Softball ranked #22 in Division III in preseason

TEXT: Ranked #22 IMAGES: Melissa Rothenberg with a softball bat over her shoulders; Sydney Goldman holding a softball out in front of her; Haley Nash getting ready to hit with a softball bat on her shoulder
Posted: Feb 11, 2022

WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University softball team has earned a Top 25 preseason ranking from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. Coming off a season in which they went 14-3 in their first  year under head coach Dani Bishop, the Judges are ranked #22 in Division III.

The Judges return all of the starters in their lineup, plus all of their pitchers, from last year's NCAA Tournament squad. That includes senior pitcher Sydney Goldman (Sherman Oaks, Calif./Notre Dame), who set school record for lowest ERA (1.23) and most strikeouts per seven innings (10.32), posting a 7-1 record en route to earning second-team All-America honors. In the field, the Judges return three All-New England performers, including first-team sophomore 3B Haley Nash (Delmar, N.Y./Bethlehem Central), who hit .298 (14-47) and led the Judges with five home runs, 17 RBI and a .702 slugging percentage; second-team CF Melissa Rothenberg (Lawrenceville, N.J./Lawence), who is returning as a graduate student after a regular season in which she batted .341 batting average (15-44) and finished second on the Judges in runs (14), RBI (14), doubles (5), triples (1) and home runs (3), slugging .574; and sophomore Alex Cohen (West Palm Beach, Fla./Benjamin School), who led the Judges in the regular season with a .436 batting average and seven doubles at the plate, while going 3-1 with a 1.27 ERA as a pitcher.

As a team last season, the Judges finished third in Division III in ERA (1.16) and walks and hits per inning pitched (0.87) and 11th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.65).

This marks just the second time in program history the Judges have earned a preseason national ranking from the NFCA. The 2011 squad was ranked 25th. Brandeis was last in the national rankings in 2019 when they were rated 20th in Division III in the middle of the season. The program's highest-ever ranking was 14th, which occurred twice in 2010.

The Judges open their season on Monday, February 21st, at Occidental College, part of an eight-game trip to California over February break. Their first home game is slated for Wednesday, March 30th, against Lesley University.