Softball Selected Fifth in South Division During GNAC Preseason Coaches’ Poll
WINTHROP, Mass. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) softball team was selected to finish fifth in the South Division in the 2025 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Preseason Coaches' Poll announced on Friday by the conference front office. The annual poll is voted upon by the league's 15 head coaches. The Blue Jays begin the 2025 slate with a trip down to Naples, Fla., for the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic from Saturday March 8, through Thursday, March 13.
The two-time defending GNAC champions Simmons University and Johnson & Wales University were selected to win the North and South Divisions, respectively for the second consecutive season. The Sharks received 96 total points and nine first place tallies, while the Wildcats garnered 109 points and seven first place tallies. Saint Joseph's College of Maine and Lasell University followed in second in the North and South Divisions. The Saints received 90 points and five first place tallies, while the Lasers earned 98 votes and five first place votes. Rounding out the top-three in the divisions were Emmanuel College, garnering 83 votes and the final North Division first place tally, while Albertus Magnus College was selected third in the South Division, receiving 93 votes and two first place votes. The Blue Jays slotted behind Mitchell College, who were picked fourth after receiving 77 points and the final first-place tally in the South Division, after garnering 67 total points.
The top five teams in the North and South Divisions will advance to the 2025 GNAC Playoffs, with a single-elimination First Round game set to take place on Tuesday, April 29 at the site of the fourth seed in each division. The GNAC Tournament then enters a double-elimination portion, as the remaining teams play in a pod format from Thursday, May 1, through Sunday, May 4 at the site of the top-seeds in both divisions to determine the two participants for the GNAC Championship. The 2025 GNAC Championship will be a best-of-three series, held at the site of the top-seed in the South Division on Friday, May 9 and Saturday May 10.
The Blue Jays are coming off a 2024 season in which USJ finished 16-23 overall and advanced to the GNAC Playoffs as the fifth seed from the South Division. The Blue Jays were matched up against rivals Albertus Magnus College in the First Round, where the Falcons defeated the Blue Jays, 3-1, to end USJ's season.
For the complete poll results, please see below.
2025 GNAC Softball Preseason Poll
NORTH DIVISION
- Simmons (9) - 96
- Saint Joseph's (Maine) (5) - 90
- Emmanuel (1) - 83
- Rivier - 57
- New England College - 45
- Anna Maria - 26
- Norwich - 23
SOUTH DIVISION
- Johnson & Wales (7) - 109
- Lasell (5) - 98
- Albertus Magnus (2) - 93
- Mitchell (1) - 77
- Saint Joseph (Conn.) - 67
- Regis - 47
- Dean - 26
- Elms - 23
About the GNAC
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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