NAIA
Thomas Chosen to Finish Eighth in SUN Preseason Poll
MIAMI, Fla. – The SUN Conference announced its annual Baseball preseason poll Wednesday morning, as the Thomas University baseball team was selected to finish eighth in the upcoming 2022 season.
The polls are determined by the votes of the conference's nine head coaches. First-place votes are worth eight points, second-place picks are worth seven, and so on.
The Night Hawks experienced a bell curve 2021 season, starting off slow before displaying one of the best midseason runs in program history, winning 13 contests in a 16-game span. Towards the end of the season, however, TU dropped nine of its final 11 to finish the campaign 19-29.
#3 Southeastern was the unanimous choice to take home the 2022 regular season crown, earning all 64 possible points with eight, first-place votes. #8 Keiser was selected as SUN's runner-up with 55 points and one, first-place vote. Both teams made it all the way to the 10-team NAIA World Series bracket.
In third came #17 St. Thomas, who fell four points shy of Keiser (51) in the loaded SUN Conference. Following the Bobcats was Webber International with 38 points. The Warriors surprised the conference in 2021, finishing third in the regular season with a 14-10 conference record.
USC-Beaufort is literally in the middle of the pack with 36 points. After Thomas nearly swept the Sand Sharks last April, USCB went on a late season tear, falling one game shy of a SUN Championship title in a 16-4 loss to the Fire of Southeastern.
In sixth came Warner with 35 points. Like the Sand Sharks, the Royals also rallied late in the season and went on a deep run in the conference tournament, falling one game short of the championship.
Ave Maria edged out Thomas for the seventh-place spot with 18 points, as the Night Hawks only received 15. Florida Memorial rounded out the poll with 12 points.
The Green & White open the 2022 season at home with a three-game non-conference series against Talladega College February 4-5.
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit www.TUNightHawks.com. Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, and feature stories of your TU baseball team by following them via Twitter at @NightHawksBaseba.