 |  |
UNCG tabbed eighth in SoCon preseason poll
SPARTANBURG, SC – UNC Greensboro has been selected to finish eighth in the preseason Southern Conference softball poll as chosen by the leagues eight head coaches. In addition, senior first baseman Jennifer Bonilla earned Preseason All-SoCon second team honors.
Georgia Southern was tabbed as the league favorite with five first-place votes and 46 total votes. Georgia Southern, the 2006 Southern Conference tournament champions, edged out Chattanooga, which had 37 total votes. Western Carolina, whhich won the 2006 regular season title, earned one first-place vote and was predicted to finish third, while College of Charleston picked up two first-place votes and earned a fourth-place nod.
Appalachian State was selected to finish fifth with 24 points, followed by Elon with 19 points and Furman with 17 points. UNCG was selected eighth with 11 points.
Bonilla, a native of Hopes Mill, NC, leads an outstanding class of six seniors for second year head coach Jennifer Herzig. Bonilla was a 2006 Pre-season All-Southern Conference first-team selection and was named to the All-Southern Conference second team. In 2006, Bonilla hit a team-leading .332 (56-of-174) with 17 runs scored and 22 RBI. She also led the Spartans with 12 doubles and tallied one triple and two home runs.
The Spartans head to Florida to open the 2007 campaign at the Jacksonville University Tournament from February 9-11. UNCG returns to the UNCG Softball Stadium to host the Spartan Classic over the weekend of Feb. 16-18. The Spartans will welcome Campbell, Ohio, Kent State and Morehead State.
AGATE
2007 SoCon Preseason Softball Poll
Georgia Southern
(5)
46
Chattanooga
37
Western Carolina
(1)
36
College of Charleston
(2)
34
Appalachian
State
24
Elon
19
Furman
17
UNC
Greensboro
11
Preseason All-SoCon Softball First Team
P
Melissa Laliberte, Georgia Southern
P Mendy
McKenzie, Western Carolina
C Kristyn
Hurt, Appalachian State
1B Heather Smith, Georgia
Southern
2B Paige Goss, Elon
3B Lindsey Glover,
Appalachian State
SS Tara Tembey,
Chattanooga
OF Jeannie Cochran,
Chattanooga
OF Amber Kiser,
Furman
OF Ashley Adams, Western
Carolina
DP Shannon Howard,
College of Charleston
UT Heather Pritchard,
Western Carolina
Preseason All-SoCon Softball Second Team
P
Keri Blackwelder, Appalachian State
P Ashley
Frizell, Chattanooga
C Megan
Jaudon, Furman
1B Jennifer
Bonilla, UNC Greensboro
2B Brittany
Whittier, Chattanooga
3B Maria Laurato, Georgia
Southern
SS Tracey Dahlen,
Elon
OF Natalie Willis,
Appalachian State
OF Izmena Cabrera,
College of Charleston
OF Rebecca Rijavec,
Elon
DP Savannah Filley,
Western Carolina
UT Debbie Ziegler,
Elon
- UNCG -
