Catawba Tops SAC Baseball Preseason Poll

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Defending SAC baseball champion Catawba has been picked by the league's head coaches as the preseason favorite to repeat in 2014, it was announced on Monday.

Catawba – which went 36-16 overall and 21-6 in the SAC in 2013 – received nine of the possible 11 first-place votes in the preseason poll. The Indians have also been ranked 24th in the preseason Collegiate Baseball Newspaper national poll.

Catawba led the SAC in runs scored and ranked third in team ERA last season en route to winning the program's second regular-season conference title in three years.

Wingate and Tusculum – the SAC's No. 2 and No. 3 finishers, respectively, in last year's conference standings – tied for second in the preseason poll. WU went 29-21 overall and 20-7 in the SAC in 2013, while Tusculum went 33-18 overall and 16-11 in the conference.

SAC newcomer and 2013 NCAA Division II World Series participant Coker is fourth in the preseason poll. The Cobras went 38-16 overall last season and open up 2014 ranked 25th in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll.

Newberry is No. 5 in the preseason poll and received the other two first-place votes, while 2013 SAC Tournament champion Lincoln Memorial is No. 6, Carson-Newman is No. 7 and Lenoir-Rhyne is No. 8.

Rounding out the preseason poll are Brevard at No. 9, Anderson at No. 10 and Mars Hill at No. 11.

Also announced on Monday was the 2014 SAC preseason All-Conference Team. Making up the first-team infield are Wingate catcher Josh Clark, Newberry first baseman Albert Baur, Catawba second baseman Julio Zubillaga, Mars Hill shortstop Evan Rogers and Newberry third baseman Ryan Cranmer, while Wingate's Thomas Sptiz, Lenoir-Rhyne's Ivan Vieitez and Catawba's Keaton Hawks form the first-team outfield.

Newberry's Jonathan Rosenberger and the Wingate duo of Olen Little and 2013 SAC Freshman of the Year TJ Rinoski form the first-team starting rotation, and Tusculum's John-Austin Shepard is the first-team relief pitcher. Completing the team is Newberry's Eric Barbieri at designated hitter.

The preseason All-Conference Second Team consists of Newberry catcher Chas Goodwin, Coker first baseman Fico Kondla, Carson-Newman second baseman Bo Ausmus, Coker shortstop Shea Bell, and Catawba's Paul Kronenfeld, Newberry's Jermale Paige and Catawba's Blake Houston in the outfield.

Catawba's John Tuttle, Coker's Andrew Goot and Wingate's Ben Currie are the second-team starters, Anderson's Landon Beck is the second-team reliever, and LMU's Scott Miller is the team's DH.

Saturday, Feb. 1 marks the official start of the SAC baseball regular season, and the 2014 Food Lion SAC Baseball Championship will take place April 24-27 in Forest City, N.C.

2014 SAC Baseball Preseason Coaches' Poll

2014 SAC Baseball Preseason All-Conference Team

First Team

C – Josh Clark, WU

1B – Albert Baur, NEW

2B – Julio Zubillaga, CAT

SS – Evan Rogers, MHU

3B – Ryan Cranmer, NEW

OF – Thomas Spitz, WU

OF – Ivan Vieitez, L-R

OF – Keaton Hawks, CAT

DH – Eric Barbieri, NEW

SP – Jonathan Rosenberger, NEW

SP – Olen Little, WU

SP – TJ Rinoski, WU

RP – John-Austin Shepard, TC

Second Team

C – Chas Goodwin, NEW

1B – Fico Kondla, COK

2B – Bo Ausmus, C-N

SS – Shea Bell, COK

3B – Blake Prince, WU

OF – Paul Kronenfeld, CAT

OF – Jermale Paige, NEW

OF – Blake Houston, CAT

DH – Scott Miller, LMU

SP – John Tuttle, CAT

SP – Andrew Goot, COK

SP – Ben Currie, WU

RP – Landon Beck, AU