .444 batting average while starting 17 games. She finished with 24 runs, seven home runs, 25 RBI and a .981 slugging percentage. Junior catcher/infielder Alycia Bannan earned Second Team All-GNAC honors after hitting .327 with 14 runs, 37 RBI and a .545 slugging percentage.

Junior pitcher Lexie Strasser leads four returning pitchers, all of whom had at least two starts last year. A Second Team All-GNAC selection, Strasser finished with a 17-13 record and 2.75 earned run average, allowing 77 earned runs in 196 innings.

Northwest Nazarene advanced to the GNAC Championships for the second straight season and finished with a 28-24 overall record. It is the second straight year that the Nighthawks finished with a winning record. The team has a number of holes to fill, though, with the loss of three First Team All-GNAC players.

The Nighthawks’ five position returners are headlined by Honorable Mention All-GNAC selections in senior catcher Brittany Genuardi and senior outfielder Madison Strickler. Genuardi had a .275 batting average and was among the conference leaders with 12 doubles, nine home runs and a .587 slugging percentage. Strickler finished with a .303 batting average, which included 13 hits and 13 RBI. Junior shortstop Ivy Hommel batted .349 in 25 games, finishing with 13 runs and 10 RBI.

The host school for this year’s GNAC Championships, Saint Martin’s hopes to move up from a predicted sixth-place finish for a spot in the postseason field. Junior outfielder Emery Norwood leads seven position returners for the Saints. The Second Team All-GNAC selection batted .337 in 2019 with 23 runs, seven RBI and 13 stolen bases. Junior catcher Devyn Connolly was an Honorable Mention All-GNAC choice after hitting .318 with 14 runs and 16 RBI. Senior pitcher Brandi Schoessler was also an honorable mention after compiling a 16-9 record and 4.16 earned run average.

Picked to repeat in seventh place, Montana State Billings returns 15 players for Lisa McKinney’s second tour as head coach. Junior outfielder Allie Hughes leads the team after earning Second Team All-GNAC honors last year with a .288 batting average, 23 RBI and a .520 slugging percentage. Senior outfielder Jolene House earned honorable mention after batting .348 in 25 games with a .416 on-base percentage. Sophomore Alyssa Etheridge leads the pitching staff after compiling nine wins, including a no-hitter, and a 5.10 earned run average.

Simon Fraser, picked to finish eighth, will have its third head coach in as many years as former Oregon State standout Tina Andreana begins her first season on Burnaby Mountain. The Clan is led by senior catcher Amanda Janes, who earned First Team All-GNAC distinction with a .282 batting average, six home runs, 30 RBI and a .521 slugging percentage. Junior utility player Kate Fergusson was a Second Team All-GNAC choice with a .364 batting average, 23 runs and 14 RBI.

All eight GNAC teams open the season on Friday, Jan. 31. Seven teams will compete in the Desert Stinger, hosted by Montana State Billings in Las Vegas, while Western Washington will compete in the Concordia Kickoff Classic in Irvine, California. Conference play begins on Saturday, Feb. 29, when Western Washington hosts Simon Fraser. The 2020 GNAC Championships will run from April 30 to May 2 at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, Washington.