FRISCO, Texas – Texas State is favored to win its fourth consecutive Southland Conference regular-season baseball championship by a vote of the league’s head coaches and sports information directors, the conference announced Thursday.

The Bobcats were the overwhelming favorites in both polls, receiving the maximum 11 first-place votes and 121 points in the coaches’ and SID polls. Texas State returns 20 letterwinners, six starters and 10 pitchers from a Bobcat squad that won its third consecutive regular-season title and first conference tournament title since 2000. Among the returning players are senior All-Americans Casey Kalenkosky and Tyler Sibley, senior all-conference selection Jeff McVaney and senior starting pitcher Mitchell Pitts. Texas State, which finished the 2011 season with a 41-23 overall record, went 24-9 in conference play, recording its fifth 20-win season in conference play in the last six years.

The second-, third- and fourth-place teams in both polls are separated by less than 10 points.

Stephen F. Austin was selected second in the SID poll, gathering the final first-place from the SIDs and 92 total points. The Lumberjacks, who fell to Texas State in the conference championship a year ago, finished third in the coaches’ poll with a total of 84 points.

Southeastern Louisiana was picked second in the coaches’ polls and third by the SIDs. The Lions received a total of 88 points in both polls. UTSA was tabbed fourth by both the coaches and SIDs. The Roadrunners received 82 points from the coaches and 83 points from the SIDs.

Sam Houston State grabbed the final first-place vote from the coaches to land in the fifth spot with 77 total points. The Bearkats were selected sixth in the SID poll with 74 points.

Lamar, which has won conference-best 10 regular season titles, was picked sixth by the coaches with 67 points and fifth by the SIDs with 79 points.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi was tabbed seventh by both coaches and SIDs a year after finishing third in the regular season. The Islanders received 51 points in the coaches’ poll and 66 points from the SIDs.

UT Arlington was picked eighth in both the polls with 49 points from the coaches and 52 from the SIDs.

In the coaches’ poll, McNeese State was selected ninth followed by Northwestern State, Nicholls State and Central Arkansas to round out the poll. McNeese State and Nicholls State each collected 39 points to tie for ninth in the SID poll. Northwestern State and Central Arkansas were tabbed 11th and 12th, respectively, to fill out the SID poll.

Opening day of the Southland season is Feb. 17 with conference play beginning March 9. The Southland Conference tournament will be played May 23-26 at the Bobcat Baseball Stadium in San Marcos, Texas.

2012 Preseason All-Southland Conference Baseball Teams

*Returning all-conference selection;

¹Preseason third-team All-America selection by Louisville Slugger

MACON, Ga. – Stetson and Jacksonville sit atop the 2012 Atlantic Sun Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll after landing a combined six student-athletes on the all-conference team. The Hatters’ Kurt Schluter earned the Preseason Pitcher of the Year honor, while the Dolphins’ Adam Brett Walker received Player of the Year recognition for the upcoming season.

A junior starting pitcher, Schluter netted eight wins against no losses in 10 starts last season with a 1.40 ERA. In league contests, he posted a 5-0 record with a 0.97 ERA and 37 strikeouts. Walker finished 2011 as the conference leader in batting average (.409), hits (99), total bases (165) and doubles (23), while ending second in slugging percentage (.682) and runs batted in (74). He added 13 home runs and 14 stolen bases.

Preseason Player of the Year: Adam Brett Walker, Jacksonville
Fan Voted Preseason Player of the Year: Dylan Craig, Belmont
Preseason Pitcher of the Year: Kurt Schluter, Stetson
Fan Voted Preseason Pitcher of the Year: Derek Bushey, ETSU

