December 19, 2001

BLACKSBURG -The Virginia Tech softball team was picked fourth out of 11 teams in the 2002 BIG EAST Softball Preseason Poll, as released Wednesday by the conference. Notre Dame and Villanova each received 94 points to tie for the first spot in the 2002 BIG EAST Softball preseason coaches poll. VU's Sara Carlson was named Preseason Player of the Year, while teammate Theresa Hornick earned Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors. The poll is voted on by each of the 11 head coaches in the league.

Notre Dame received six first-place votes after finishing 2001 with a 54-7 record and a trip to the championship round of the NCAA No. 7 regional. The Irish went undefeated in regular season league play to capture their sixth consecutive BIG EAST regular season title. ND has five players on the 2002 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team: third team All-Americans Jarrah Myers and Jenny Kriech, 2001 All-BIG EAST First Team members Andrea Loman and Lisa Mattison, and 2000 BIG EAST All-Rookie Team selection Andria Bledsoe.

Receiving four first-place votes, Villanova is coming off a 43-10 season and a second-place BIG EAST finish. The Wildcats' 15 wins in league play a year ago was a school record. Prior to this year's poll, Villanova had never finished first in the preseason voting. Carlson led the league in batting average last season (.455) and tallied 10 home runs and 34 RBIs. The 2001 All-BIG EAST First Team member was also named to the NFCA All-America Second Team. Hornick won 18 games for the Wildcats a year ago and limited her opponents to a .164 batting average, which ranked second in the league. The junior recorded a 0.90 ERA, 155 strikeouts and eight shutouts en route to All-BIG EAST Second Team honors.

Seton Hall was picked to finish third following the school's first berth to the NCAA Tournament. Preseason All-BIG EAST selections Kim Jackson, McKenzie Richards and Mary Carroll Smith return from last year's 29-16 squad.

Virginia Tech grabbed the remaining first-place vote and the fourth spot in the poll after compiling a 12-8 BIG EAST record in its first season in the league. Tech returns its entire infield and most of its battery, but must replace 2/3 of its outfield. Carmen Farmer and Shanel Garofalo will lead a solid infield while Clarisa Crowell and Ashlee Dobbe will team up to form a formidable tandem on the mound. Tech also returns All-BIG EAST catcher Amy Voorhees, who will once again handle most of the duties behind the plate.

Defending BIG EAST Tournament champion Connecticut finished fifth in the voting. The Huskies will be led by senior Lisa Girolamo and Barb Cook, the 2001 BIG EAST Championship Most Outstanding Player.

Rounding out the preseason poll are Boston College, St. John's, Syracuse, Rutgers, Pittsburgh and Providence.

Preseason Player of the Year: Sara Carlson, Villanova

Preseason Pitcher of the Year: Theresa Hornick, Villanova

2002 BIG EAST SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL
                                 2001 BIG     2001     2001 BIG
     School           Points    EAST Record  Overall  EAST Finish
1t.  Notre Dame (6)     94         20-0      54-7-0      1st
     Villanova (4)      94         15-5      43-10-0     2nd
3.   Seton Hall         73         13-7      29-16-0     4th
4.   Virginia Tech (1)  68         12-8      36-23-0     5th
5.   Connecticut        64         14-6      36-23-0     3rd
6.   Boston College     55         7-13      31-24-0     7th
7.   St. John's         50         8-12      30-31-0     6th
8.   Syracuse           41         6-14      19-28-0   t-8th
9.   Rutgers            35         5-15      22-27-0    10th
10.  Pittsburgh         19         6-14      14-39-0   t-8th
11.  Providence         12         4-16      23-28-1    11th
First-place votes in parentheses.
PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM
P   Barb Cook, Jr., Connecticut
P   Theresa Hornick, Jr., Villanova
C   Jarrah Myers, Sr., Notre Dame
IF  Andria Bledsoe, Jr., Notre Dame
IF  Lisa Girolamo, Sr., Connecticut
IF  Kim Jackson, Sr., Seton Hall
IF  Andrea Loman, Jr., Notre Dame*
OF  Christina Holowich, Jr., Syracuse
OF  Jenny Kriech, Sr., Notre Dame
OF  McKenzie Richards, So., Seton Hall
OF  Mary Carroll Smith, So., Seton Hall
U   Sara Carlson, Jr., Villanova
DP  Lisa Mattison, Jr., Notre Dame
* - indicates unanimous selection
Due to a tie in the voting, there are four outfielders on the 2002 preseason team.