League Coaches Tab Flyers Followed By Charlotte

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - After winning a program-record 38 games and capturing its first-ever regular season crown a year ago, Dayton has been selected to win the 2010 Atlantic 10 baseball title in voting conducted by the league’s head coaches.

Four-time champion Charlotte has been picked second, while defending league champ Xavier is third.

UD slugged a program-best 77 home runs and led the conference in batting (.332) last season en route to amassing 21 victories in league action, the second-highest total in A-10 history. The Flyers are led by senior infielder Zach Jacob, who ranked among the top 10 in the league in hits (79 – 2nd), runs (56 – 2nd) and total bases (129 – 8th), and sophomore lefthander Cameron Hobson. The 2009 Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year posted a mark of 7-1 with a 3.43 earned run average and 83 strikeouts in 78.2 innings pitched.

Charlotte boasts an overall record of 160-70 (.695) over the past four seasons – good for ninth nationally – and welcomes back a pair of second-team All-Conference selections in designated hitter Ryan Rivers (league-high 18 home runs) and righthander Joe Yermal (8-3, 3.01 ERA). Xavier claimed the program’s first-ever A-10 Championship a year ago, while Rhode Island’s seven consecutive championship appearances is the longest active streak in the Atlantic 10.

URI is picked fourth, followed by Richmond, Saint Louis, Massachusetts, Temple, Fordham, George Washington, Saint Joseph’s, St. Bonaventure, La Salle and Duquesne.

The six-team, double-elimination A-10 Championship will be held May 26-29 at Campbell’s Field in Camden, N.J.

2010 Predicted Order of Finish
(2009 overall/A-10 record in parentheses)
1. Dayton (38-19/21-6)
2. Charlotte (33-22/16-11)
3. Xavier (39-21/18-9)
4. Rhode Island (37-20-1/19-6)
5. Richmond (22-25/11-16)
6. Saint Louis (30-25/12-13)
7. Massachusetts (27-26/16-11)
8. Temple (17-33/11-15)
9. Fordham (22-32/16-11)
10. George Washington (22-33/11-15)
11. Saint Joseph’s (16-30-1/9-17)
12. St. Bonaventure (24-25/9-17)
13. La Salle (19-30/8-18)
14. Duquesne (14-41/7-19)

(Release)