The MIAA softball race is highly competitive every spring, and this season appears to be no different.

Defending MIAA champion Trine and Alma, which won the conference tournament last season, are the co-favorites to win this season's championship in a preseason poll of the league's coaches. They each received 12 points in the poll, with the Thunder capturing five first-place votes and the Scots four. Coaches could not vote for their own team.

Poll Results (first-place votes in parenthesis): 1. Trine (5) 12 pts. 1. Alma (4) 12. 3. Hope 24. 4. Adrian 29. 5. Saint Mary's 38. 6. Olivet 43. 7. Calvin 46. 8. Albion 57. 9. Kalamazoo 63.

Non-conference competition is already underway. MIAA teams begin conference play March 27 when Alma travels to Olivet for a doubleheader. The top four teams in conference play advance to the MIAA tournament May 2-3.

Last spring the Scots hosted a NCAA Regional and Alma went 3-2, falling to the eventual champ Ohio Northern.