FOREST, Va. --- Two-time defending ODAC champion Virginia Wesleyan College earned nine first place votes and 99 total points to stand atop the 2015 ODAC Softball Preseason Poll. Lynchburg College secured second place with 92 points and the remaining two top nods from the league's head coaches. Randolph-Macon Collegerounds out the top three with 80 tallies.

Head Coach Mike Mitchell enters his seventh year at the helm of the Roanoke College softball program. Mitchell has led the team to three 30-plus win seasons, as well as two NCAA Tournament appearances in the last three years. He has an all-time record of 158-82, and is 71-41 in the ODAC. Mitchell will be assisted this season by returning assistant David Mays, as well as two new assistant coaches, Chris Lauria and Brian Hawkins.

The Maroons return three seniors to the fold, including Roanoke's top hitter from 2014 and one of the best pitchers in Roanoke College history. Rhea Schleicher returns to play outfield for the Maroons. She led the squad in hitting last year, boasting a .325 batting average, while tallying 18 runs off of 37 hits. She also led the team with five doubles, two triples and four home runs. She ranked second on the squad last year with 16 RBIs. Schleicher also had a team best eight stolen bases in 2014. Senior Alexis Roop is also returning in the 2015 season.
Roop batted .283 for the Maroons, the fifth best mark on the team last season. She scored three runs off of 14 hits and notched five RBIs.

Returning to the circle for Roanoke will be Kelly Higbie, 2012 ODAC Rookie of the Year and two time All-ODAC selection. Higbie finished the 2014 season with an ERA of 3.49 in a total of 148.1 innings pitched. She struck out 70 batters with an opponent's batting average of .285. On the other side of the coin, Higbie had Roanoke's third best average at the plate in 2014. Higbie went .298 for the season, with 14 runs scored off of 31 hits. She finished with six RBIs two doubles and two stolen bases.

Also making their way back to the field for Roanoke is another duo of hitters. Sophomore Emily Lawrence finished 2014 with an average of .290. Lawrence tallied 12 runs off of 20 hits, including five doubles and four home runs. She led the team in RBIs, bringing home 19 players off of her bat. Lawrence also finished with three stolen bases to her credit and a team high slugging percentage of .536. Katie Romano will also return to the Maroon squad after a season with a .265 batting average. She had six runs off of 12 hits, including two doubles. She tallied six RBIs to her credit as well last season.

The Maroons open their season on February 18^th as they take on Averett University in double header action on the road. The Maroons first home contest at Field Four of the Moyer complex will take place on February 21^st as Roanoke hosts Greensboro College at 1:00 PM.

The Maroons will then travel down to Atlanta, GA to play four games at Emory University on February 28-March 1. Each day the Maroons will take on Birmingham-Southern and #16 ranked Emory. The Eagles went 39-9 in 2014 and advanced to the NCAA Division III Softball Super Regional, where they were knocked out in their fifth game of the tournament. Roanoke will then travel over the Spring Break week down to Clermont, FL to play in six games. The Maroons will play Saint Mary's (MN) and Ferrum on March 3^rd, Judson and Bellevue on March 4^th and Lebanon Valley and Finlandia on March 5^th.

Roanoke will play in one more start of the season tournament, this time it will be one that the Maroons host. The Roanoke Valley Softball Bash will take place on Friday, March 13 and Saturday March 14. The Maroons will play in a total of four games against Penn State Abington, Allegheny, Frostburg State and Southern Virginia.

The Maroons start ODAC play with the ODAC home opener against Eastern Mennonite on March 21^st at 1:00 PM. Roanoke will alternate home and away contests for the first seven ODAC contest, playing Lynchburg (3/28), Randolph (4/1) and Bridgewater (4/7) all at the Moyer Complex. The final home game for the Maroons will take place on April 11^th as they host Shenandoah University at 1:00 PM. Roanoke will close the season with three away contests, two of which are in-conference games. Roanoke will take on Ferrum on April 14^th and Guilford on April 15^th. The final regular season game for Roanoke will be against preseason #12 Virginia Wesleyan, in a tough test before the ODAC Tournament begins on April 24^th.

Listed below is the full 2015 ODAC Softball Preseason Poll. For more information on ODAC softball, visit any of the participating school's websites, or go to the ODAC's home on the Internet at www.odaconline.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook. You can also follow the ODAC on Twitter @odacathletics.

2015 ODAC SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL
(#) Denotes First Place Votes
1. Virginia Wesleyan (9)	99 pts.
2. Lynchburg (2)	92 pts.
3. Randolph-Macon	80 pts.
4. Guilford	62 pts.
5. Randolph	59 pts.
6. Eastern Mennonite	50 pts.
7. Emory & Henry	46 pts.
8. Bridgewater	37 pts.
9. Shenandoah	36 pts.
10. Roanoke	34 pts.
11. Sweet Briar	10 pts.