PHOENIX, AZ – Hawai‘i Pacific totaled 91 points and captured four of 10 first-place votes to edge Dixie State as the favorite to claim the 2012 Pacific West Conference Softball Championship.

The PacWest revealed its 2012 Preseason All-Conference Team and predicted order of finish live on KQCK Radio on Thursday, Feb. 2, during the league’s weekly radio show. The head coaches of the Pacific West Conference select the Preseason All-PacWest Softball Team and predicted order of finish.

The Sea Warriors and Red Storm shared the PacWest Championship in 2011 after each team finished the season with a 23-5 league record. HPU earned the automatic berth to the NCAA II West Regional after beating the Red Storm in three of four contests during the regular season.

HPU enters 2012 with senior 1B/P Breanne Patton (Ewa Beach HI/Campbell) as the backbone of the club. The 2011 PacWest Pitcher of the Year and All-PacWest First Team hurler carries those honors into the upcoming campaign after being selected the PacWest Preseason Pitcher of the Year and being named to the Preseason All-PacWest Softball Team at first base and pitcher.

Patton finished the 2011 season with a 23-4 record and a 1.49 earned run average. She had 11 shutouts and 24 complete games while tossing 174.0 innings. She recorded 125 strikeouts while yielding a .206 opponent batting average.

At the plate, Patton batted .331 in 49 starts, going 41 for 124 with nine doubles, three homers, 25 RBI, 22 walks, a .492 slugging percentage and a .447 on-base mark.

Joining Patton on the preseason squad is HPU junior catcher Nicole Morrow (Puyallup, WA/John Rogers) who batted .250 in 41 games. She was 26 for 104 with 11 runs, six doubles and 10 RBI.

Dixie State junior DP Anna Cue (Murrieta Valley, CA/Murrieta Valley) was named the 2012 PacWest Preseason Player of the Year and to the preseason team. In 2011, Cue was named the PacWest Player of the Year and All-PacWest First Team at first base. She was a Second Team member in 2010.

Cue finished last season with phenomenal stats, leading the PacWest in hitting with a .437 average. She also drove in 53 runs, recorded an .817 slugging percentage, hit 12 home runs, posted a .476 on-base percentage and ripped 55 base hits. She added 103 total bases and 10 doubles to her offensive output.

Sophomore OF Jaelle Judkins (St. George, UT/Dixie), a First Team choice for the Red Storm last season, also was named Preseason All-PacWest after producing an outstanding 2011 campaign for Dixie State. She finished the year hitting .363 in 46 games and 45 starts, going 58 for 160 with 38 runs scored and 22 RBI. She also contributed seven doubles, two triples, two homers, 21 stolen bases and a .469 slugging rate.

Grand Canyon landed one preseason choice thanks to sophomore 2B Claire Zampini (Phoenix, AZ/Deer Valley). The 2011 PacWest Freshman of the Year and All-PacWest First Team selection finished the season with a .414 batting average in 47 starts. She had 70 base hits, 46 runs scored, 12 doubles, three triples, 22 RBI, 91 total bases, a .538 slugging mark and a .448 on-base average.

Notre Dame de Namur also landed one preseason pick in senior 3B Robyn Araujo (Campbell, CA/Westmont), who was an All-PacWest First Team choice in 2011. Araujo had a phenomenal year in 2011, hitting .432 with 15 RBI, a .751 slugging rate, 15 home runs , a .510 on-base percentage, 73 base hits, 29 walks and 127 total bases. She topped the PacWest in hits and homers.

Academy of Art produced two Preseason All-PacWest outfielders in sophomore Elyse Cordova (Tulare, CA/Tulare Union) and senior Ashley Lokey (Eugene, OR/Elmira). Cordova was an All-PacWest Second Team selection last year, while Lokey earned First Team honors at first base in 2010.

Cordova hit .393 in 2011, registering 66 base hits, 40 runs scored, six doubles, 22 RBI, 18 stolen bases, a .421 on-base mark and a .488 slugging rate – all in 49 starts.

Lokey, who last played in 2010, batted .466 in 53 starts while scoring 48 runs. She had 76 base hits, 14 doubles, 20 RBI, six homers, a triple, a .675 slugging rate and a .563 on-base mark. She stole 19 bases and walked 34 times.

Hawai‘i Hilo grabbed the most Preseason All-PacWest selections with four. Senior Amber Waracka (Kaneohe, HI/Kamehameha), who was named All-PacWest First Team as a flex player and Second Team as a pitcher in 2011, garnered two honors this year. She was named Preseason All-PacWest as a flex player and as a pitcher. In 2010, Waracka was an All-PacWest First Team selection at pitcher.

Waracka posted a 1.85 ERA that resulted in a 14-6 record on the mound. She struck out 80 batters over 125 innings of work, allowing opponents to muster a scant .224 batting average.

UHH junior SS Nicole Alconcel (Kahului, HI/HP Baldwin) and senior utility player Bryanna Hardy (Simi Valley, CA/Grace Brethren) joined Waracka on the preseason squad.

Alconcel hit .359 in 36 games during the 2011 campaign. She finished with 37 base hits, 25 runs scored, six doubles, 19 RBI, 11 steals, 18 walks, a .469 on-base mark and a .476 slugging percentage.

Hardy batted .369 in 42 starts with 45 base hits, 20 runs scored, 13 RBI and 23 walks. She also produced a .480 on-base percentage.