Saints achieve first 40+ win season in over 10 years
Santa Fe finishes the regular season in solo second place in the Citrus Conference; their highest finish since 2021 (5-team Mid-Florida Conference)
Gainesville, FL
Santa Fe Softball (43-13) (28-12) concluded the regular season this past Tuesday and finished in second place in the Citrus Conference.
The Saints were runner up in one of the strongest conferences in the country, playing four conference games vs the current #1, #11, #12, #15, #20, and #22 teams. Over half of the Citrus Conference is ranked inside of the NJCAA DI Softball Top-25 Rankings! They collected 13 wins over those teams and lead all teams in the state of Florida in home runs (71) and walks (211); certainly showing their patience at the plate.
Pitcher Belle Mancillas is 3rd in the state in strikeouts with 141 on the year and 3rd in earned runs with a 1.24 ERA, adding three shutouts and a 4th best (.178) batting average against in conference play.
Infielder McKenzie Cox sits at 3rd with 72 RBI's and is 4th in doubles with 19 total while Molly Bender is 1st in runs with 83, 2nd in doubles with 23, 5th in home runs with 13 while adding a second best 48 stolen bases. Their offensive prowess does not stop there, with 3 players in the top 5 in home runs (Cox 18, Murch 14, Bender 12) and 3 of the top 15 in hits (Cox 79, Bender 67, English 64).
The team's 28 conference wins are just two behind the mark of 30-14 set by the 2023 team, which played four more conference games due to that season being the first year of the newly expanded Citrus Conference. This is the first year since 2013 that the Saints had 40+ wins as they went 42-19 (20-4 in conference); which was also the last time they advanced to the NJCAA Softball World Series.
"I am extremely proud of this team and everything they had accomplished this regular season, they have been extremely resilient, hard working and show up every day with the intent to be better" adds head coach Savanah Webster. "This has been a special group to coach, and I'm excited to see what we do in post season."
The Saints will wait to hear when and who they will face in the first round of the FCSAA Division I Softball Championship held at the Eddie C. Moore Complex in Clearwater, Florida. The tournament bracket will be releasing later this week as the Saints will play their first game on Wednesday, May 13th. You can read more about the FCSAA Softball Division I Championship here: FCSAA Division I Softball Championship - NJCAA Region 8 - NJCAA Region 8