Friday, January 20, 2006

SAINTS PICKED 7TH IN PBC BASEBALL PRESEASON POLL

Augusta, Ga. – The North Georgia College & State University baseball team is picked to finish seventh in this year's Peach Belt Conference preseason coach's poll. The USC Aiken Pacers have been favored to win the 2006 Peach Belt Championship in the poll of the league's 10 head coaches released today.

The Pacers grabbed six first-place votes to finish with 77 points, four ahead of Francis Marion with 73 in second place. Armstrong Atlantic State was third, followed by GC&SU and Columbus State. USC Upstate, North Georgia, Augusta State, Lander and UNC Pembroke rounded out the voting.

The Pacers return seven starters from last season's 40-19 team that finished fourth in the Peach Belt and advanced to the NCAA Regional. Eight of the Pacers' top nine hitters return as do two of four starting pitchers. The Pacers will have to replace departed ace Steve Dunham but welcome in eight new pitchers for 2006 along with four new position players. USC Aiken is looking for their first conference title since 1994.

Francis Marion finished third in the PBC standings in 2005 and also advanced to the NCAA Regional after compiling a 34-16-1 overall record. The Patriots welcome back 15 of 27 lettermen including Dylan Owen and Lee Tabor, their top two pitchers from 2005.

Armstrong Atlantic State finished 34-16 overall last season but struggled in the conference, finishing in sixth place. The Pirates return six starters and 11 letter-winners from last year's team including All-American closer Matt Nalutka and starter Chase Leatherwood.

The Peach Belt will undergo several changes in 2006, the most notable the addition of North Georgia to the league. The Saints come in ready to make a difference after going 57-15 last season and winning the Southern States Conference tournament and advancing to the NAIA Regional.

Also new for 2006 is the return of the PBC Baseball Tournament which was last played in 1998. The tournament will be played May 11-14 at Roberto Hernandez Stadium in Aiken, S.C., and hosted by USC Aiken. The top six teams in the league will advance to the four-day, double-elimination tournament. The winner will get an automatic bid to the 2006 NCAA Regional.

Teams were given nine points for a first-place vote, eight for a second place vote and so on. Coaches were not allowed to rank their own teams.

2006 PBC Preseason Baseball Poll
No.	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	Total
1.	USC Aiken	6	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	77
2.	Francis Marion	3	4	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	73
3.	Armstrong Atlantic	1	2	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	64
4.	GC&SU	0	2	3	3	1	0	0	0	0	60
5.	Columbus State	0	0	1	4	2	0	1	1	0	46
6.	USC Upstate	0	0	0	0	2	6	1	0	0	37
7.	North Georgia	0	0	0	0	5	1	1	1	1	35
8.	Augusta State	0	0	0	0	0	3	4	2	0	28
9.	Lander	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	3	4	16
10.	UNC Pembroke	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	5	14

 

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