Preseason All-Atlantic Sun Team
Pos. Name School Cl. Hometown Academic Major
C Ronnie Freeman Kennesaw State Jr. Snellville, Ga. Exercise & Health Science
1B* Adam Brett Walker Jacksonville Jr. Milwaukee, Wis. Sports Administration
2B Robert Crews Stetson Sr. Port Charlotte, Fla. Accounting
3B Ben Carhart Stetson Sr. Royal Palm Beach, Fla. Integrative Health Science
SS Mark Jones Stetson Sr. Brunnell, Fla. Elementary Education
OF* Dylan Craig Belmont Jr. Signal Mountain, Tenn. Chemistry
OF* Dan Gulbransen Jacksonville Jr. Appleton, Wis. Exercise Science
OF Aaron Dobbs Kennesaw State Sr. Warner Robins, Ga. Communications
DH* Dylan Pratt ETSU Sr. Johnson City, Tenn. Management
SP Kurt Schluter Stetson Jr. Jupiter, Fla. Finance
SP Matt Hamann Belmont Sr. Northbrook, Ill. Sport Administration
SP Brandon Love Mercer Sr. Augusta, Ga. Marketing
RP David Teasley Mercer Jr. Elberton, Ga. Criminal Justice
*- Unanimous Choice
Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll
Pl. Team (1st Place Votes) Points
1. Stetson (9) 99
2. Jacksonville 89
3. Kennesaw State 67
4. Belmont 64
5. Mercer 58
6. FGCU (1) 57
7. North Florida 42
8. ETSU 41
9. Lipscomb 18
10. USC Upstate 15

Three members of Schluter’s infield picked up preseason honors as Robert Crews, Mark Jones and Ben Carhart joined their starting pitcher. Jones and Crews both earned First Team All-Conference honors in 2011 after posting nearly identical batting averages, .333 and .332, respectively. The middle infielders contributed to Stetson’s .965 fielding percentage, which ranked third in the conference. A third baseman, Carhart ranked in the top four on Stetson for batting average (.323), slugging percentage (.462), hits (81), RBI (63), home runs (7) and total bases (116).

Outfielders Dan Gulbransen and Dylan Craig joined Walker and ETSU’s Dylan Pratt as the four unanimous choices to the preseason list. Kennesaw State’s Aaron Dobbs completed the Atlantic Sun outfield after finishing last season with seven triples and 21 stolen bases.

Mercer’s pitching duo of Brandon Love and David Teasley captured preseason nods. Love, a starting pitcher, capped 2011 with an 8-1 record and 66 strikeouts to go along with his 3.26 ERA. The Bears’ relief pitcher, Teasley made 32 appearances last season and struck out 42 batters in 45.1 innings of work.

Belmont’s Matt Hamann concluded the A-Sun pitching staff. He compiled a 9-2 record last season with a 2.81 ERA and posted two complete games. Kennesaw State’s Ronnie Freeman claimed the final spot on the all-conference team as the catcher. Freeman ranked third in the conference in batting average (.392), hits (85), on-base percentage (.487) and fourth in slugging (.622).

The Hatters earned nine of ten first-place votes from the coaches in the preseason poll after capturing last year’s regular-season crown with a 23-7 conference record. Stetson and Jacksonville earned at-large bids to the NCAA Baseball Tournament last season and joined Belmont to make the A-Sun a multiple-bid conference for first time since 2007. The trio of teams combined for five wins in regional play – the most victories by the conference since 2002.

Kennesaw State earned the third spot in the coaches poll just ahead of the Bruins. Mercer and FGCU took the next two spots with the Eagles earning the remaining first-place vote in the poll. ETSU’s Derek Bushey was voted the Preseason Pitcher of the Year on Facebook by Atlantic Sun fans, while Belmont was predicted to win the regular season and championship titles via the social media site.

The Hatters were picked by the league coaches to win the 2012 Atlantic Sun Baseball Championship on May 23-26 at Melching Field in DeLand, Fla.

(Release)

ST. LOUIS – Missouri State, which returns a dominating young pitching staff and a wealth of depth from last year’s squad, has been tabbed as the league favorite in the annual coaches’ preseason poll, receiving five of eight first-place votes. Creighton is picked to finish second, followed by Wichita State, Indiana State, and Illinois State in the top five.

The entire poll is listed below, as is the Preseason All-MVC Team.

2012 MVC Baseball Preseason Poll

1.       Missouri State (5)               60

2.       Creighton (3)                        53

3.       Wichita State                        47

4.       Indiana State                        37

5.       Illinois State                          34

6.       Southern Illinois                   31

7.       Bradley                                  15

8.       Evansville                              11

The Valley demonstrates a depth of talent and experience returning to the league this season.  The coaches have voted 15 players representing all eight teams to the 2012 preseason all-MVC baseball squad.

