MADISON, S.D. (PlayNorthStar.com) – Valley City State (N.D.) registered four first-place votes and totaled 59 points to tab as the coaches’ favorite to win the 2019 North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) softball title, the preseason poll was announced Monday.
Bellevue (Neb.) and Dickinson State (N.D.) each picked up two first-place votes in the poll. The Bruins edged the Blue Hawks 56-53 to finish second.
Dickinson State won the North Star Athletic Association softball postseason tournament last season by defeating former conference member Jamestown (N.D.) by the score of 1-0 in the decisive game three. The Blue Hawks advanced to the NAIA Softball National Tournament Opening, falling short to Hope International (Calif.) and Central Methodist (Mo.).
Dakota State (S.D.) recorded 39 points to finish fourth in the coaches’ preseason poll. Presentation (S.D.) placed fifth with 26 points. Mayville State (N.D.) edged Waldorf (Iowa) 23-22 to place sixth. Viterbo (Wis.) was tabbed to finish eighth after registering 13 points in the poll.
Points were awarded on an 8-1 basis in the conference coaches’ preseason poll.
The North Star conference games officially starts March 23-24 with a four-game series. The schedule for the conference opener includes: VU at PC; DiSU at WU; VCSU at DaSU and MSU at BU. Each member is scheduled to play a total of 28 conference contests. The majority of the softball conference schedule will be played on the weekend (Saturday-Sunday) with a four-game series.
The traveling partners (BU-DaSU, VU-WU, DiSU-PC and VCSU-MSU) will play a doubleheader on the middle of the week during the regular-season.
The NSAA Softball conference tournament will be held in Valley City, N.D. on May 2-5.
There is one automatic bid to the NAIA Softball National Tournament Opening round, with 10 different sites with four teams each competing in a double-elimination tournament on May 13-15. The winner of the postseason conference tournament will earn the automatic bid to the national tournament.
The NAIA Softball World Series take place in Springfield, Mo. on May 23-29.
Below is the complete 2019 NSAA Softball Coaches’ Preseason Poll:
| 2019 North Star Athletic Association Softball Preseason Poll | ||
| Rank | School | Points |
| 1 | Valley City State (N.D.) (4) | 59 |
| 2 | Bellevue (Neb.) (2) | 56 |
| 3 | Dickinson State (N.D.) (2) | 53 |
| 4 | Dakota State (S.D.) | 39 |
| 5 | Presentation (S.D.) | 26 |
| 6 | Mayville State (N.D.) | 23 |
| 7 | Waldorf (Iowa) | 22 |
| 8 | Viterbo (Wis.) | 13 |
| *First-place votes in parenthesis | ||