INDIANAPOLIS - In a close vote, Trevecca Nazarene earned top billing at the top of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Softball Preseason Coaches Poll presented by Under Armour that was announced Monday.
The Trojans received five of the eight first-place votes while second-place Kentucky Wesleyan earned three first-place votes and was just two overall points off the TNU voting totals.
Voting for the preseason poll was conducted among the league’s coaches. TNU finished with 55 total voting points and KWC collected 53.
The conference has yet to experience a tournament champion other than Trevecca Nazarene and the Trojans have made their postseason impact at the NCAA Championship Midwest Regional the past two seasons.
TNU enters the spring with 150 total wins as a program in just four years as a member of the league along with a winning percentage of over .750. Even more impressive under head coach Ben Tyree is the 69-8 (.896) record through the conference schedule since 2013.
The Trojans had a conference-record 45 total wins in a single season to finish off the 2016 campaign.
In a competitive and always improving eight-team race, the quest for a TNU repeat for the fifth consecutive year remains one of the year’s biggest storylines in the G-MAC to monitor regardless of sport.
Keyed by reigning batting champ and G-MAC Freshman of the Year Meredith Daunhauer, Kentucky Wesleyan is ready to make noise at the top of the standings after finishing second in the league last season.
After carving a long path into the G-MAC Championship final that included playoff wins against Kentucky Wesleyan and Davis & Elkins, Cedarville will start the year at No. 3.
Davis & Elkins will start a new coaching era after being picked fourth to start the season; the Senators finished 2016 with 33 total wins. Ursuline will begin the year in fifth. Both D&E and Ursuline advanced to the six-team conference tournament a year ago.
Malone’s first year in the league has the Pioneers polled at sixth in a tie with Ohio Valley at 23 points each. Alderson Broaddus rounded out the voting by the coaches as teams continue to get ready for the regular season that will start in early February.
The conference will publish a softball season preview with interviews from coaches and student-athletes on Tuesday, Feb. 7.
2017 G-MAC Softball Preseason Coaches Poll presented by Under Armour
| School |
Points |
| 1. Trevecca Nazarene (5 first-place votes) |
55 |
| 2. Kentucky Wesleyan (3 first-place votes) |
53 |
| 3. Cedarville |
43 |
| 4. Davis & Elkins |
37 |
| 5. Ursuline |
33 |
| t6. Malone |
23 |
| t6. Ohio Valley |
15 |
| 8. Alderson Broaddus |
21 |