2012 MVC Preseason All-Conference Team

Chris Serritella, 1B, Jr., Southern Illinois

Kevin Medrano, 2B, Sr., Missouri State

Koby Kraemer, 3B, Jr., Indiana State

Eric Stamets, SS, Jr., Evansville

Jeremy Lucas, C, Jr., Indiana State

Mike Hollenbeck, DH, So., Illinois State

Anthony Bemboom, UT, Sr., Creighton

Mike Gerber, OF, So., Creighton

Robby Ort, OF, Jr., Indiana State

Jordan Sivertsen, OF, Sr., Southern Illinois

Mike Tauchman, OF, Jr., Bradley

Ty Blach, SP, Jr., Creighton

Nick Petree, SP, So., Missouri State

Kenny Long, RP, Sr., Illinois State

Kurt Spomer, RP, Sr., Creighton

All eight Missouri Valley Conference baseball teams begin action the third week of February, with tournament play and non-conference games, while league battles will heat up starting Friday, March 2.

(Release)

Wichita, Kan. (NCBWA) — Forty-five players have been named to the initial watch list for the eighth annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball, as announced by the association Wednesday.

Texas’ Corey Knebel, the 2011 winner of the Stopper of the Year Award, headlines the list of preseason nominees for the 2012 award.  Last season as a freshman, Knebel collected 19 saves and went 3-2 with a 1.13 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 55.2 innings pitched as he helped the Longhorns to the College World Series.

Knebel, a first team preseason All-American by the NCBWA, is joined on the watch list by fellow first teamers Tony Bryant from Oregon State and Caleb Reed from Mississippi State.  Bryant had 12 saves and a 1.57 ERA a year ago, while Reed had 12 saves and a 1.55 ERA.

Among the other most notable nominees are the three members of the NCBWA preseason All-American second team (John Neely of Texas Tech, Austin Maddox of Florida and Tyler Smith of Rider), along with all three members of the third team (Jake Dyer of Georgia State, Nick Wittgren of Purdue and Chris Overman of North Carolina State).

The SEC led the way with six players on this year’s watch list, while the WAC had four pitchers on the list.

Nominations for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award were made by baseball sports information/media relations contacts. The initial list will be updated with a mid-season release the week of April 16, including the national saves leaders. At the conclusion of the regular season, the Division I national saves leader and four other relief pitching standouts will be selected as finalists and released Wednesday, June 6, prior to start of NCAA Super Regional tournament competition.

The NCBWA’s All-America Committee will select the winner, with this year’s recipient to be announced during the 2012 College World Series.

Texas hurler J. Brent Cox won the inaugural Stopper of the Year Award in 2005, with Don Czyz of Kansas claiming the honor in 2006, Luke Prihoda of Sam Houston State winning it in 2007, Georgia’s Joshua Fields topping the field in 2008, San Diego State’s Addison Reed grabbing the honor in 2009, Texas’ Chance Ruffin earning the honor in 2010 and Texas freshman Corey Knebel winning it last season.

The NCBWA, founded in 1962, presents the Dick Howser Trophy to the nation’s top player. It also selects All-America Teams for all Divisions, a Division I Freshman All-American team, Division I and III Players of the Week, Division I District Players of the Year and Division III Players of the Year.

2012 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List

Pitcher                                                  School                                  YR

Hugh Adams                                        Florida Atlantic                     Sr.

Chris Anderson                                    Jacksonville                          So.

Luke Bard                                             Georgia Tech                       Jr.

Jake Boyd                                             Stetson                                  Sr.

Tony Bryant                                          Oregon State                        Jr.

Matt Carasiti                                         St. John’s                              Jr.

Pat Christensen                                   La Salle                                 Jr.

Alex Cillo                                               Bucknell                                Sr.

Scott Coffman                                       New Mexico State               Sr.

Caleb Dudley                                       Louisiana Tech                    Jr.

Matt Duncan                                         Morehead State                   Jr.

Jake Dyer                                              Georgia State                       Sr.

Cale Elam                                             Wichita State                        So.

Matt Gardner                                        Nevada                                  Sr.

Kyle Glancy                                          Northern Illinois                   Sr.

Ryan Harvey                                        Seton Hall                             So.

Ryan Hawthorne                                 LMU                                       Sr.

Todd Hornsby                                      Jacksonville State               Sr.

Zack Jones                                           San Jose State                     Jr.

Corey Knebel                                       Texas                                     So.

Forrest Koumas                                   South Carolina                     So.

