Official NFCA Division II Preseason Coaches' Poll
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Grand Valley State and Wayne State will begin the new season ranked highly in the 2017 NFCA Division II Top 25 Preseason Coaches Poll, announced the Association on Wednesday morning. The Lakers will begin the new campaign as the No. 6 team in the nation, while the Warriors earned the No. 10 position in the rankings.
Grand Valley State finished the 2016 season with a trip to the College World Series following a 43-13 overall record and 21-5 mark in GLIAC play. Senior infielder Jenna Lenza returns for the Lakers after finishing last season third in slugging percentage (.649), fourth on-base percentage (.489) and sixth in batting average (.429) and fifth in assists (60) in league contests.
Wayne State heads into the new year with two straight conference titles, including five consecutive league tournament championships. WSU went 50-10 overall last season, including 21-3 in conference play as the Warriors welcome back 2016 NFCA National Player of the Year Lyndsay Butler for her senior year. Overall, Butler led the conference last year in batting average (.483), earned run average (0.77), wins (29), home runs (12) and strikeouts (227).
