James Madison Tops CAA Softball Preseason Poll
RICHMOND, Va. (Feb. 4, 2020) – James Madison has been chosen as the unanimous favorite to capture the 2020 CAA Softball title by a vote of the league’s eight head coaches. Coaches could not vote for their own team.
James Madison received 49 points and seven first-place votes, while Elon captured 40 points and one first-place vote. Charleston and Drexel were tabbed third and fourth, respectively, and were separated by just one point. Towson, Hofstra, UNCW and Delaware rounded out the poll.
James Madison comes into 2020 ranked No. 18 in the USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll and No. 20 in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division I Top 25 Poll. The 2019 season saw the Dukes capture their third CAA title in four years and make a run to the NCAA Los Angeles Super Regional. 2019 CAA Coach of the Year Loren LaPorte led the Dukes to a 51-10 overall record and a 20-1 record in CAA play, becoming the first CAA team to win 20 league games in a season.
2019 CAA Player of the Year Odicci Alexander and Kate Gordon return to lead the Dukes. Alexander was among the top pitchers in the CAA last season, posting a 1.70 ERA and tossing 178 strikeouts. She finished with 24-1 record in the circle. Gordon set a new CAA record for home runs in a season with 23 and closed the year with a .421 batting average at the plate.
Elon finished 2019 second in the CAA with a 13-7 record in league play and was the runner-up to JMU at the CAA Championship. Elon’s appearance in the CAA title game was its first in program history. With just two seniors and a graduate student on the roster, Elon comes into 2020 as one of the youngest teams in the CAA. Leading that youth will be 2019 CAA Co-Rookie of the Year, Megan White. White, a sophomore catcher, topped all Phoenix hitters last season with a .320 batting average at 10 home runs. In the field, she tallied zero errors to finish the year with a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Charleston closed the 2019 campaign with a 26-30 overall record and finished tied for fourth in the CAA with a 9-12 record in league play. Yari Felix and Lexee Emanuel return as the Cougars’ top hitters from 2019. Felix posted a .310 batting average, while Emanuel led the team with four home runs.
Drexel will be looking to Linda Rush and Kristi DiMeo to build upon a strong 2019 campaign that saw the Dragons finish tied for fourth in the CAA and wrap up the season with a 32-27-1 record. Rush spent her 2019 campaign rewriting the CAA record book, setting the single-season record in runs (71) and runs batted in (80), and finishing second to Gordon with 22 home runs last season. Rush currently holds the CAA career record for home runs with 49. She was also named a Softball America Preseason Third Team All-American and earned a spot on Softball America’s Top 100 players of 2020.
Towson finished third in the CAA last season with a 10-11 league record and finished 27-27 overall. Towson returns 17 student-athletes, including senior Julia Smith-Harrington who led the team and CAA last year in doubles (18). She was also named to the CAA All-Second Team after having a .323 batting average with eight home runs and 39 RBIs. In the circle for Towson, she had a 2.20 ERA, 6-3 overall record and 58 strikeouts.
2019 CAA Co-Rookie of the Year Meghan Giordano and 2019 CAA Defensive Player of the Year Kristin Hallam return to lead the Hofstra Pride in 2020. Giordano led the Pride with a .378 batting average and 10 home runs last season. Hallam batted .358 a year ago.
The 2020 CAA Softball Championship will be hosted by James Madison for the seventh straight season and take place at the Dukes’ Veterans Memorial Park. The five-team tournament is set to begin Wednesday, May 6, with the championship game scheduled for Friday, May 8.
2020 CAA Softball Predicted Order of Finish
(First-Place Votes in Parenthesis) |
| 1. |
James Madison – 49 (7) |
| 2. |
Elon – 40 (1) |
| 3. |
Charleston - 29 |
| 4. |
Drexel - 28 |
| 5. |
Towson – 25 |
| 6. |
Hofstra – 22 |
| 7. |
UNCW – 19 |
| 8. |
Delaware – 12 |