Kenny Long                                          Illinois State                          Sr.

Stefan Lopez                                        Southeastern Louisiana     Jr.

Austin Maddox                                     Florida                                   Jr.

Eddie Magallon                                   Long Beach State                Jr.

Tyler Maloof                                         Georgia                                 Jr.

Kevin McKague                                   Army                                       Sr.

Jeff McVaney                                        Texas State                          Sr.

Michael Morin                                      North Carolina                     Jr.

John Neely                                           Texas Tech                          Sr.

Chris Overman                                    North Carolina State           Jr.

Robbie Powell                                     Stetson                                  Sr.

Caleb Reed                                          Mississippi State                  Sr.

Joel Rinehart                                        Navy                                       Jr.

Steven Rodriguez                               Florida                                   Jr.

Joe Rogers                                           UCF                                       Jr.

Nolan Sanburn                                    Arkansas                               So.

Michael Schum                                    Wright State                          Sr.

Tyler Smith                                           Rider                                      Jr.

Kurt Spomer                                         Creighton                              Sr.

Tyler Wagner                                       Utah                                       Jr.

Tony Wieber                                        Michigan State                     Jr.

Abram Williams                                   Radford                                 Sr.

Nick Wittgren                                        Purdue                                   Jr.

Evan Zerff                                             Long Island                           Jr.

The Big 12 Conference has announced its 2012 FSN baseball and softball schedule. Eight games, including the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship, will be broadcast.

For baseball, eight different schools will be featured during the regular season, highlighted by a matchup of last year’s regular season co-champions, Texas and Texas A&M, and the opening game of the Bedlam series. The Longhorns and Aggies appear on Saturday, April 28, while Oklahoma and Oklahoma State’s contest in Tulsa on Friday, May 4, will also be aired.

Baylor, Kansas, Kansas State and Texas Tech will also make appearances. Coverage begins on Saturday, April 7, when the Jayhawks travel to Stillwater.

The FSN softball schedule features two of the league’s Women’s College World Series participants from 2011 as Baylor visits Missouri on Saturday, March 31. Also on the lineup is Texas A&M at Texas on Saturday, April 28. All four squads are ranked heading into the 2012 season.

The eight combined contests will be available to FSN’s regional affiliates, reaching more than 82 million cable and satellite television homes nationwide.

Additional television appearances are possible through other Big 12 broadcast partners and institutional contacts and will be announced at a later time.

The Big 12 softball season opens the weekend of Feb. 9-12, with seven Big 12 squads beginning non-conference action. Big 12 baseball begins on Friday, Feb. 17 with conference play kicking off the weekend of March 16.

2012 FSN BIG 12 CONFERENCE BASEBALL TELECAST SCHEDULE

2012 FSN BIG 12 CONFERENCE SOFTBALL TELECAST SCHEDULE

DALLAS – Florida is pre-competition No. 1 nationally for the first time
in school history in the 2012 National Collegiate Baseball Writers 15th
annual Division I preseason poll.

Coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s crew was runnerup to fellow Southeastern
Conference powerhouse South Carolina in the 2011 NCAA World Series and
has a very solid nucleus returning. All-America catcher and 2011 SEC
Player of the Year Mike Zunino (.371 average-19 homers-67 RBI) is one of
the top returnees along with dual threat Brian Johnson (8-3 pitching
record, .307-5-29) and All-America DH Preston Tucker for the Gators.

Two-time defending NCAA champ South Carolina is No. 2 in the opening
survey while 2011 NCAA Division I World Series participants North
Carolina (No. 3 this year), Texas A&M (No. 5), Texas (No. 7), Vanderbilt
(No. 11), Virginia (No. 23), and California (No, 26) return after being
ranked among the Top Eight in the final NCBWA poll last June. Last
year’s preseason No. 1 TCU is No. 13 in the 2012 lidlifter.

The NCBWA continues its tradition of NCAA Division I polls for the 15th
year with its 2012 preseason predictions and weekly surveys. Weekly
polls will resume from Feb. 21-June 28 with the finale following the
66th annual 2012 NCAA World Series in Omaha, Neb., at two-year-old TD
Ameritrade Park.
The poll voters come from 40 college baseball writers and related media
persons from throughout the nation. After a preseason Top 35 listing,
the remainder of the polls will feature a national Top 30 beginning with
the Feb. 21 NCBWA survey.

