HARTSVILLE, S.C. - The Coker Colllege softball team has been picked by conference coaches to finish second South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll as announced by the league. The Cobras finished last season with the second best record and also finished as the runner-up in the South Atlantic Conference Softball Championship. The team also advanced to the NCAA Southeast Regionals for the first time in 11 years by earning the fourth seed.
Individually, both Christine Carver and Maria Williamson were honored by the league as Preseason First Team All-South Atlantic Conference selections.
Carver, a junior from Waxhaw, North Carolina, had a breakout season last year for the Navy and Gold. Carver was named the South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Week on three occasions and was also named the Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week once. The 2018 all-conference and all-region member ranked second in the South Atlantic Conference with a 1.87 ERA, third in South Atlantic Conference in wins with 19, and fourth in strikeouts with 144 on the season.
Williamson, a senior from Laurens, South Carolina, continued her run as one of the standout softball players in Coker history last year by leading the South Atlantic Conference in batting average (.454), on base percentage (.526), and hits (74). Williamson also finished third in the conference in RBIs (52) and fifth in homeruns (10). This will be Williamson's second preseason all-conference selection after being selected to the first team last year. Along with her preseason selection, she was named the the South Atlantic Conference All-Tournament Team, First Team All-South Atlantic Conference, NFCA DII First Team All-Southeast Region, D2CCA Southeast Region Second Team, and to cap it off Williamson was named an NFCA All-American.
The Cobras will open their 2019 campaign on Feb. 3 with a doubleheader on the road at Mount Olive.
2019 South Atlantic Conference Preseason Softball Poll
|
Rank |
School (First-Place Votes) |
Total |
|
1. |
Lenoir-Rhyne (10) |
110 |
|
2. |
Coker |
91 |
|
3. |
Carson-Newman |
87 |
|
4. |
Wingate (1) |
83 |
|
5. |
Anderson |
75 |
|
6. |
Queens |
69 |
|
7. |
Newberry |
64 |
|
8. |
Lincoln Memorial |
45 |
|
9. |
Catawba |
32 |
|
10. |
Tusculum |
31 |
|
11. |
Mars Hill |
28 |
2019 South Atlantic Conference Softball
Preseason All-Conference
1st Team
OF – Erin Boone, Lenoir-Rhyne
OF – Meghan Majeski, Anderson
OF – Haley Caldwell, Carson-Newman
1B – Maria Williamson, Coker
2B – Ty-Kella Goins, Lincoln Memorial
SS – Natalie Willis, Newberry
3B – Talon LaClair, Lenoir-Rhyne
DP – Haley Simonds, Newberry
UTL – Abby Fiessinger, Carson-Newman
C – Jordan Hunt, Queens
P – Emily Kenley, Lenoir-Rhyne
P – Christine Carver, Coker
P – Lacie Rinus, Carson-Newman
2nd Team
OF – Tori Caldwell, Newberry
OF – Sara Ingoldsby, Queens
OF – Allie Jones, Lincoln Memorial
1B – Kylee Leonhardt, Lenoir-Rhyne
2B – Sydney Ditto, Queens
SS – Ragan Broome, Mars Hill
3B – Breanna Hagerty, Anderson
DP – Aubrey Reep, Wingate
UTL – Kelsie Hocutt, Lincoln Memorial
C – Taylor Wells, Wingate
P – Brandi Parks, Lenoir-Rhyne