Softball Preseason Pick to Win 2007 BIG EAST Championship
January 10, 2007 | Softball
Jan. 10, 2007
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- - Louisville has been selected to finish first in the 2007 BIG EAST Softball Preseason poll, voted on by the league's head coaches, who were not permitted to vote for their own teams. Only six votes separated the Cardinals and second place USF (110 pts). Notre Dame was picked to finish third with 104 points.
"It is an honor that we were chosen as the preseason number one team in the conference," said U of L head coach Sandy Pearsall. "Having said that, we also know that there are a lot of very strong teams in the league and any of them- especially those chosen in the top four - could be number one at the end of the year."
The Cards are coming off of a 2006 season which will go down in the books as the most successful in U of L softball history. The Cardinals posted a program-best 45-11 record and went 19-3 in their first year of BIG EAST play to clinch the regular season championship. Louisville put together a program-best 17 game winning streak before falling to Notre Dame 1-0 in the finals of the conference tournament. They went on to receive their third consecutive NCAA at-large bid and for the first time in school history, advanced to the finals of the regional where they lost to fifth-ranked and 2006 WCWS participant Tennessee. U of L also made its first appearance in the top 25 rankings in 2006, finishing the season at No. 17 in the USA Today/NFCA and No. 18 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball polls.
Louisville returns six starters and 10 letterwinners from last year's team, including 2006 BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year and NFCA All-South region second team member senior Catherine Bishop. Also back for the Cards are three-time all-conference third baseman senior Audrey Rendon and two-time all-conference shortstop senior Courtney Moore. Three-year starter Candi Hicks rounds out a veteran senior class.
U of L opens the 2007 season at the Florida International Tournament Feb. 9-11 in Miami. The Cards will take on Oklahoma Feb. 9 at 10 a.m. and Illinois at 2 p.m.
2007 BIG EAST Softball Preseason Poll
1 - Louisville (7)2 - USF (4)3 - Notre Dame (1)4 - DePaul5 - Syracuse6 - Pittsburgh7 - Providence8 - St. John's9 - Villanova10- Connecticut11- Seton Hall12- Rutgers(-) Number of First Place Votes