LSU held down the No. 1 slot in the 1998, 2001 and 2009 polls. Other
NCBWA preseason No. 1 placers have been Southern California (1999),
Miami (Fla.) (2000), Stanford (2002), Texas (2003, 06, 10), Rice (2004,
07), Cal State Fullerton (2005), Arizona State (2008), North Carolina
(2009), and TCU (2011). South Carolina never had won a DI baseball crown
before capturing the trophy in both 2010 and ’11.

Last season, five different teams were rated No, 1 – TCU, UCLA, Florida,
Vanderbilt, Virginia, and the champion Gamecocks.

This preseason poll has representation by 10 different conferences and
independent Dallas Baptist among the 291 baseball-playing schools in the
2012 NCAA Division I ranks. The polls of 2011 had teams from 16
different DI conferences rated at least one week. For more information
or to join the NCBWA, please go to www.ncbwa.com.

Rank-School-2011 Record-Final ’11 Ranking
1 Florida Southeastern 53-19 2
2 South Carolina SEC 55-14 1
3 North Carolina Atlantic Coast 51-16 5
4 Stanford Pacific-12 35-22 13
5 Texas A&M Big 12 47-22 8
6 Arkansas SEC 40-22 20
7 Texas Big 12 49-19 7
8 Rice Conference USA 42-21 18
9 Georgia Tech ACC 42-21 23
10 Florida State ACC 46-19 10
11 Vanderbilt SEC 54-12 4
12 LSU SEC 36-20 NR
13 TCU Mountain West 43-19 16
14 Oklahoma Big 12 41-19 24
15 Arizona State Pac-12 43-18 9
16 Miami (Fla.) ACC 38-23 26
17 Clemson ACC 43-20 15
18 Arizona Pac-12 39-21 25
19 Cal State Fullerton Big West 41-17 17
20 UCLA Pac-12 35-24 22
21 Georgia SEC 33-32 NR
22 Oregon State Pac-12 41-19 12
23 Virginia ACC 56-12 3
24 UC Irvine Big West 43-18 11
25 Louisville Big East 32-29 NR
26 California Pac-12 38-23 6
27 St. John’s Big East 36-22 NR
28 UCF Conference USA 39-23 NR
29 Southern Miss Conference USA 39-19 30
30 Ole Miss SEC 30-25 NR
31 Stetson Atlantic Sun 43-20 NR
32 Baylor Big 12 31-28 NR
33 Dallas Baptist Independent 42-20 21
34 Mississippi State SEC 38-25 19
35 Coastal Carolina Big South 42-20 NR

Others receiving votes (listed alphabetically): Alabama (35-28), Auburn
(29-29), Belmont (38-26), Bethune-Cookman (36-25), Cal State Bakersfield
(33-22), Charlotte (43-16), College of Charleston (39-22), Connecticut
(45-20-1), Creighton (45-16), East Carolina (41-21), Florida
International (40-20-1), Fresno State (40-16), Georgia Southern (36-26),
Georgia State (37-21), Gonzaga (32-19-1), Illinois (30-27), Jacksonville
(37-24), James Madison (42-19), Kansas State (36-25), Kent State
(45-17), Kentucky (25-30), Long Beach State (29-27), Maine (33-24),
Michigan State (36-21), Missouri State (33-23), NC State (35-27),
Nebraska (30-25), Oklahoma State (35-25), Old Dominion (30-26), Oral
Roberts (39-22), Oregon (33-26-1), Sam Houston State (35-24), San Diego
State (22-36), Seton Hall (34-25), Southern California (25-31), Stony
Brook (42-12), Tennessee (25-29), Texas State (41-23), Texas Tech
(33-25), Troy (43-19), Tulane (31-26), UNC Wilmington (31-28), West
Virginia (28-27), Wichita State (39-26).

By conference: SEC 8, Pacific-12 6, ACC 6, Big 12 4, C-USA 3, Big East
2, Big West 2, Atlantic Sun 1, Big South 1, Independents 1, MWC 1.

GREENSBORO, N.C. – North Carolina has been selected as the 2012 Atlantic Coast Conference baseball preseason favorite in a vote of the league’s 12 head coaches.

The Tar Heels were named by seven coaches as this year’s ACC team to beat, while Georgia Tech received four first-place votes and Florida State one.

