Baseball | January 31, 2023

The USC Aiken Pacers open the season on Friday, Feb. 3 with a three-game home series against the Carson-Newman Eagles. 
 
Improving in 2023

The Pacers are looking to improve on their 21-29 (12-15 PBC) 2022 season. Assisting with the improvement are the return of 16 upperclassmen led by senior Jackson Hannon. Hannon finished the season with a .291 batting average and a .711 on-base plus slugging percentage. He had an 18-game hitting streak and 14 games with multiple hits. 
 
Freshman Standout

Joining him is sophomore standout Josh Sharp. As a freshman, Sharp appeared in 47 games with 42 starts. He earned a .271 batting average on 46 hits. Sharp drove in 32 runs and scored 20 times. Josh had the second longest hitting streak on the team with 11 games and nine multi-hit games. 
 
He Can Hit Too

Sophomore Luke Parker not only appeared in 12 games as a pitcher, including five starts, last season, he also had 14 plate appearances. As a pitcher, Parker tallied a pair of saves and recorded 45 strikeouts. In addition to his hits, he swiped two bases. 
 
Opening Night Arm

Junior Joel Haney will open the season on the mound for the Pacers. Haney led the team with a 2.39 ERA (2nd in the PBC) and notched a team-high seven wins. The right-handed hurler registered two of the team's three shutouts and recorded a scoreless streak over 35 innings. He pitched a team-high 83 innings and struck out a team-best 71 batters (8th in the PBC) while limiting opponents to a mere .223 batting average. He earned second-team all-region honors from both the D2CCA and NCBWA last season. Haney was also named to the PBC all-league team and to the PBC Team of Academic Distinction last season. He was tabbed a preseason all-conference honoree last week.
 
Student Athlete Academic Accolades

Four other members returning to the Pacers' roster were also named to last year's PBC Team of Academic Distinction. They include AJ Deibel, Hunter Steger, Carson Suess, and Nick Tripp. To be eligible for the team, a student-athlete must 1) participate in at least half of his/her team's events and be either a starter or significant contributor; 2) achieved a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) and 3) completed at least one full academic year at his or her current institution and has reached sophomore athletic eligibility. 
 
Newcomers

Joining the 16 upperclassmen are nine freshmen and two redshirt freshmen. The rookies include, Kevin Cox, Justin Byrd, Derek Espinoza, Jacob Butler, Kaden Usry, Doom Dennis, Bryce Toci, Cole Evilsizor, and Kellen Blankenship. 
 
Inside The Numbers

Since moving to Division II, the Pacers are 151-105 (59 percent) in Friday games, 346-237 (59.3 percent) in Saturday games, and 208-152 (57.8 percent) in Sunday contests. During that same time, the team is 7-4 on Feb. 3, 7-2 on Feb. 4, and 6-5 on Feb 5.  
 
Against The Opponent

It has been 10 years since the Pacers and Eagles last faced off dating back to Feb. 10, 2103. The Pacers are 25-13 historically against the Eagles.