West Texas A&M is the top choice to win a fourth straight Lone Star Conference softball championship according to the preseason poll announced by league officials on Tuesday.
WT received 26 of the 30 first-place votes for a total of 324 points in the poll decided by LSC coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives. The Lady Buffs finished the 2016 season 59-5 overall with a 30-2 league mark to earn the South Central Regional title, a third straight LSC championship and second-straight tournament title.
Texas A&M-Commerce finished second in the poll with three first-place nods for 269 points, just in front of Texas Woman’s, who was tabbed third with 268 points the remaining top vote. Angelo State ranked fourth with 263 points as just six points separated A&M-C, TWU and ASU.
Cameron was fifth with 176 points, Tarleton State sixth (167), Midwestern State seventh (161), and Texas A&M-Kingsville eighth (144). Eastern New Mexico (80), Western New Mexico (79), and UT Permian Basin (49) rounded out the poll.
The Lady Buffs claimed the individual awards as Ashley Hardin was tabbed LSC Preseason Player of the Year, while Kilee Halbert earned LSC Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors.
Hardin, a junior outfielder from Flower Mound, Texas, registered one of the best statistical seasons in WT history in 2016 hitting .392 with 16 doubles, one triple and an LSC-best 23 homeruns en route to first-team All-LSC honors. She drove in a league-best 82 RBI for a slugging clip of .829 while walking 34 times for an on-base percentage of .471. Hardin was a force in center field recording 65 putouts with 10 outfield assists and just three errors for a fielding clip of .962.
Halbert, a junior pitcher from Dalhart, Texas, put together one of the best statistical seasons in the circle in WT history in 2016 as she went 27-4 with a 2.11 ERA to earn LSC Pitcher of the Year and Academic Player of the Year honors. She made 37 appearances with 35 starts while tossing 19 complete games with five shutouts, three one-hitters and a save. Halbert tossed 192.2 innings as she allowed 82 runs (58 earned) on 181 hits with 145 strikeouts while allowing an opponent batting average of .243.
The 2017 season starts February 3 with 11 LSC teams playing a single round-robin schedule with a three-game series against each league opponent. The three-game series shall consist of one-game Friday and a doubleheader Saturday.
The overall LSC Champion will be the team(s) with the best winning percentage in regular-season conference games, while the winner of the postseason championship will be recognized as LSC Tournament Champion and receive the league’s automatic qualification into NCAA postseason. The single-elimination championship featuring the top six teams will be played May 5-6, at the No. 1 seed.
Here is a closer look at the voting breakdown:
| Rank |
LSC Softball |
1st |
TOTAL |
| 1 |
West Texas A&M |
26 |
324 |
| 2 |
Texas A&M-Commerce |
3 |
269 |
| 3 |
Texas Woman's |
1 |
268 |
| 4 |
Angelo State |
|
263 |
| 5 |
Cameron |
|
176 |
| 6 |
Tarleton State |
|
167 |
| 7 |
Midwestern State |
|
161 |
| 8 |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
|
144 |
| 9 |
Eastern New Mexico |
|
80 |
| 10 |
Western New Mexico |
|
79 |
| 11 |
UT Permian Basin |
|
49 |