PEMBROKE, N.C. - - The Wilmington University baseball team has been picked among the top teams in all NCAA Division II in two Preseason National Polls while senior utility man Eddie Nevins was selected as a National Collegiate Baseball Writers (NCBWA) of America First Team All-American.
Following a 40-18 2019 campaign which saw a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Championship and a berth into the NCAA East Regional Tournament, the 2020 Wildcats will start the year ranked No. 24 in the NCBWA National Poll and No. 26 in the Collegiate Baseball National Poll.
Eddie Nevins was also selected as a First Team Preseason All-American by the NCBWA, holding down the utility spot. He is the lone representative from the East Region on the First Team lineup, while Southern New Hampshire's Jeffrey Praml is the First Team All-American relief pitcher. In all, there are four members from the East Region among the three All-American teams.
Nevins set a program record by hitting .440 last year, hitting 15 doubles with five triples and eight home runs. He knocked in 62 runners while scoring 65 more himself in his All-American campaign.
Defending NCAA Division II Champions Tampa rank atop both Preseason National Polls, earning 18 of a possible 19 first place votes on the NCBWA page. Central Missouri picked up the final first place vote, ranking fourth on the NCBWA Preseason National Poll.
The Wildcats season begins on Friday, February 21 with a doubleheader against Stonehill at the Cal Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Click here to see the NCBWA Preseason Top 25 and All-American Teams
Click here to view the Collegiate Baseball's Preseason National Poll