NEW YORK, N.Y. – Looking to reclaim top status at the head of the Skyline Conference, the Manhattanville University softball team shares the No. 1 ranking in the conference's Preseason Coaches Poll with Farmingdale, as unveiled earlier today.

The two finalists of the 2025 championship each received 77 points and evenly split the ten first place votes. Manhattanville and Farmingdale have met in the Conference Championship finals in four of the last five seasons as the two programs have established themselves as the top dogs of Skyline softball.

The two top vote-getters met in last year's finals, with Farmingdale ending Manhattanville's postseason run in the final day of the tournament's double elimination finals. Now the Valiants will look to bounce back how they did the last time the Rams eliminated them in the postseason in 2022: With a conference title.

Manhattanville entered 2025 as winners of two-straight Skyline crowns and finished the year 31-11 with a 17-1 mark in conference play. The one blemish in conference action, in addition to the two losses in the postseason, came at the hands of Farmingdale.

The Valiants lost four key contributors from last year's team to graduation. Emily Mottoshiski (Craryville, N.Y./Taconic Hills), Rachel Coleman (Lake Forest, Calif./Mission Viejo), Samantha Walsh (Spring City, Pa./Owen J Roberts) and Olivia Fasce (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) all hit .367 or better and accounted for 100 combined RBI and 136 runs scored. Additionally, Mottoshiski served as the Valiants' leading pitcher, going 17-7 with a 1.72 ERA and three saves in 151 innings. Walsh also provided quality innings in the circle, sporting a 1.17 ERA in 24 innings.

Jori Wilkendorf (Livermore, Calif./Livermore) slides in as the new season veteran of the Manhattanville pitching staff, as the junior comes off a 10-4, 2.43 ERA sophomore season. Wilkendorf is the lone returner to have pitched more than an inning last season, with incoming freshman Tahlia Smith (St. Helena, Calif./St. Helena) figuring to get plenty of innings of her own in her Manhattanville debut.

At the plate, Isabella Tansey (San Diego, Calif./University City), Angelina Cruz (Oceanside, Calif./Rancho Buena Vista) and Samantha Reyer (Oceanside, N.Y./Oceanside) each come off of 2025 seasons where they hit .360 or better. Cruz and Reyer were crucial run producers a year ago, combining for 63 runs batted in. Tansey worked as a table setter as the Valiants' primary leadoff batter, scoring 29 runs with a .375 batting average and a team-high 20 walks.

Manhattanville officially opens the season on Mar. 10 with a doubleheader at Stockton University. The Valiants will be on the road for most of the month before welcoming Cortland to Purchase for their home opening doubleheader on Mar. 28.

The full preseason poll is available below:

 

2026 Skyline Conference Softball Preseason Coaches' Poll
Rank, School, Points (First-place votes)
T1. Manhattanville University, 77 (5)
T1. Farmingdale State, 77 (5)   
3. Old Westbury, 60    
4. Mount Saint Mary, 54    
T5. Mount Saint Vincent, 46    
T5. St. Joseph's-Long Island, 46    
7. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn, 38    
8. Purchase, 26    
9. Sarah Lawrence, 17    
10. Yeshiva, 9