UNC, coming off its fifth College World Series appearance in six years, was also named by seven coaches as the likely Coastal Division winner. Georgia Tech received four first-place votes and one coach picked Miami.

Clemson received the nod as the Atlantic Division favorite. The Tigers received seven first-place votes, with the other five going to Florida State.

North Carolina was followed in the Coastal Division voting by Georgia Tech, while Miami and defending ACC champion Virginia tied for third place. Virginia Tech placed fifth, followed by Duke.

Clemson and Florida State were picked 1-2 in the Atlantic Division, followed by NC State, Wake Forest, Maryland and Boston College.

All 12 ACC teams open their seasons with non-conference games on Friday, Feb. 17. The 2012 ACC Baseball Championship is scheduled for May 23 through 27 at NewBridge Bank Park in Greensboro, N.C.

Ten ACC student-athletes have been named 2012 preseason All-Americans. Six conference teams – North Carolina, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami and Virginia – have been ranked among the top 20 of at least one major preseason poll.

With North Carolina and Virginia reaching the College World Series last season, the ACC has placed a total of 14 teams in Omaha since 2006. Seven ACC teams received NCAA Tournament berths in 2011, and at least five conference teams have been selected for postseason play each of the past 10 seasons.

2012 ACC BASEBALL COACHES PRESEASON POLL

OVERALL CHAMPION: North Carolina (7)

Also receiving votes: Georgia Tech (4), Florida State (1)

ATLANTIC DIVISION

COASTAL DIVISION

(Six points were awarded for each first-place vote, five points for each second-place vote, etc).

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – For the fifth consecutive year, Coastal Carolina University‘s baseball team has been voted the Big South Conference’s preseason favorite by the League’s Head Baseball Coaches, it was announced today by the Conference office.  In addition, the coaches voted Presbyterian sophomore catcher/first baseman Brad Zebedis (Rock Hill, S.C.) the Conference’s Preseason Player of the Year and Coastal Carolina junior Josh Conway (Smithsburg, Md.) the League’s Preseason Pitcher of the Year.

Coastal was the near-unanimous selection to win the Big South crown in 2012, as the Chants received 10 of the 11 first-place votes and finished with 120 out of a possible 121 total points.  Coastal Carolina is coming of its fifth consecutive Big South Championship (League record) and NCAA Tournament berth.  Led by 17-year head coach Gary Gilmore — the Big South’s second-winningest baseball coach with a record of 650-324 ( =66.7 percent), the Chanticleers went 42-20 overall and 20-7 in Conference play in 2011.  The Chants return eight starters (four position players, four pitchers) and nine total letterwinners from last year’s club.

Liberty was second in the preseason poll with 98 points and received the remaining first-place vote.  Radford was picked third with 97 points — the Highlanders’ highest position in the preseason ranking since being picked third in 1996.  Winthrop finished fourth in the voting with 76 points, while Gardner-Webb, last season’s Tournament Runner-up, was chosen fifth with 66 points.  Charleston Southern landed in the sixth spot with 65 points, just one point ahead of seventh-place VMI (64).  High Point garnered eighth-place (59 points), followed by Campbell (ninth, 31 points), Presbyterian College (10th, 30 points) and UNC Asheville (11th, 20 points).  PC is eligible for the League’s regular-season championship but not the Conference tournament due to its final year of transitioning to Division I.

Already named a preseason All-American by the NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball, Zebedis was the Big South’s Freshman of the Year in 2011 after leading the Big South with a .425 batting average — the highest batting average by a freshman in League history.  He also received All-America honors last season from Collegiate Baseball, ABCA, Baseball America and the NCBWA.  Zebedis tied the Conference-freshman record with 13 home runs in 2011, and was among the League leaders last season in home runs, hits (90), slugging percentage (.717), RBI (57) and doubles (23).  He was named a national semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy in 2011 and ended the season with a 15-game hitting streak.  In Big South games, Zebedis batted .406 with seven home runs, 27 RBI and slugged .703 in 27 contests, in addition to recording seven of his 16 multiple-RBI games against Conference foes.  Zebedis received eight first-place votes and 17 points in the voting, ahead of Coastal Carolina first baseman Rich Witten (one first-place vote and four points).

