Softball team picked to repeat as SAA champ
Following one of the most historic seasons in the history of the school, Berry softball has been picked to repeat as the Southern Athletic Association champions in a poll of the league’s coaches.
The results of the poll were released Tuesday afternoon by the league office in Atlanta.
Playing one of the most difficult schedules in the nation, Berry finished last season 3613 overall. The No. 4 seed to the NCAA Greencastle Regional, the Vikings swept their way to the championship, the only four-seed to reach the Super Regional round.
From there, the Vikings swept Bethel in the Mount Berry Super Regional, advancing to the program’s first-ever NCAA World Series. The Vikings ended up being the next-to-last team eliminated, finishing tied for third in the country.
Headlining the returnees from 2022 under new head coach Jessica Strong is Anna Jackson, the Nfca/diamond Sports DIII Catcher of the Year. Hannah Gore, the Most Outstanding Pitcher of the Mount Berry Super Regional, also returns to help anchor Berry’s pitching staff in addition to Blair Hall, the Most Outstanding Player of the Super Regional who hit the game-winning home run in Game 1 of the series and teamed with Gore to shut down Bethel in the circle.
Morgan Frye, the program’s single-season home run record holder, also returns along with
SAA Newcomer of the Year Katie White and fellow SAA First Team All-league member Aleeya Thornton.
Berry earned five of the available seven first-place votes in the poll to finish with 47 points. Birmingham-southern, which was neck-and-neck with Berry until falling in the regular season’s final series at Kay Williams Field in 2022, earned two first place votes to finish in second with 44.
Millsaps, which took a series from Berry last season in Jackson, Mississippi, is slotted in third place with 34 points.
The Vikings open the regular season Feb. 14 against Covenant at Kay Williams Field.
BASEBALL Berry slotted fourth in SAA picks
After finishing second in the Southern Athletic Association regular season standings in 2022, Berry is picked to finish in fourth in 2023 according to a preseason poll of the league’s head coaches.
The poll’s results were announced Tuesday morning by the SAA office in Atlanta.
Last season, head coach David Beasley guided the Vikings to a 25-17 overall record and a 13-8 mark in SAA play. Wesley Wade was named First Team ALL-SAA, with returners John D’amelio and Joey Garcia earning Second Team status.
Andrew Pendleton, Mason Carnes, John Poist and Jackson Halla earned SAA Honorable Mention recognition and 2022 and return to the Vikings in 2023.
Birmingham-southern is picked to win the regular season, having picked up all eight firstplace votes and the maximum 64 points. Rhodes is selected to finish second, having garnered 52 points. Hendrix is slotted in at third with 44 points, followed by the Vikings with 40 points.
The Vikings will open the season Feb. 18 at William R. Bowdoin Field against Pfeiffer.
LACROSSE Berry women picked fourth in preseason
Following a historic season with some of the biggest wins in program history, Berry’s women have peen selected to finish fourth in the Southern Athletic Association in 2023 according to a poll of the league’s head coaches announced by the league on Monday afternoon.
The Vikings finished the 2022 season with a 9-6 overall mark and a 2-4 record in SAA play; however, the Vikings secured their first winning season since 2015 with their improvement in 2022.
One of those wins was the program’s first-ever victory against Centre, which is picked third in this year’s poll. Berry cleared the 20-goal mark on three different occasions in 2022, finishing the season as one of the most offensively potent in Berry history.
Haley Larsen was named Second Team All-region by the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association, in addition to earning First Team ALL-SAA honors. Mary Axelson joined Larsen as a First Team ALL-SAA member, with Abby Sprayberry and Molley Cross picking up Second Team recognition from the league’s coaches. Sophie Morris and Adrienna Van Soelen picked up SAA Honorable Mention.
All six are returning to this season’s squad for head coach Brittni Hall.
Rhodes was selected to win the SAA regular season championship, with Sewanee taking second in the preseason poll. Centre edged the Vikings by two points for third place in the preseason rankings.
The Vikings will open their season at Piedmont Feb. 8. Vikings tabbed fifth by coaches
Following a solid season in 2022, Berry’s men have been picked to finish fifth in the Southern Athletic Association in 2023 according to a poll of the league’s head coaches.
The Vikings went 7-7 in 2022, including a pair of wins by one goal and one win by two. Two of Berry’s losses in 2022 were by a lone goal, with one loss.
The Vikings return First Team ALL-SAA honoree Tyler Banfield, Berry’s leading point scorer in 2022. Faceoff specialist Nick English, who earned Second Team ALL-SAA honors in 2022, also returns to the Vikings.
Centre picked up three firstplace votes and 45 points to finish first in the poll, followed by Sewanee with three first-place votes and 41 points. Birmingham-southern earned the other first-place vote and 35 points for third place, followed by Rhodes (33) and Berry (21).
The Vikings will open their season this Sunday against Salisbury in Greensboro, North Carolina.