INDIANAPOLIS— For the second straight year, the Hillsdale Chargers were voted in the preseason coaches poll to win the 2025 Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) softball title.
 
The announcement, made on Wednesday, revealed the rankings of all 14 teams, with Hillsdale securing the top spot. Just two years ago Hillsdale took home their third G-MAC title and made a strong run in the Midwest regional tournament. Last season, they were knocked out in the opening round of the tournament, however, they sported an impressive 34-14 record to finish the season. The Chargers garnered seven first-place votes for a total of 149 points.
 
Hillsdale will return a strong core of All-Conference First Team members in senior pitcher Joni Russell and junior outfielder Maggie Olaveson. Russell is still looking to keep her strong collegiate journey going, having been named an All-American in 2023. The teams’ offense was in their prime spot in 2024, where they scored a season-high 11 runs in a game twice and 10 runs in a game five times. The Chargers will also see Head Coach Kyle Gross return for his sixth campaign.
 
The Ohio Dominican Panthers finished just three points behind Hillsdale, earning 140 points and three first-place votes to land in second place. The Panthers will be without a few players due to graduation but will return standout senior Kaleigh Golden who accounted for a team-high 37 runs last season. She also had the second-highest batting average on the team with a .348. Junior Marlee Jacobs will also look to help keep the Panthers towards the top of the table, coming off a 3.69 ERA in 2024.
 
Rounding out the top three, Northwood University earned 136 points, good for third place. Right behind the Timberwolves sit Findlay and Tiffin with 129 and 109 points, respectively. The Timberwolves returns All-Conference First Team senior Brittany Steimel. She knocked an incredible .335 batting average with 56 hits and 10 home runs to go alongside 42 RBIs.

For the Oilers, they return several key contributors for the team including All-Conference First Team pitcher Alexys Antal and shortstop Annika Bredel. The Oilers topped the G-MAC in team batting average with a mark of .305 and also finished sixth in pitching with a 2.96 ERA.
 
Tiffin enters the season with high hopes after a strong 2024 season where they finished with an overall record of 29-24. They finished fifth in the conference in batting average with .285, but finished third in home runs with 31. Their All-Conference First Team second baseman, Maddie Woods, returns to the team in 2025.
 
After the top five, Cedarville came in sixth with 100 points, followed by Ashland with 82 points in seventh. The Yellow Jacket’s 2024 season was highlighted by an incredible run as a sixth seed into the semifinal round of the G-MAC tournament. Ashland will look to newly hired Head Coach Jackie Price to revitalize the program in 2025 after a 19-26 record.
 
Malone and Walsh came in eighth and ninth with 80 and 76 points, followed by Kentucky Wesleyan and Thomas More doing the same with 59 and 56 points.
 
Capping off the preseason poll comes Ursuline with 36 points and Lake Erie with 31.

Team	Points
1. Hillsdale (7)	149
2. Ohio Dominican (3)	140
3. Northwood (2)	136
4. Findlay	129
5. Tiffin	109
6. Cedarville	100
7. Ashland	82
8. Malone	80
9. Walsh	76
10. Kentucky Wesleyan	59
11. Thomas More	56
12. Ursuline	36
13. Lake Erie	31