Conway appeared in 20 games last season with 12 starts, and went 8-2 with three saves and a 2.69 earned run average.  He struck out 70 batters in 77.0 innings pitched, and held opponents to a .241 batting average while walking just 23.  Conway ranked fifth in the Big South with his eight wins.  In League games in 2011, Conway was 3-0 with two saves in nine appearances (seven starts), tossed 42.2 innings, struck out 35 hitters and had a 2.95 earned run average.  The junior was named Big South Pitcher of the Week March 8 after fanning 12 batters in 5.2 innings in a win over No. 18-ranked College of Charleston.  During the summer, Conway made the 2011 Cape Cod All-Star team, going 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA in six games (five starts) and getting 28 strikeouts in 28.2 innings.  He was listed as the 19th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League by Baseball America and 30th by Perfect Game USA.  Conway collected four first-place votes and 14 total points in the voting, ahead of Radford starter Eddie Butler (four first-place votes and 11 points).

The 2012 Big South baseball season begins Friday, February 17 with all 11 teams in action.  The first Conference meeting is set for the weekend of March 16-18, while the 2012 Big South Baseball Championship tournament is slated for May 22-26 and will be hosted for the first time by High Point University at Williard Stadium in High Point, N.C.

2012 Big South Conference Preseason Baseball Poll (total points)

Note: points are based on a weighted system, with first-place votes receiving 11 points, followed by 10 points for second-place, and so on. 

RICHMOND, Va.– James Madison, which captured the CAA baseball championship for the second time in four years last season, has been picked to win the conference title again in 2012 according to a vote of the CAA’s head baseball coaches.

The Dukes received five first-place votes and finished atop the poll with 94 points. UNC-Wilmington garnered two first-place votes and was close behind in second with 88 points. Old Dominion got two first-place tallies and was chosen third with 76 points and Georgia State also got two first-place votes and was fourth with 74 points. VCU placed fifth in the voting, followed by George Mason, Delaware and William & Mary (tied for 7th), Towson, Hofstra and Northeastern.

JMU returns five everyday starters from a 42-19 squad that finished atop the CAA regular-season standings for the second year in a row with a 21-9 mark. Leading the list of returnees is junior outfielder Johnny Bladel (.360, 4 HR, 41 RBI, 26 SB), who earned 2nd team All-CAA honors and was chosen as the Most Outstanding Player at the CAA Baseball Championship. Also back is 3rd-team All-CAA infielder/pitcher Ty McFarland (.278, 2 HR, 36 RBI) and junior catcher/infielder Bradley Shaban (.271, 5 HR, 30 RBI). The Dukes also feature a pair of veteran pitchers in All-CAA pick Sean Tierney (10-1, 3.43 ERA) and senior Evan Scott (4-3, 5.94 ERA).

UNCW posted a 31-28 record a year ago and has four All-CAA performers returning to its starting lineup. Topping that group is senior outfielder Thomas Pope, who led the CAA with a .396 batting average in 2011 and received preseason All-America honors from the NCBWA. Also back are junior first baseman Hunter Ridge (.354, 9 HR, 60 RBI), senior third baseman/catcher Matt Campbell (.337, 6 HR, 26 RBI) and junior outfielder Andrew Cain (.302, 10 HR, 48 RBI), who all made the All-CAA second team. Senior Tyler McSwain (5-5, 4.97 ERA) and sophomore William Prince (0-2, 5 svs., 3.86 ERA) return on the hill for the Seahawks.

Old Dominion, which went 30-26 a year ago, begins its first season under coach Chris Finwood. Among seven returning starters from a year ago are 1st team All-CAA shortstop Josh Wright (.369, 12 HR, 44 RBI, 18 SB), senior first baseman Chris Baker (.297, 10 HR, 63 RBI) and sophomore designated hitter Joey Burney (.257, 8 HR, 34 RBI), who was a Freshman All-America selection. The Monarchs also have two of their top starting pitchers back in seniors Ben Tomchick (8-4, 3.14 ERA) and Phil McCarthy (9-4, 4.05 ERA).

Georgia State had a 37-21 overall mark last season and earned a berth in the CAA Tournament for the third year in a row. Back to lead the Panthers is senior infielder Brandon Williams (.342, 1 HR, 36 RBI), who earned 1st team All-CAA honors, and junior infielder Drew Shields (.321, 0 HR, 20 RBI), who made the All-CAA second team as a designated hitter. GSU’s pitching staff includes senior Justin Malone (7-1, 3.81 ERA) and senior All-CAA closer Jake Dyer (3-0, 8 svs., 1.67 ERA), who received preseason All-America honors from the NCBWA.

