Softball Tabs Third in NEC Coaches Poll
The Northeast Conference announced the 2024 softball coach's poll. The Blue Devils were picked third of the nine teams that will vie for the NEC Championship.
LIU Softball emerged as the favorite to win the Northeast Conference. This would be LIU's unprecedented 16th Northeast Conference championship. They were voted the favorites in the 2024 campaign according to the league's head coaches, who awarded the Sharks seven first-place votes. Perennial power Saint Francis U is in a customary position near the top, having been picked second in the poll after taking the remaining two first-place votes. Accounting for each of the past seven tournament championships, LIU and Saint Francis U have combined for 20 NEC Tournament titles, including a league record 15 for the Sharks.
Central Connecticut was led by the 2023 NEC Coaching Staff of the Year and NEC Pitcher of the Year Kaylee Whittaker. The Blue Devils returned to the postseason in 2023 after a ninth-place showing in the league standings the year before in 2022. The resurgent Blue Devils rode the strength of Whittaker's right arm to the tune of their second 20-win campaign since 2021 and a second-place finish in the league standings last season.
With the return of all six of their all-conference selections — including a trio of first-teamers — head coach Breanna Gleason and her Central Connecticut squad are in position to make a legitimate run for the program's first NEC title since 2015.
KEY RETURNERS:
Kaylee Whittaker - 2023 NEC Pitcher of the Year (the second Blue Devil pitcher to be honored with this award in program history) ... First Team All-Northeast Conference... Appeared in 32 games, making 30 starts... Went 20-11 in the pitching circle, striking out 117 batters in 206.2 innings... Led the conference in innings pitched (206.2) and wins (20)… Was tabbed the NEC Pitcher of the Week on March 21 after she capped off a 5-0 week with a 13-inning triumph over Wagner.
Paige Stringer - 2023 First Team All-Northeast Conference... NEC All-Tournament Team... Played in 36 games this season... Hit .381 with 43 hits, 20 runs scored, and 24 RBIs... Hit seven home runs... Led the team in runs (20), hits (43), home runs (7), batting average (.381), on-base percentage (.418), and slugging percentage (.619)… Led the conference in slugging percentage... Finished with a .954 fielding percentage at third base.
Meg Gorman - 2023 NEC Most Improved Player... First Team All-Northeast Conference... Played in 35 games... raised her average from .224 in 2022 to .266 this year, with 18 runs scored and nine RBIs... Hit three home runs... Led the team and the conference in stolen bases (17)... Finished with a .974 fielding percentage in the outfield... Went 2-2 with a homer in CCSU's win over FDU on 4/14.
Ashlyn Desaulniers - 2023 Second Team All-Northeast Conference... NEC All-Rookie Team... Played in 36 games... Hit .281 with 32 hits, 19 runs scored, and 10 RBIs... Hit two home runs and stole 14 bases... Finished with a .960 fielding percentage in the outfield... Hit her first collegiate home run in CCSU's win over Wagner on 3/19... Went 2-3 against FDU on 4/14 with a home run... MLB Home Run Derby X Contestant.
The Blue Devils open up on February 10th at home vs Saint Peters with a doubleheader (12 & 2).
