Softball selected to repeat in MASCAC preseason poll

Westfield, Mass.— MCLA and Worcester State have been selected to win the 2016 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Softball Championship as voted on by the eight coaches from around the conference.

Both teams tallied 41 points in the poll while MCLA had one first place vote and Worcester State three. The Trailblazers finished last season with a 9-5 conference record and claimed the MASCAC Tournament title.  Returning is First Team All-Conference pitcher Rachel Quakenbush who finished the regular season first in ERA (1.65), strikeouts (179) and saves (3). She also tallied the second most wins with 10.

For the Lancers, they claimed the MASCAC Regular Season Title last season with an 11-3 record. Reigning MASCAC Pitcher of the Year Meghan Rich is back after tallying 15 wins, the most in the MASCAC, while also finishing with the second best ERA (1.93).

Earning the third spot is Bridgewater State with one first place vote for 37 points. The Bears had a 9-5 record at the end of the MASCAC regular season. All-Conference honoree Courtney Leddy returns for the squad after batting .390 with 23 RBI which were the fourth and fifth most in the league, respectively. She also was first in the conference with 41 hits and fourth in triples with three.

Grabbing the final three first place votes is Salem State with 35 points, good enough for fourth. The Vikings were 8-6 during the league schedule last season. 2015 MASCAC Rookie of the Year Marisa Sanchez is back for the team this year. She was third in the conference in batting average (.411) and stolen bases (9) while also having the best on-base percentage (.550) to close out the regular season.

Framingham State collected 24 points to land in fifth. Led by the 2015 MASCAC Player of the Year Tiffanie Marsh, the Rams finished the MASCAC regular season 7-7. Last season Marsh led the league in batting average (.423), second in home runs (5) and third in both on-base percentage (.474) and slugging percentage (.635).

Landing in the sixth slot is Fitchburg State with 20 points. The Falcons tallied five wins last season in league play. Returning for the team is All-Conference honoree Marissa Gemma who led the team with a .352 batting average, six doubles, five RBI and eight stolen bases.

Closing out the 2016 poll are Westfield State with 19 points and Massachusetts Maritime with seven points in seventh and eighth, respectively. The Owls were 7-7 during the 2015 MASCAC season. Maddy Atkocaitis is back for the team after a freshman campaign that saw her with the fifth best batting average (.388) in the conference and first in triples (8) and slugging percentage (.776). Alexis Jendzejec returns for the Buccaneers after batting .340 with five RBI, five doubles, four stolen bases and a .553 slugging percentage last season.

The MASCAC kicks off their 2016 schedule this weekend with non-conference play down in Florida.