2012 CAA BASEBALL PRESEASON PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

1. James Madison (5 first-place votes) 95
2. UNCW (2 first-place votes) 88
3. Old Dominion (2 first-place votes) 76
4. Georgia State (2 first-place votes) 74
5. VCU 63
6. George Mason 46
t7. Delaware 44
t7. William and Mary 44
9. Towson 30
10. Hofstra 27
11. Northeastern 19

Florida is the number one team in the USA Today/ESPN College Baseball 2012 Preseason Poll. The coaches’ poll is the third preseason ranking to be released to date, and Florida has topped all three (Collegiate Baseball and Baseball America are the other two.

Two-time defending national champion South Carolina is second, followed by Stanford, North Carolina and Texas in the top five. Texas A&M, Rice, Arkansas, Florida State, and Georgia Tech round out the preseason top 10.

Stanford is the only school among the top six in the poll that did not reach the 2011 College World Series.

Six SEC and ACC teams are in the top 25, the Pac-12 has five.

College Baseball 360 will release our 2012 Preseason Top 50 Composite Poll in the coming weeks.

Jan 26, 2012

1. Florida

2. South Carolina

3. Stanford

4. North Carolina

5. Texas

6. Texas A&M

7. Rice

8. Arkansas

9. Florida State

10. Georgia Tech

11. TCU

12. Vanderbilt

13. Miami (Fla)

14. LSU

15. Oklahoma

16. Cal State Fullerton

17. Virginia

18. UCLA

19. Oregon State

20. Arizona

21. St. John’s

22. California

23. Clemson

24. Louisville

25. Georgia

Others receiving votes: UC-Irvine (43-18) 102; Connecticut (45-20-1) 29; Mississippi State (38-25) 28; Baylor (31-28) 27; Dallas Baptist (42-20) 25; Oregon (33-26) 24; Stetson (43-20) 23; Southern Mississippi (39-19) 20; Fresno State (40-16) 13; Kent State (45-17) 13; Oklahoma State (35-25) 12; East Carolina (41-21) 9; Troy (43-19) 9; North Carolina State (35-27) 8; Georgia Southern (36-26) 7; Creighton (45-16) 6; Mississippi (30-25) 6; Missouri State (33-23) 6; Southern California (25-31) 6; Illinois (30-27) 5; Wichita State (39-26) 5; Alabama (35-28) 4; Belmont (38-26) 4; Coastal Carolina (42-20) 4; Pittsburgh (33-23) 4; Central Florida (39-23) 3; UNC-Wilmington (31-28) 3; College of Charleston (39-22) 1; Jacksonville (37-24) 1; James Madison (42-19) 1; Oral Roberts (39-22) 1; Southeastern Louisiana (35-22) 1; Stony Brook (42-12) 1.

The USA TODAY/ESPN Board of Coaches is made up of 31 coaches at Division I institutions. All are members of the American Baseball Coaches Association. The board for the 2012 season: Terry Alexander, Jacksonville; John Anderson, Minnesota; Ed Blankmeyer, St. John’s; Rob Cooper, Wright State; Sherman Corbett, Texas-San Antonio; Tim Corbin, Vanderbilt; Barry Davis, Rider; Greg DiCenzo, Holy Cross; Mike Gaski, UNC-Greensboro; Nino Giarratano, San Francisco; Gary Gilmore, Coastal Carolina; Keith Guttin, Missouri State; Danny Hall, Georgia Tech; Carlton Hardy, Savannah State; Donny Harrel, Seattle University; Loren Hibbs, Charlotte; Charlie Hickey, Central Connecticut State; George Horton, Oregon; Steve Jaksa, Central Michigan; Omar Johnson, Jackson State; Rick Jones, Tulane; John Musachio, Oakland (Mich.); Bobby Pierce, Troy; Gary Powers, Nevada; Mark Scalf, UNC-Wilmington; Jim Schlossnagle, TCU; Jim Schmitz, Eastern Illinois; Matt Senk, Stony Brook; Doug Smith, UC-Riverside; Steve Smith, Baylor; Bob Whalen, Dartmouth.