January 25, 2022

Griffin’s group tabbed fourth in SAC preseason poll

ROCK HILL, S.C. – After competing on the final day of the 2021 South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championships, Carson-Newman opens the 2022 campaign projected to finish fourth by the league’s coaches announced on Tuesday.

ROCK HILL, S.C. – After competing on the final day of the 2021 South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championships, Carson-Newman opens the 2022 campaign projected to finish fourth by the league's coaches announced on Tuesday.

"For our coaching staff it has been a thrill because it's been easy," Carson-Newman coach Tom Griffin said. "These guys are veterans and have been in a lot of games. These guys have been her for a while. They know exactly the expectations for themselves and their teammates. They have done a great job of holding each other accountable. As coaches we have to stay out of the way. We are getting their input on what they need going into the season. Their maturity level on and off the field is a reason why they are so optimistic."

In 2021, the Eagles finished in fifth marking the fifth time in the last six seasons that team closed out a year in the top five of the standings going 27-16 overall and 19-11 against the league. The Orange and Blue were the final team left in the conference tournament without a loss winning six of seven before the final day of the year.

Carson-Newman will bring back one of the more experienced units in the region with eight of its top 10 hitters back on the diamond while nine of the 10 hurlers to toss double-digit innings will be back on the bump to start the season.

All-American Brayden Coe (Pittsburgh, Pa.) is expected to anchor the rotation after going 7-0 with a 2.23 ERA in 64 2/3 innings pitched. Coe is joined by Matt Bradley (Talbott, Tenn.) who threw 49 1/3 innings polishing off a 4.38 ERA and Tyler Shaver (Dandridge, Tenn.) who had three wins and three saves fanning 46 in 32 2/3 stanzas.

Around the diamond, the Eagles were one of the most balanced lineups in the SAC with five players driving in at least 20 runs. Matt Parkinson (Whitesboro, N.Y.) tied for the team lead with eight homers hitting .374. Kilian Daughtry (Simpsonville, S.C.) hit .331 with 28 RBIs despite missing eight games with an injury.

All told the team returns 28 of the 39 homers, 175 of the 236 RBIs at the plate and 284 1/3 innings pitched out of the 334 1/3 thrown in 2021. All but one win on the mound is back in the fold and 295 strikeouts of the 314 notched.

"Each day we need to make sure that we are covering all of our bases of team defense and making sure we are healthy," Griffin said. "We need to make sure we feel good physically and mentally going into that game. We still have to challenge them because when the games come that needs to be the easy thing. The practices need to be difficult and challenging so when we get into games that's like going to McDonald's and going out on the playground. We want each day to have a challenge to it."

Receiving 10 of the 13 first-place votes, Wingate is projected to win the regular season after winning the SAC Tournament and charging to the National Championship winning 16 of its final 18 games of the year, one of the losses coming to the Eagles in the league tournament.

Catawba has won seven of the last eight regular-season titles including the 2021 crown and took home three first-place votes finishing second in the poll. The Indians outscored the SAC 268-95 during the regular season.

Newberry, the SAC Tournament's runners-up, is slated to finish third in the league, the same spot as where it finished a year ago finding a hot streak late to narrowly miss the postseason.

Just behind the Eagles in the poll, Lenoir-Rhyne checks in at fifth and Tusculum is picked to finish seventh. There is nearly a 40-point drop to the next group where Anderson, Lincoln Memorial, Coker, Mars Hill, Queens and Limestone are separated by a total of 12 points. UVA Wise is a distant 13th in the poll.

The 2022 slate begins on Feb. 1 with Carson-Newman opening the doors to the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex for a 3 p.m. first pitch against Milligan. Every home game can be heard on cneagles.com/live with live video available on the Eagle Sports Network. Select road games will be available with an audio stream.

Rank	School (First-Place Votes)	Points
1	Wingate (10)	154
2	Catawba (3)	144
3	Newberry	120
4	Carson-Newman	118
5	Lenoir-Rhyne	117
6	Tusculum	110
7	Anderson	71
8	Lincoln Memorial	65
9	Coker	64
10	Mars Hill	63
11	Queens	60
12	Limestone	59
13	UVA Wise	25