ECU baseball picked sixth

By Gabe Whisnant
Published in Sports on January 19, 2006 2:09 PM

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IRVING, Texas -- East Carolina, which has played in seven straight NCAA Tournaments, was selected to place sixth in Conference USA baseball this season as chosen by the league's nine head coaches.

The Pirates feature the league's lone first-year head coach in Billy Godwin, who won more than 75 percent of his games over the past six seasons at Louisburg College. At ECU, he should have a solid young pitching staff led by sophomore T.J. Hose (7-4, 4.43 ERA, 69 K's) that is welcoming back six redshirt hurlers, including 2004 Freshman All-American Shane Mathews. Left-handed pitcher Dustin Sasser, a Charles B. Aycock graduate, enters his red-shirt sophomore season after sitting out last year due to a shoulder injury.

Perennial national power Rice will be making its debut as a member of Conference USA as the unanimous preseason favorite to win the 2006 Conference USA baseball championship, as chosen by the league's nine head coaches. Owl sophomore pitcher/outfielder Joe Savery, a consensus preseason All-American, was picked as the Preseason C-USA Player of the Year. Junior righthander Tim Bascom of first-year C-USA member UCF was named as the league's Preseason Pitcher of the Year.

Coming off its second College World Series trip in five years, Tulane was picked to finish second in this year's conference race. Southern Miss, which made its school-record third consecutive NCAA appearance last spring, was chosen to place third this year. Houston, picked fourth, is poised for a return to the NCAA Tournament this season with the help of seven returning starters. UCF, which posted a 42-18 record last season, was picked to finish fifth in its first season.

UAB, Memphis and Marshall round out this year's poll.

2006 PRESEASON BASEBALL

COACHES POLL

(as selected by C-USA's head coaches)

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

(first place votes in parentheses)

Rice (9)

Tulane

Southern Miss

Houston

UCF

East Carolina

UAB

Memphis

Marshall

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Joe Savery, Rice (Sophomore, Pitcher/Infielder)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR

Tim Bascom, UCF (Junior, Righthander)

PLAYERS TO WATCH

T.J. Hose, Sophomore, Pitcher, ECU

Adam Witter, Senior, First Baseman/Designated Hitter, ECU

Dustin Kingsbury, Junior, Infielder, Houston

Brad Lincoln, Junior, Pitcher/Infielder, Houston

Adam Frederick, Senior, Infielder, Marshall

Adam Ptacek, Senior, Outfielder, Marshall

Adam Amar, Junior, First Baseman, Memphis

Drew Jaudon, Senior, Pitcher, Memphis

Josh Rodriguez, Junior, Shortstop, Rice

Joe Savery, Sophomore, Pitcher/Infielder, Rice

Daniel Best, Senior, Pitcher, Southern Miss

Marc Maddox, Senior, Infielder, Southern Miss

Mark Hamilton, Junior, Infielder, Tulane

Nathan Southard, Senior, Outfielder, Tulane

Ryan Metcalf, Senior, Shortstop, UAB

Zac Ward, Junior, Third Baseman, UAB

Tim Bascom, Junior, Pitcher, UCF

Matt Ray, Junior, Infielder, UCF