ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Newberry College baseball team has been picked as the preseason favorite in the 2024 South Atlantic Conference Coaches' poll released this morning.
The Wolves received 136 points along with nine first place votes in a poll voted on by the coaches throughout the South Atlantic Conference. Wingate was picked second with 124 points and a first-place vote. Lenoir-Rhyne received 123 points to put them in third with three first place votes. Catawba and Lincoln Memorial rounded out the top five with the Indians receiving 115 points and the Railsplitters receiving 99.
The Wolves had eight members on the preseason all-conference team with five first team honorees and three third team honorees.
Starting Pitchers
Bennett Roemer and
Tyler Chinpire both received first team all-SAC honors. Roemer was the conference Freshman of the Year in the 2023 season with a 9-0 record in 11 starts, striking out 76 batters and holding opposing hitters to a .242 batting average. Chinpire also was undefeated in the 2023 season going 7-0 in 15 starts for the Wolves striking out 41 batters in a season where he was named second team all-SAC.
Outfielder
Donovan Ford, third baseman
Jonathan Velez, and Catcher
Rhett Jolly were also tabbed with first-team honors for the 2024 preseason. Ford is coming off a stellar season for the Wolves where he had a .406 batting average, a team high 47 stolen bases and 98 hits on the championship season earning first team all-SAC honors in 2023. Jolly returns as a first team all-SAC Catcher where in 2023 Jolly drove in 41 runs for the Wolves and caught 14 runners attempting to steal. Velez had a .337 batting average for the Wolves in the 2023 campaign, where he got hit by 24 pitches in the campaign which led the Wolves.
Outfielders
Jacob LeBron and
Kade Faircloth, along with second baseman
Jomar Lugo were named to the preseason third team all-SAC team. LeBron hit .321 in the 2023 season but shined in the SAC Conference Tournament as he was named the tournament MVP where he batted .409 for the tournament with a double, three RBIs, and a stolen base. He also had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in right field for the Wolves with an outfield assist. Faircloth held a .979 fielding percentage as a left fielder for the Wolves in the 2023 campaign also had a .333 batting average and 13 stolen bases for the Wolves.
Jomar Lugo had a tremendous year on and off the field for the Wolves in 2023. Lugo earned the SAC Elite 23 award which honors the student-athlete with the top cumulative grade-point average (based on a minimum of 48 credit hours) in each of the league's 23 team championship sports. Lugo held a .974 fielding percentage and the highest 140 assists of any returning Wolf for the 2024 season at second base.
Here's how the preseason poll looked.
| Rank |
Team (First Place Votes) |
Points |
| 1 |
Newberry (9) |
136 |
| 2 |
Wingate (1) |
124 |
| 3 |
Lenoir-Rhyne (3) |
123 |
| 4 |
Catawba |
115 |
| 5 |
Lincoln Memorial |
99 |
| 6 |
Carson-Newman |
93 |
| 7 |
Anderson (1) |
81 |
| 8 |
Tusculum |
66 |
| 9 |
Coker |
46 |
| 10 |
Limestone |
44 |
| 11 |
Mars Hill |
43 |
| T-12 |
Emory & Henry |
22 |
| T-12 |
UVA Wise |
22 |
