Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
SB | Zapanta Named to All-WCC Preseason Team
1/30/2019 11:39:00 AM | Softball
Gaels' sophomore Kimiko Zapanta was named to the All-WCC Preseason team by conference's coaches on Wednesday.
SAN BRUNO, Calif. — The West Coast Conference announced their coaches' preseason poll results today and Gaels' outfielder Kimiko Zapanta was one of 14 student-athletes chosen to the All-WCC Preseason Team. The sophomore was Saint Mary's lone representative selected to the team this year.
Zapanta was a star last season for the Gaels and was named Second Team All-WCC after an impressive freshman campaign. The Martinez, Calif. native broke the conference's single-season stolen base record and tied SMC's program record with 39 steals in 44 attempts.
Zapanta was also one of the Gaels' premier hitters from the leadoff spot with a .333 batting average and .417 on-base percentage. In 49 games last season, she committed only two errors in the outfield and had a .989 fielding percentage.
As a team, the Gaels were picked to finish sixth in the conference but only one point behind Santa Clara for fifth. Saint Mary's head coach Sonja Garnett will look to rewrite that script in her first year at the helm after helping her last school, ART U, to a 40-18 record in 2018.
BYU was projected to win the conference this season with four first place votes and 24 total points, just ahead of Loyola Marymount who received 22 points. The Cougars have won all five of the WCC's conference titles since it adopted softball in 2014.
The Gaels begin their 2019 season on Feb. 7 at the Hawai'i Paradise Classic in Oahu, Hawai'i. More information and links to the games can be found on the Saint Mary's schedule page.
2019 WCC SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL
2019 PRESEASON ALL-WCC SOFTBALL TEAM
Position Players
Pitchers
Zapanta was a star last season for the Gaels and was named Second Team All-WCC after an impressive freshman campaign. The Martinez, Calif. native broke the conference's single-season stolen base record and tied SMC's program record with 39 steals in 44 attempts.
Zapanta was also one of the Gaels' premier hitters from the leadoff spot with a .333 batting average and .417 on-base percentage. In 49 games last season, she committed only two errors in the outfield and had a .989 fielding percentage.
As a team, the Gaels were picked to finish sixth in the conference but only one point behind Santa Clara for fifth. Saint Mary's head coach Sonja Garnett will look to rewrite that script in her first year at the helm after helping her last school, ART U, to a 40-18 record in 2018.
BYU was projected to win the conference this season with four first place votes and 24 total points, just ahead of Loyola Marymount who received 22 points. The Cougars have won all five of the WCC's conference titles since it adopted softball in 2014.
The Gaels begin their 2019 season on Feb. 7 at the Hawai'i Paradise Classic in Oahu, Hawai'i. More information and links to the games can be found on the Saint Mary's schedule page.
2019 WCC SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL
| Place | Team | Votes (First Place) |
| 1. | Brigham Young | 24 (4) |
| 2. | Loyola Marymount | 22 (2) |
| 3. | San Diego | 15 |
| 4. | Pacific | 14 |
| 5. | Santa Clara | 8 |
| 6. | Saint Mary's | 7 |
Position Players
| Name | Institution | Year | Pos. |
| Lindsay Clare | San Diego | Jr. | INF |
| Bridget Fleener | Brigham Young | So. | C |
| Andrea Gonzalez | Loyola Marymount | So. | INF |
| Rylee Jensen | Brigham Young | Jr. | OF |
| Hailey Reed | Pacific | Jr. | OF |
| Hannah Russell | Santa Clara | Jr. | C |
| Talli Shepard | Pacific | So. | INF |
| Taylor Spence | San Diego | Sr. | OF |
| Libby Sugg | Brigham Young | Sr. | C |
| Lexi Tarrow | Brigham Young | Sr. | OF |
| Kimiko Zapanta | Saint Mary's | So. | OF |
| Name | Institution | Year | Pos. |
| Hannah Bandimere | Loyola Marymount | Sr. | P |
| Autumn Moffat | Brigham Young | So. | P |
| Kerisa Viramontes | Brigham Young | Jr. | P |
Players Mentioned
OF
/ SoftballSB | Highlights at LMU, 5-10-25 G2
Saturday, May 10
SB | Highlights at LMU, 5-10-25 G1
Saturday, May 10
SB | Highlights at LMU, 5-9-25
Friday, May 09
SB | Highlights vs San Diego, 5-4-25
Sunday, May 04
