Peach
Belt Conference Baseball Preseason Release
AUGUSTA, Ga. - The 2010 USC Aiken baseball team was tabbed as
the preseason favorite in the Peach Belt Conference in a poll of
the league's baseball coaches released on Tuesday, Jan. 19.
The Pacers received eight of a possible 11 first-place votes to
finish at 114, just ahead of Francis Marion (111) in second place.
North Georgia is third in the preseason poll followed by GCSU,
Columbus State and UNC Pembroke. Coaches were not permitted to rank
their own teams.
USC Aiken enters the 2010 season as a top 10 preseason selection
in both the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division II
preseason poll and the Ping!Baseball NCAA Division II preseason
poll. The Pacers check in at No. 9 in the Ping!Baseball preseason
poll. The Pacers were slotted as the No. 6 team in the 2010
Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division II preseason
poll released in late December of 2009.
USC Aiken's 2009 baseball team ended the year tied with Central
Missouri for 10th in the final Collegiate Baseball NCAA Division II
Top 30 poll.
The final ranking of 10th was the highest for the 2009 Peach
Belt Conference regular season champions under head coach Kenny
Thomas.
USC Aiken ended the 2008 season ranked 11th, while they
concluded the 2005 season 12th.
The Pacers reached as high as No. 2 nationally in 2009 en route
to their second ever Peach Belt Conference regular season
championship. The regular season title was the first for the Pacers
since 1994. The Pacers also have two PBC Tournament crowns, having
won the league tournament in 1992 and 1993.
The Pacers' prowess during the regular season helped USC Aiken
to top honors in the Southeast Region, enabling the program to host
its second ever NCAA Division II Tournament regional.
The Pacers advanced to the regional final for the second
consecutive season before bowing out to NCAA Division II Baseball
Championship semifinalist and Conference Carolinas Tournament
champion Belmont Abbey in the first game of the championship round.
USC Aiken (42-19) concluded its season having been a part of its
fifth consecutive NCAA Division II Baseball regional.
The Pacers' 42 wins in 2009 leave the program entering the 2010
campaign with five consecutive 40-win seasons.
USC Aiken has been a participant in the NCAA Division II
Tournament seven times (1992, 1993, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and
2009).
Francis Marion finished second in the 2009 regular season
standings before winning the PBC Tournament.
The Patriots were 38-15-1, the second-highest win total in
program history. Ranked 12th in the preseason national poll, FMU
returns 23 of 32 players from last year.
North Georgia reached the PBC Tournament championship game in
2009 after compiling a 34-24 overall record and finishing fifth in
the PBC standings. The 2010 Saints will be loaded with eight of
nine starters returning.
The 2010 PBC baseball season features several changes from
previous years. Two new schools, Montevallo and Flagler, will join
the league, giving the PBC 12 teams for the first time. With 12
teams, the PBC will split into east and west divisions with
Armstrong Atlantic State, Flagler, Francis Marion, Lander, UNC
Pembroke and USC Aiken in the east and Augusta State, Columbus
State, GSW, GCSU, Montevallo and North Georgia in the west.
The 2010 PBC season begins on Feb. 1 with league play beginning
Feb. 27. The season will conclude at the PBC Tournament May 8-9 at
Roberto Hernandez Stadium at USC Aiken, with one first round game
to be contested at Lake Olmstead Stadium in Augusta.
The 2010 Pacers begin their season with a three-game home series
against the South Atlantic Conference's Lincoln Memorial. USC
Aiken's regular season opener will be at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5
against the Railsplitters. The three-game set will conclude with 1
p.m. games on Saturday (Feb. 6) and Sunday (Feb. 7).
PBC
Preseason Baseball Poll
