PELLA—Central College debuted at No. 21 in the preseason NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.
The Dutch return starters at all but one position from last year's 33-11 squad, including five fifth-year players who are taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA following the global pandemic and the cancelation of the 2020 season.
Last year's team secured a record 31st NCAA Division III tourney berth.
Defending NCAA champion Trine University (Ind.) is the unanimous choice for the preseason top spot. Salisbury University (Md.), which was ranked No. 1 most of last season before falling to Trine in the best-of-three championship series, is rated No. 2. American Rivers champ Coe College is No. 4. No other conference schools are ranked.
Central will be among many of the ranked squads competing in the NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic March 1-3 in Columbus, Georgia. Each squad plays six games. Central is slated to take on No. 3-ranked Berry College (Ga.), No. 6 Moravian University (Pa.) and No. 11 Bethel University (Minn.) on the weekend.
The Dutch season opens at the Fontbonne University (Mo.) Invitational in Edwardsville, Illinois Feb. 25, meeting the University of Chicago and Monmouth College (Ill.). Central also travels to the Tucson (Ariz.) Invitational Games for eight games March 11-15 before returning to the Midwest where the Dutch are scheduled to play 16 home games between March 20-April 28.
Central's
George Wares is the winningest coach in Division III history and enters the 40th season of his NFCA Hall of Fame career with a 1232-437-3 (.737) record.
NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll – Feb. 6, 2024
| Rank |
Team |
Points |
2023 Record |
| 1 |
Trine (10) |
250 |
46-6 |
| 2 |
Salisbury |
240 |
49-6 |
| 3 |
Berry |
230 |
43-7 |
| 4 |
Coe |
220 |
39-11 |
| 5 |
Rowan |
210 |
42-10 |
| 6 |
Moravian |
200 |
38-12 |
| 7 |
Linfield |
190 |
46-6 |
| 8 |
Christopher Newport |
180 |
31-13 |
| 9 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
170 |
39-13 |
| 10 |
Randolph-Macon |
160 |
43-11 |
| 11 |
Bethel |
150 |
36-5 |
| 12 |
Belhaven |
140 |
32-13 |
| 13 |
Case Western Reserve |
130 |
38-5 |
| 14 |
Tufts |
120 |
40-6 |
| 15 |
Texas Lutheran |
110 |
40-8 |
| 16 |
East Texas Baptist |
100 |
39-7 |
| 17 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
90 |
36-8 |
| 18 |
Rochester |
80 |
38-9 |
| 19 |
Lebanon Valley |
70 |
36-12 |
| 20 |
Transylvania |
60 |
34-11 |
| 21 |
Central |
50 |
33-11 |
| 22 |
The College of New Jersey |
40 |
32-11 |
| 23 |
Concordia (Wis.) |
30 |
40-5 |
| 24 |
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute |
20 |
32-11 |
| 25 |
Hiram |
10 |
27-16 |
