HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College softball team has been picked as the preseason favorite to capture the 2020 Centennial Conference Championship in a vote of the conference's head coaches. The Fords collected seven of the nine first-place votes and finished with 63 voting points atop the preseason ranking. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.
Swarthmore was picked second in the poll with 48 points while Ursinus (44 points) and defending champion Dickinson (41 points) picked up the remaining first-place votes to round out the projected playoff field.
Haverford has finished as the Centennial Conference runner-up during each of the last two seasons. The Fords are coming off a 28-12 campaign in 2019 which saw the team host the conference tournament for just the second time in program history. Haverford advanced to the championship series for the second consecutive season, and seventh time in program history, before a 1-0 defeat to Dickinson in the title game.
The Fords return seven of their nine regular starters from the lineup a season ago and all five of their pitchers from last year's team. That group includes 2019 Centennial Conference Player of the Year Emma Souter and second-team NFCA all-region pitcher Temma Levis. In addition to those first-team All-CC honorees from last year, Nicole Swisher also received first-team all-conference recognition while Ashley Sisto (second team) and Marybeth Stone (second-team) were All-Centennial Conference performers. Those five returning All-CC selections are the most of any team in the conference.
Softball has made the Centennial Conference Tournament nine times during the past 14 seasons, the most of any team in the conference during that period. Haverford has played for the Centennial Conference Championship in each of its first two seasons under third-year head coach Kate Poppe and will be looking for its fourth Centennial Conference Championship in program history. The Fords previously hoisted the conference trophy in 2006, 2014, and 2016.
Haverford opens the 2020 season on Sunday, March 8 with games against Carthage and Monmouth (Ill.) to begin a week of 10 games while in Florida over spring break. Centennial Conference play starts on Saturday, March 28 against McDaniel while the Centennial Conference Tournament will be held on Tuesday, April 28, Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2. The top four teams from the Centennial Conference regular season standing will compete for the conference crown that week.