VALDOSTA, Ga. – Fresh off a NCAA College World Series appearance and finishing sixth nationally in the final National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25, the Valdosta State University softball team was voted second in the 2022 Gulf South Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, announced Thursday by the league office.
Auburn Montgomery was named league-favorite with seven first-place votes and 138 total points, while VSU tallied 136 points and five, first-place nods. Following the Blazers on the poll were Alabama Huntsville in third with 120 points, West Florida was selected fourth with one first-place vote and 116 points. West Georgia was picked fifth with 98 points to round out the top five.
Mississippi College was selected sixth with 90 points, followed by Montevallo (70), Lee (69), Delta State (55) and West Alabama rounded out the top ten with 51 points. Union was picked 11th with 31 points, followed by Christian Brothers (27) and Shorter was 13th.
The Blazers clinched the 2021 South Regional title last year after downing UWF twice on the final day of competition to advance to the program's fifth College World Series (2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2021). VSU needed to beat UWF twice and came up with a pair of thrilling, two-run victories, winning 4-2
in the opener and 6-4 in the second game.
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2022 PRESEASON POLL
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SCHOOL (First-Place Votes)
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TOTAL PTS
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1
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Auburn Montgomery (7)
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138
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2
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Valdosta State (5)
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136
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3
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Alabama Huntsville
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120
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4
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West Florida (1)
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116
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5
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West Georgia
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98
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6
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Mississippi College
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90
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7
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Montevallo
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70
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8
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Lee
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69
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9
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Delta State
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55
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10
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West Alabama
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51
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11
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Union
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31
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12
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Christian Brothers
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27
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13
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Shorter
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13
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|
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In addition to the 2022 Preseason Coaches Poll, the Blazer softball team also has the honor of highlighting senior infielder Nicole Pennington, junior pitcher Samantha Richards and sophomore utility/pitcher Morgan Hill to the 2022 Softball Preseason All-GSC team.
Pennington, a native of Palm Bay, Fla., had a stellar season last year, leading the nation in homers with 24. She was also named GSC Player of the Year, D2CCA South Region Player of the Year, South Region Tournament Most Outstanding Player, and earned D2CCA and NFCA First Team All-America honors. Pennington was a finalist for the Schutt Sports/NFCA National Player of the Year in 2021.
Richards comes off an outstanding season in 2021 in the circle, where she was named GSC Pitcher of the year, having a 27-8 record on the year, a 1.36 earned run average, and amassed 237 strikeouts throughout the year. The Alpharetta, Ga. product was also a D2CCA Second Team All-America honoree.
Hill, a native of Lake Park, Ga., earned NFCA Third Team All-America honors and also was a D2CCA Honorable Mention selection last season. She also made her first appearance on the GSC All-Academic Team. Hill finished with a .345 batting average, 20 home runs, 46 RBI, a .745 slugging percentage and a .407 on-base percentage in 165 at-bats.
Two additions to the Blazer roster, Abby Sulte and Ally Clegg, were featured as VSU's picks for the 2022 GSC Newcomer Watchlist.
Sulte, a junior transfer from Northwest Florida State College, was named to the NFCA All-America Second Team last season for the Raiders and hit a NJCAA Region VIII-best 20 home runs and drove in 67 runs, good for second-best in the region. She led the Raiders with a .871 slugging percentage and was 31st in the country with 148 total bases. For the season, Sulte batted .435 with a .503 on-base percentage. In her career at Northwest Florida, she collected 31 home runs and 117 hits.
Clegg comes from NCAA Division I school Coastal Carolina as a graduate transfer. In her senior season for the Chanticleers, she played in 36 games, starting 33, and had a .244 batting average along with four doubles, one home run, and 12 RBI.
Before Coastal Carolina, Clegg spent time at Chipola College in Marianna, Fla. There, she hit .358 with 11 home runs, drove in 59 runs, scored 61 bases, and had 41 stolen bases in her sophomore season. She was named the 2019 NJCAA National Championship "Most Outstanding Defensive Player," and helped lead Chipola to back-to-back conference championships. She was a two-time FCSAA State Champion and was named to the 2019 FCSAA State Tournament Team.
Head coach Thomas Macera, entering his 16th year at Valdosta State, alongside assistant coach Shelby Hill and graduate assistants Caylee Hancock and Avery Lamb start the 2022 campaign at the Gulf Shores Invitational, Feb. 4-6, 2022, in Gulf Shores, Ala. The Blazers' first weekend schedule features two teams who competed in the 2021 NCAA National Championship round, including defending national champion West Texas A&M and North Georgia, along with Rollins and Lubbock Christian, who both qualified for the NCAA postseason, along with a tough Spring Hill College team who qualified for the NCAA postseason in 2019.
The Blazers open with Rollins College, on Feb. 4 at 4:15 p.m. ET. VSU ended Rollins' season in 2021 in the South Regional in Valdosta. On Saturday, Feb. 5, VSU battles West Texas A&M at 10 a.m. as the teams haven't met since the national championship game in 2014. Concluding the second day of play, the Blazers battle Spring Hill College at 2:30 p.m. ET as the teams last met in the NCAA postseason in 2019. Sunday's action features a game against Lubbock Christian at 12:15 p.m. ET and then VSU is scheduled to conclude the tournament at 2:30 p.m. ET against North Georgia, who ended the Blazers' season in the College World Series on May 28, 2021.
Macera was inducted into the 2022 VSU Athletic Hall of Fame last week. He is 699-202-2 at Valdosta State in 16 seasons. He has won a national championship, five regional championships and seven GSC titles during his 16-year career in Titletown. Macera is among the top three winningest active coaches in the nation, and he has established himself as one of the best to ever do it at the NCAA Division II level. The 699 victories are the more than every other coach in VSU history combined.
Last season, the Blazers hit a staggering 109 home runs for the season to lead the nation in only 49 games, finishing the season with a 38-11 record overall and a 25-5 mark in the GSC to tie for the regular season title. The 109 home runs hit by VSU this season marked the third-most home runs in the history of NCAA Division II. Humboldt State hit 114 homers in 2013 in 67 games, while Metro State (Colo.) hit 112 in 2010 in 59 games. VSU averaged 2.22 home runs per game to lead the nation, and a new NCAA Division II national record. Colorado Mesa held the previous record of 1.93 home runs per game set in 2006 in 43 games with 83 home runs.
Following the Gulf Shores Invitational, VSU will play regional doubleheaders against Tampa and Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, Fla., Feb. 11-12. The Blazers are scheduled to open the 2022 home slate with a pivotal GSC series against rival Alabama Huntsville, Feb. 19-20, at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park.
For all information on Blazer softball, visit vstateblazers.com or follow Valdosta State Athletics on social media.
