| 2019 PacWest Softball Preseason Poll |
| 1. |
Concordia (7) |
89 |
| 2. |
Biola (1) |
82 |
| 3. |
Azusa Pacific |
80 |
| 4. |
Hawai`i Hilo |
66 |
| 5. |
Academy of Art (2) |
62 |
| 6. |
Hawai`i Pacific |
46 |
| 7. |
Chaminade |
43 |
| 7. |
Dominican |
43 |
| 9. |
Notre Dame de Namur |
20 |
| 10. |
Holy Names |
19 |
| First-place votes in parenthesis |
PRESEASON ALL-PACWEST TEAM
IRVINE, Calif. – With the 2018 PacWest Freshman of the Year and Pitcher of the Year
Callie Nunes back on its roster for 2019, Concordia was selected by the PacWest coaches as the preseason favorite to defend the conference title this season. Hawai`i Hilo’s utility player
Brinell Kaleikini was named by the coaches as the PacWest Preseason Player of the Year.
Concordia wrapped up the 2018 regular season by winning 23 of its final 24 games, including the final 14 games in a row to win its first PacWest title in program history. The Eagles received seven of the 10 first-place votes as the PacWest coaches picked the Eagles to repeat the title.
Nunes is the PacWest Preseason Pitcher of the Year coming off a record-breaking season. As a freshman she recorded 23 wins with a 0.76 ERA as she struck out 268 batters in 175.1 innings of work. She registered nine shutouts and eight saves as she held opposing hitters to a .128 batting average. She is joined on the Preseason All-PacWest team by third baseman
Amanda Gjertsen, who had 58 hits last season with 41 RBIs.
Biola also returns its ace and is picked second in the preseason poll with one first-place vote.
Paige Austin was named to the Preseason All-PacWest team after recording 15 wins in her freshman season. She had 151 strikeouts, which ranked third in the conference, and she tallied four complete games to go along with six saves. The Eagles also have three position players on the Preseason All-PacWest team after they helped the Eagles go 33-19 overall in the 2018 season.
Kayla Neff,
Areana Ramos and
Hailey Boyett each batted over .300 last season led by Ramos, who had 20 extra-base hits.
The 2016 PacWest Champion Azusa Pacific is third in the coaches poll after going 15-17 in PacWest play last year. The Cougars return both of their middle infielders, who are Preseason All-PacWest selections.
Amanda Woods and
Cayla Broussard were the team leaders in batting average as both recorded a .353 mark. Broussard had a team-high 54 base-hits, while Woods racked up 65 total bases with 27 RBIs. Azusa Pacific also brings back its starting pitcher
Kat Ung, who had a 13-10 record with a 2.14 ERA as a sophomore last season.
Hawai`i Hilo was picked fourth by the PacWest coaches after graduating one of the best sluggers in PacWest history in
Bailey Gaspar. However, the Vulcans do return the Preseason PacWest Player of the Year. Kaleikini had a .624 slugging percentage last year as she drove in 39 runs with 21 extra-base hits. Kaleikini is a utility player who played significant time behind the plate last season. The Vulcans added
Valerie Alvarado to pitch after going 10-1 with a 1.80 ERA at Indian River (Fla.) last year.
Academy of Art earned two first-place votes after going 22-10 in the PacWest last season and advancing to the NCAA West Regional. The Urban Knights are picked fifth, and they return one Preseason All-PacWest selection in
Gabi Hirsh. The outfielder was a third-team All-PacWest selection last year after batting .337 with 30 steals and 43 runs. The Urban Knights are under the leadership of
Alex Gomez, who is coming off a five-year stint at Vacaville Christian High School where she had a 72-33 all-time record.
Hawai`i Pacific is picked sixth in the poll ahead of Chaminade and Dominican, who are tied for seventh. The Sharks are coming off a their second-consecutive winning season in the PacWest. Dominican’s
McKenzie Schumacher is a Preseason All-PacWest outfielder after leading the conference with 44 stolen bases last year to go along with 57 base-hits.
Notre Dame de Namur and Holy Names round out the preseason poll. The Argonauts have a new head coach in
Katlin Olesky, who is looking to help the Argonauts improve on their nine wins last year. Holy Names added to its roster
Cienna Cheshier who was the lone freshman on the Preseason All-PacWest team. She was a four-year starter at Rodriguez High School, where she was a nominee for Female Student Athlete of the Year.
The 2019 season will begin on February 1 as five PacWest teams go to Las Vegas to compete in the annual Desert Stinger Tournament. Concordia will open the season against Northwest Nazarene and Sonoma State in the first day, while Azusa Pacific takes on San Francisco State and defending NCAA West Regional Champion Chico State. Hawai`i Pacific will start its season against defending CCAA runner-up UC San Diego that night, while Hawai`i Hilo faces Sonoma State and Central Washington. Gomez will make her coaching debut with Academy of Art against Stanislaus State before facing 2017 CCAA Champion Cal State Monterey Bay.
The conference season gets into full swing on February 22 with Hawai`i Pacific going to Chaminade and Biola visiting Concordia for the first meeting between the top two teams in the preseason poll. The regular season concludes on May 4 with Dominican hosting Academy of Art for a doubleheader.
| 2019 PRESEASON ALL-PACWEST SOFTBALL TEAM |
| Name |
School |
Pos. |
Class |
B/T |
Hometown/Previous School |
| Kayla Neff |
Biola |
C |
Jr. |
R/R |
Huntington Beach, Calif. / Edison |
| Cienna Cheshier |
Holy Names |
1B |
Fr. |
R/R |
Fairfield, Calif. / Rodriguez |
| Amanda Woods |
Azusa Pacific |
2B |
So. |
R/R |
Glendora, Calif. / Glendora |
| Amanda Gjertsen |
Concordia |
3B |
Jr. |
R/R |
Mission Viejo, Calif. / Capistrano Valley |
| Cayla Broussard |
Azusa Pacific |
SS |
Sr. |
L/R |
Clovis, Calif. / Clovis |
| Gabi Hirsch |
Academy of Art |
OF |
Jr. |
L/R |
Huntington Beach, Calif. / Huntington Beach |
| McKenzie Schumacher |
Dominican |
OF |
Jr. |
L/R |
Merced, Calif. / El Capitan |
| Areana Ramos |
Biola |
OF |
Sr. |
R/R |
Ontario, Calif. / Ontario Christian |
| Hailey Boyett |
Biola |
DP |
Sr. |
R/R |
San Diego / Horizon Christian Academy |
| Brinell Kaleikini * |
Hawai`i Hilo |
Util |
Jr. |
R/R |
Honolulu / Moanalua |
| Callie Nunes ^ |
Concordia |
P |
So. |
R/R |
Modesto, Calif. / Ceres |
| Paige Austin |
Biola |
P |
So. |
R/R |
Los Alamitos, Calif. / Los Alamitos |
| Kat Ung |
Azusa Pacific |
P |
Jr. |
L/L |
Redondo Beach, Calif. / Redondo Union |