BAY CITY, Mich. - The Saginaw Valley State University softball team has been chosen to finish in 9th place by the head coaches of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).
The Cardinals finished with 73 points in the poll, 25 points behind the University of Findlay, which was picked 8th.
GVSU finished on top of the 2014 GLIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll after a trip to the 2013 College World Series, where the Lakers were one of the final four teams standing in Salem, Virginia. GVSU was 46-9 last season and 24-2 in GLIAC play, winning the league's regular season title before claiming the Midwest Regional championship by winning a best-of-three series at #1 Indianapolis. The Lakers tallied 159 points and six first-place votes.
Wayne State University grabbed second in the poll with 155 points and six first-place votes. WSU was the 2012 & 2013 GLIAC Tournament Champion and earned a spot in the NCAA D-II Midwest Regional Tournament last year. Ashland University placed third in the poll with 147 points and two first-place votes, followed by Ferris State University with 122 points to come in fourth.
Ohio Dominican University collected 113 points, just edging out Northwood University (111 points) for fifth place. Tiffin University grabbed seventh place and tallied 101 points, followed by the University of Findlay with 98 to finish in eighth place.
Saginaw Valley University grabbed 73 points to finish the poll in ninth place. Hillsdale College tallied 65 points to finish 10th in the poll while Walsh University would finish 11th with 52 points. Lake Superior State University finished 12th with 36 points, followed by Malone University in 13th (26 points) and Lake Erie College in 14th with 16 points.
This season, the GLIAC Softball Tournament will be played at Marathon Diamonds in Findlay, Ohio on May 2-4.
For more information about GLIAC softball please visit the GLIAC softball web page at: www.gliac.org.
Saginaw Valley State Cardinals
Head Coach: Todd Buckingham
2nd Season
2014 Preaseason Pick: 9th
OVERVIEW: The Saginaw Valley State University women's softball team is returning this 2014 season after a 16-22 overall record in 2013. They posted a 12-12 record in the GLIAC, finishing 9th overall. There will be 11 letterwinners returning with 9 letterwinners lost, including three returning pitchers and only one lost. Of the position players returning and lost there are seven of each.
Top infielder Lindsay Hayward will be returning to 1st base as a senior this season. Hayward batted cleanup for the Cardinals, posting a batting average of .364 with 40 hits, 27 RBI's and six homeruns in 2013, as she played in all 38 games. Hayward also held a fielding percentage of .996, committing only one error on the season. Also returning to the infield is junior Amanda Kimes. In 2013, Kimes competed in 34 games and had a batting average of .244 with 19 hits, 10 RBI's and one homerun.
Coming back this season to lead the outfield for Saginaw Valley are juniors Mackenzie Rousse and Jordan Randall. Rousse finished 2013 playing 34 games with a .242 batting average, including 23 hits, 19 runs and 10 RBIs. In the field, Rousse held a .965 fielding percentage, committing only two errors on the season. Randall competed in 33 games for the Cardinals, hitting .306 batting with 26 hits, 16 runs and 12 RBI's. Randall finished the season with a .915 fielding percentage.
The Cardinals have three sophomores returning to the mound this season. Chelsea Davis completed 2013 with a 4-2 record and an ERA of 4.73 while striking out 15. Sarah Appold recorded an impressive 34 strikeouts, holding a 4.58 ERA and final record of 3-3. Also returning for Saginaw Valley is Sarah Vrabel, who ended the season with a 2-2 record and a .3.28 ERA with 15 strikeouts. Also returning for SVSU after a year off is senior Alexa Gehrls. Gehrls last pitched in 2012, starting 22 games and posting a 2.33 ERA in 150.1 innings of work. She had a 15-8 record with 17 complete games that year.
Head Coach Todd Buckingham will be returning for his 2nd season at Saginaw Valley State. Buckingham holds a 16-22 overall record at SVSU and a 12-12 record in the GLIAC.