Bridgewater, NJ — It’s been a “rinse and repeat” storyline in the Northeast Conference softball circuit as of late.

Since 2016, just two different programs have added an NEC Tournament trophy to its case at season’s end, with perennial power Saint Francis U hoisting the coveted piece of hardware six times during that eight-year stretch and LIU earning the prize the remaining two times. 

But according to the NEC softball head coaches, there will be a new champion in town in 2025.

Hauling in four first-place votes, Central Connecticut, last year’s runner-up, is the preseason favorite to end the joint reign of the Red Flash and the Sharks.
 
LIU, which last claimed the league title two years ago, and Saint Francis U, last season’s champ, earned two first-place tallies apiece to finish second and third, respectively, in the preseason poll. Fresh off the program’s third consecutive 20-win season, FDU rounded out the top four.
 
The Knights were followed by Le Moyne (fifth) and Stonehill (sixth) in the projected order of finish, while Wagner and NEC newcomer Mercyhurst were slotted to finish seventh and eighth, respectively. 
  
Despite the graduation of 2024 NEC Player of the Year and last season’s home run co-champ Paige Stringer, 10th-year head coach and three-time NEC Coaching Staff of the Year honoree Breanne Gleason will rely on a slugger-laced lineup to propel Central Connecticut back to the pinnacle of the conference for the first time since 2015. 
 
Senior infielder Kassandra (KC) Machado (Miami, FL/Doral Performing Arts & Entertainment Academy (Liberty)), who helped power the Blue Devils’ run to their first NEC Tournament title game appearance since 2015 with two moon shots and six RBI in an elimination game, produced a lethal .328/.730/.724 slash line after launching a league-leading 12 homers in her debut campaign in New Britain. In addition to Stringer and Machado, Central Connecticut’s offense presented a triple threat to opposing pitchers in what was the Blue Devils’ most fruitful season since 2015 thanks to Ava Cino (Bayville, NJ/Central Regional (Liberty)). The junior infielder’s name was listed alongside some of the league’s most powerful hitters at season’s end, as she ranked fifth in batting average (.340), eighth in slugging percentage (.539), ninth in OPS (.921) and eighth in RBI (29).
 
With the loss of a number of key pieces, there will be some new faces in the lineup for first-year head coach Andy Russo and his Sharks in 2025. But a familiar face — and arm — will look to add an unprecedented 16th NEC trophy to its already league-leading total. Senior righty Alyssa O’Donnell (St. Cloud, FL/St. Cloud (Florida SouthWestern State College)), who has been a mainstay in the Sharks’ rotation since her arrival in 2022 with 83 appearances and 375.0 innings of work, is coming off her finest season to date in 2024. Fanning 72 hitters while limiting opponents to a .229 batting average, the Floridian, who has racked up 31 career wins in a Sharks’ uniform, posted a personal-best 2.81 ERA last year.
 
LIU also brings back graduate student Dallas Andrews (Santa Clarita, CA/Saugus). Posting a career-best .358 batting average and a .415 slugging percentage, the repeat All-NEC first team outfielder doubled her stats from the 2023 campaign with 31 runs, 16 walks, eight doubles and seven stolen bases.
 
For the first time in half a decade, Saint Francis U’s roster will be missing two of the most-feared pitchers in the circuit in Rachel Marsden and Grace Vesco. The duo, who combined for three major awards and 10 All-NEC first team honors during their long tenure in Loretto, delivered a lethal one-two punch at the top of the Red Flash rotation since 2020. The batter’s box is one area that second-year head coach Beth Krysiak and the reigning NEC Coaching Staff of the Year’s squad did not take a hit from graduation. Two all-stars highlight an explosive lineup that put up 67 more runs that the second-best offense in the league last season. Senior first baseman and three-time All-NEC first team slugger Olivia Ulam (Canonsburg, PA/Canon McMillan) led the conference in runs (42) and RBI (55) a year ago while junior outfielder Savannah Nash (Mechanicsville, VA/Atlee), a first teamer in 2024, hit .331 with 15 extra-base hits, 38 runs and 42 RBI.
 
FDU will rely heavily on the right arm of the reigning NEC Rookie of the Year to get back in the mix for the NEC Tournament title for the first time since 2022. With one extremely productive year under her belt, sophomore Brooklyn Shroyer (San Dimas, CA/Bonita) is poised for another stellar season in the circle for eighth-year head coach Chris Foye and his Knights. The NEC’s strikeout queen was one of the most destructive pitchers in the nation, ranking fourth in the end-of-the-year statistics in strikeouts (251) while finishing 10th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.28). Shroyer navigated FDU to 17 wins, while fellow righty Julia Swan (Whippany, NJ/Whippany Park), who returns for her senior season in Hackensack, accounted for four of the Knights’ other five victories last season.
 
Featuring the top four teams in the league standings, the double-elimination format NEC Tournament will take place from May 8-10 at the high seed.
 
Starting in 2026-27, Mercyhurst will be eligible to compete in the NEC postseason. If Le Moyne or Stonehill, both reclassifying institutions, wins the NEC Tournament championship, the runner-up will advance to the NCAA Tournament as the league’s automatic qualifier, per current policy.

About The Northeast Conference

Now in its 44th season, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of nine institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#8). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#87). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.