MELBOURNE, Fla. – Sunshine State Conference softball coaches select Saint Leo University as the 2018 preseason favorite. The back-to-back SSC champions received 100 total votes and 10 first-place votes in the poll.
The University of Tampa comes in second with 84 votes after ending 2017 as conference runner-up. Palm Beach Atlantic University finishes third in the voting with 75 votes and the final first-place vote. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Rollins College round out the Top-5 in a tie for fourth-place at 59 votes.
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Saint Leo (37-15, 17-7) finished 2017 ranked No. 22 in the NFCA poll after winning the program’s third SSC title. The Lions received a hosting bid in the 2017 NCAA Division II Softball South Regional 2. A first in the history of Saint Leo's program. In the tournament, SLU fell to the University of North Alabama on Day 1 and the University of Alabama - Huntsville on Day 2, ending their tremendous season.
First pitch of the 2018 season comes on February 2nd with several teams playing tournaments on the road. League play opens up on February 16th with a full slate of games. NCAA Division II Softball Regionals and Super Regionals will be held at non-predetermined sites May 10th - May 18th. Finals are to be held Thursday, May 24th - Monday, May 28th at the Moyer Sports Complex in Salem, Virginia. The Mountain East Conference and City of Salem will serve as co-hosts of the event.
Below are the full results of the 2018 SSC preseason coaches’ poll. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their teams (points: 11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).
2018 SSC SOFTBALL PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Rank
1
2
3
T4
T4
6
7
8
9
10
11 |
School (FPV)
Saint Leo (10)
Tampa
Palm Beach Atlantic (1)
Embry-Riddle
Rollins
Nova Southeastern
Lynn
Florida Tech
Barry
Eckerd
Florida Southern |
Total Votes
100
84
75
59
59
58
50
49
25
24
22 |
SSC Softball History: National Championships | Conference Champions | All-SSC Teams