AMCC SB Preseason Poll

2008 SOFTBALL
PRESEASON COACHES' POLL

COACHES PICK PITT-BRADFORD
TO REPEAT AS SOFTBALL CHAMPS

Defending champion Pitt-Bradford has gotten the coaches' nod to win their fifth AMCC championship in six years. The 2006 title-holders, Penn State Behrend, were expected to challenge in the #2 spot, while last season's regular season champion and ECAC Southern Division titlist La Roche College was ranked third.

Last season's AMCC Player of the Year and ECAC Division III Southern Player of the Year Nikki Kaschauer (South Park, PA/South Park) gets the nod as Preseason Player of the Year for 2008. The Behrend team captain ranked third in the AMCC with a .438 batting average, and was first in hits (63) and RBI (39).

Teammate Julie Koman (McKees Rocks, PA/Montour HS) was selected as the Preseason Pitcher of the Year. The junior righthander, who won both Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year honors as a freshman, went 19-6 in 2007 with a league-best 1.56 ERA. She completed 20 games, striking out 175 in 170 innings. Koman was nationally ranked in ERA, strikeouts and wins. She also hit.375 with a pair of home runs.

The AMCC tournament will be May 2-4 at the site of the top seed. The winner of the tournament will receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

AMCC
SOFTBALL POLL
Preseason Rankings*

1 - Pitt-Bradford (2)
2 - Penn State Behrend (3)
3 - La Roche (1)
4 - Medaille (4)
5 - Lake Erie (6)
6 - Frostburg State (5)
7 - Pitt-Greensburg (7)
8- Penn State Altoona (8)
9 - Mount Aloysius (10)
10 - Hilbert (9)

* Number in parentheses is order of regular season finish in 2007

Preseason Player of the Year
NIKKI KASCHAUER
Penn State Behrend

Preseason Pitcher of the Year
JULIE KOMAN
Penn State Behrend

FROSTBURG STATE UNIVERSITY Head Coach Wes Landrum (3rd year) 2007: 11-7 AMCC, 16-19 overall
SR C Amanda Baldwin (Baltimore, MD/North County)...Started every game last season...all-conference honorable mention. SO P Katelyn Coffey (Middletown, MD/Middletown)...AMCC Co-Newcomer of the Year in 2007..recorded 9 wins and 5 shutouts...threw a perfect game against Penn St. Altoona...all-conference honorable mention selection.
HILBERT COLLEGE Head Coach Kerry Levett (2nd year) 2007: 3-15 AMCC, 4-28 overall
SR P/IF Laura Stranc (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca West)...2007 all-conference honorable mention...hit .395 against AMCC opponents...recipient of the Hilbert College Softball Coach's Award. SO CF Sarah Collins (Milroy, PA/Indian Valley)...Team Newcomer of the Year last season.
LA ROCHE COLLEGE Head Coach Orie Gentile (12th year) 2007: 16-2 AMCC, 29-15 overall
JR SS Vanessa Inks (Gibsonia, PA/Pine-Richland)...Hit .287 last season, second on the team with 27 RBIs...strong defensively with a .940 fielding percentage. SO IB Kayla Strittmater (Irwin, PA/Penn Trafford)...AMCC Co-Newcomer of the Year and all-conference honorable mention team...hit .286 with 19 RBIs...defensively boasted a .972 fielding percentage and 236 put-outs.
LAKE ERIE COLLEGE Head Coach Gary VanCauwenberge (6th Year) 2007: 11-7 AMCC, 13-16 overall
SR 1B/DH Shaina Vanderpool (Kingston, OH/Chillicothe)...NFCA all-region player last season and first team All-AMCC...batted over .400 overall and .500 in the AMCC...led team in on-base percentage. JR 3B/1B Brittney Binko (Warren, OH/John F. Kennedy)...Second team All-AMCC in 2007...batted over .300 overall and over .400 in AMCC...led team in RBIs and doubles... earned both AMCC and ECAC player of the week honors.
MEDAILLE COLLEGE Head Coach Robyn Ventura (6th Year) 2007: 12-6 AMCC, 15-18 overall
SR C Amanda Baker (Lyons, NY/Newark HS)...First team all-conference and a Northeast all-region selection...hit .442 last season with 24 RBI and a .716 slugging percentage...was a perfect 18 for 18 in stolen base attempts...near-flawless defensively with a .989 fielding percentage. SR IF Shannon Superczynski (Cheektowaga, NY/Villa Maria)...Hit .274 in 2007, driving in 16 runs.
MOUNT ALOYSIUS COLLEGE Head Coach Carl Teeter (1st year) 2007: 1-17 AMCC, 3-21 overall
SO 2B Brittany Aurand (McVeytown, PA/Mount Union)...Posted a .293 batting average last season, with 3 doubles, 2 triples and 5 RBI. FR SS Jena Isenberg (Martinsburg, PA/Central)...As a high school senior hit .477 with 7 HR and 55 hits.
PENN STATE ALTOONA Head Coach Nikki Runzo (1st year) 2007: 4-14 AMCC, 6-24 overall
SO C Kara Myers (Millheim, PA/Penns Valley)...Played and started all 30 games behind the plate last season...batted .256 with 21 hits, including 2 doubles, and 8 RBI...recorded 139 putouts and 19 assists while committing just 3 errors. FR P Emily Cummins (Spring Mills, PA/Penns Valley)...Pitched in 22 games, starting 15...led her team in innings pitched with 109...posted a 4.87 ERA.
PENN STATE BEHREND Head Coach Stacy Pondo (5th year) 2007: 13-5 AMCC, 21-16 overall
JR P Julie Koman (McKees Rocks, PA/Montour HS)...In 32 games, 19-6 with 1.56 ERA…completed 20 games…had 175 K’s in 170 innings…hit.375 with a pair of home runs…in AMCC play had a 7-1 record and 0.75 ERA…limited league opponents to .181 average… nationally ranked for ERA, K’s, and wins…AMCC Player and Newcomer of the Year in 2006…majoring in marketing. JR 2B Nikki Kaschauer (South Park, PA/South Park)...Team captain…batted .607 in AMCC Play with 16 RBI’s…led the team with .438 average, 11 doubles, 39 RBI’s…2007 AMCC Player of the Year…hitting streaks of 13 and 11 games in 2007…named ECAC Division III Southern Player of the Year…NCAA Northeast Region All-Tournament Team as freshman…majoring in communications.
PITT-BRADFORD Head Coach Tina Phillips (5th year) 2007: 14-4 AMCC, 20-19 overall
JR SS LeeAnn Kramer (Perkasie, PA/Penn Ridge)...First team All-AMCC in 2007...led the team at the plate with a .421 BA, ranked #5 in the conference...also team leader in RB! (30), third best in the AMCC...extra base hits included 9 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs...scored 20 runs. JR CF Michelle Kushner (McKees Rocks, PA/Sto-Rox)...Second team all-conference last season, first team in 2006...hit .303 with 23 RBI and 27 runs scored...also contributed 11 doubles, 2 triples and 1 home run.
PITT-GREENSBURG Head Coach Dana Munchinski (2nd year) 2007: 5-13 AMCC, 10-18 overall
JR 3B Kelly Welsh (Pittsburgh, PA/Oakland Catholic HS)...Led the Bobcats with a .443 batting average and a .682 slugging percentage...hit 6 doubles, 5 home runs and 24 RBI...first team all-conference the past two seasons. SO OF Shannon Bradburn (Pittsburgh, PA/Plum)...Second team All-AMCC as a freshman...hit .417 with a .440 on base percentage...led the team in runs scored (25) and hits (40).