University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers 15th in National Preseason Poll
1/20/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Complete USA Today/NFCA Division I Preseason Poll
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Minnesota softball team was slotted 15th in the 2015 USA Today/NFCA Division I Preseason Top 25 Poll, which was released Tuesday. No. 15 is the highest ranking the program has ever received entering a season and the top-25 preseason ranking is the first for the Gophers since 1999.
The team last received votes in a preseason poll in 2004 and the school's previous high for a preseason rank was 16th in 1996.
Minnesota is coming off a 44-12 season in which it won its first Big Ten Tournament title in 15 years and reached an NCAA super regional for the first time. It finished the season ranked 15th (tied for 14th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball rankings).
The Gophers return 16 players from a year ago, including two-time All-American Kaitlyn Richardson, reigning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and 2014 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Sara Groenewegen and three-time All-Big Ten honoree Tyler Walker.
Currently on Minnesota's 2015 schedule are nine games against top-25 ranked opponents and 19 contests against teams that received votes in the poll. Fellow Big Ten schools Michigan (eighth) and Nebraska (18th) also cracked the top 25, while Wisconsin and Northwestern received votes.
The 2015 Minnesota softball season opens Feb. 6 in Las Vegas, Nev. against 11th-ranked Washington.
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