MORAVIAN SOFTBALL SQUAD JUMPS UP TO 5TH IN LATEST NFCA DIVISION III POLL

STARKVILLE, MS --- The Moravian College softball team has jumped up two spots to fifth in the nation in the seventh regular season National Fastpitch Coaches Association NCAA Division III Top 25 Poll of the 2007 season released Wednesday.

The University of St. Thomas (MN) holds down the top spot, receiving all eight first-place votes and 200 points. Louisiana College is ranked second with 189 points while Linfield College is third with 181 points. Moravian received 162 points.

Moravian, under the direction of 14th-year head coach John Byrne (427-138), has already posted a 20-4 record this season after competing at the Atlantic versus East Challenge and the 2007 NFCA Leadoff Classic, which was won by St. Thomas.

The Greyhounds were 15th in the preseason poll, 11th in the first regular season poll on March 7th, ninth in the second poll after posting a 3-3 record at the NFCA Leadoff Classic before dropping to 12th three weeks ago. Moravian was up three spots to ninth on March 28th before moving into the eighth spot two weeks ago. The Greyhounds were seventh in last week’s poll. The highest Moravian has ever been in the poll was the top spot back in 2004.

The Greyhounds are one of just three teams from the East Region ranked with the Greyhounds being joined by 10th-ranked Montclair State University and 17th-ranked Ramapo College of New Jersey.

Moravian is currently 1-3 this season against the top 25 with a win over #4 Ithaca College, 1-0, and losses to #2 Louisiana, 5-0; #6 Central (IA) College, 4-1, and #10 Muskingum (OH) College, 2-1 in eight innings. All of those games were played at the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Panama City Beach, Florida.

The complete poll can be found at http://nfca.org/top25/index.php?cat_id=3.