June 10, 2009

AMHERST, Mass. - The National Fastpitch Coaches Association released its final USA Today/NFCA Division I Poll with Massachusetts finishing the season ranked 14th. The Minutewomen jumped 10 spots from the last poll, on May 12 prior to the start of the NCAA Tournament. It is the highest UMass has been ranked since 1999. The Minutewomen finished 2009 with a 41-10 record after losing to eventual national champion Washington in an epic two-game regional final on May 17.

The last time UMass ranked higher in the NFCA poll was in February 1999 when the Minutewomen spent two weeks ranked 10th.

The USA Today/NFCA Division I Poll is voted on by NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each of the 30 conferences.

The Minutewomen were the top "others receiving votes" team in the NFCA Preseason Top-25 Poll and were then ranked every week the rest of the season, 15 weeks in a row, reaching as high as #19 on March 3.

UMass, ranked 24th going into the NCAA Tournament, hosted Cornell, Sacred Heart, and Washington in the Amherst Regional. The Minutewomen and Huskies met in the regional final with UMass taking game one, 5-1, before Washington took game two, 6-1, in a 15-inning classic that lasted over five hours. The Huskies went on to sweep Georgia Tech in the Super Regionals and after reaching the finals of the Women's College World Series, swept then-top-ranked Florida to win the national championship and finished the season a unanimous #1.

Head Coach Elaine Sortino's Minutewomen, led by All-Americans Brandice Balschmiter and Carly Normandin, claimed their fifth-straight and 21st overall Atlantic 10 Championship in 2009 and reached the NCAA Tournament for the 15th year in a row and 19th time overall. The team's .804 winning percentage was eighth-best in the country. UMass registered wins over four ranked teams during the season, including 2008 national champ Arizona State and this year's champ, Washington.