Indiana State University Athletics

ST. LOUIS – Indiana State sophomore Bella Peterson was named to the Missouri Valley Conference's Preseason All-Conference Team as the league's preseason accolades and projections were released Wednesday.
 
The Sycamores, who finished fifth in the Valley last year with a 26-28 (12-14) record, were projected to finish seventh in 2019. Indiana State returns all but two letterwinners from last year's squad and adds to its depth with eight newcomers including six freshmen and two transfers.
 
Peterson hit .351 in her freshman campaign with 46 hits, 28 RBIs and 26 runs scored in 47 games played last season. Her 12 doubles (out of 16 extra base hits in all) rank 10^th all-time for a single season in Sycamore Softball history and ranked second in the Missouri Valley Conference last year.
 
Surprisingly absent from the Preseason All-Conference Team was Sycamore second baseman Leslie Sims. A junior, Sims led the Valley in 2018 in batting average (.410), on-base percentage (.476), stolen bases (26) and stolen base percentage (1.000, 26-for-26).
 
Both Peterson and Sims received MVC First Team All-Conference honors in 2018 while Sims was an All-Region selection. It marked the first time since 2009 and only the second time in the history of the program that Indiana State has received multiple all-conference first team honors.
 
The Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll and preseason all-conference team is picked by a vote of the league coaches. Coaches may not vote for their own players for the preseason all-conference team.
 
Indiana State, which enters its second season under the direction of Mike Perniciaro, opens the 2019 campaign at Stetson on Feb. 9. The Sycamores home opener is slated for Mar. 5 against Purdue Fort Wayne.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Softball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
2019 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll

Rank	Team (First Place Votes)	Points
1.	Drake (9)	99
2.	Southern Illinois	84
3.	Northern Iowa (1)	75
4.	Missouri State	67
5.	Illinois State	58
6.	Valparaiso	53
7.	Indiana State	41
8.	Bradley	28
9.	Evansville	26
10.	Loyola Chicago	19

 
2019 MVC Softball Preseason All-Conference Team

Name	School	Position	Year
Allison Apke	Bradley	1B	Jr.
Maddy Vermejan	Southern Illinois	2B	Jr.
Andrea Coursey	Illinois State	3B	So.
Sammey Bunch	Northern Iowa	SS	Jr.
Katelyn Massa	Southern Illinois	C	Jr.
Morgan Florey	Evansville	UT/P	Sr.
Eryn Gould	Evansville	DP/UT-NP	So.
Macy Johnson	Drake	OF	So.
Shannon McGee	Loyola Chicago	OF	Jr.
Bella Peterson	Indiana State	OF	So.
Nicole Newman	Drake	P	R-Sr.
Brianna Jones	Southern Illinois	P	Sr.