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TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME
The 2016 season begins this weekend as all 10 teams are in action across the country. NM State and Grand Canyon open the season at home against Towson and Gonzaga respectively while the remaining schools spread out to take on some of the top programs in the country. Utah Valley will be the first WAC school to take on a nationally-ranked foe when the Wolverines square off against eighth-ranked Oregon State on Saturday in Surprise, Ariz. Sacramento State heads to Auburn while North Dakota opens 2016 at Southern California. Northern Colorado heads just one state east to take on traditional power Wichita State while Chicago State and UT Rio Grande Valley open up their season in Texas against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Abilene Christian. Seattle U is at Saint Mary's for four games and CSU Bakersfield will play an away-home-away series with CSUN.
WAC COACHES SELECT GCU, PANACCIONE, LONG AS PRESEASON FAVORITES
Grand Canyon is the preseason favorite to win the 2016 Western Athletic Conference baseball title and Lopes' shortstop Paul Panaccione and Sacramento State pitcher Sam Long were selected WAC Preseason Player and Pitcher of the Year respectively in a vote of the league's 10 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players.
The Lopes received five of 10 first place votes to edge out Sacramento State, who received four first place votes. Seattle U grabbed the remaining first place vote to take third in the preseason poll, followed closely by 2015 WAC Tournament champion CSU Bakersfield in fourth. NM State was selected fifth and Utah Valley earned the sixth position. UT Rio Grande Valley was selected seventh, followed by Northern Colorado, North Dakota and Chicago State.
Panaccione and Long highlighted the Preseason All-WAC squad. Grand Canyon led the way with five honorees as Garrison Schwartz, Brandon Smith, Jake Repavich and Mick Vorhof joined Panaccione. Sacramento State had two Hornets selected as Vinny Esposito joined Long. Seattle U and CSU Bakersfield each had two honorees as well with Tarik Skubal and Dalton Hurd representing the Redhawks and David Metzgar and Joey Sanchez representing the Roadrunners. Chicago State catcher Cody Freund earned selection, as did Utah Valley outfielder Mark Krueger and UT Rio Grande Valley outfielder Cole Loncar.
WAC TOURNAMENT RETURNS TO HOHOKAM STADIUM
For the second straight season, the WAC Baseball Tournament will take place in a new Spring Training Complex in Mesa, Ariz. as the 2015 championship heads to the new Hohokam Stadium, preseason home of the Oakland Athletics. Improvements to Hohokam Stadium are immediately noticeable as the exterior and entrance gates has been painted and re-branded with the familiar Oakland Athletics green and gold color scheme. The stadium also features refurbished seating, a state-of-the art scoreboard and a new and expanded clubhouse. The bleachers along the left field and right field foul lines have been replaced with party decks. The top six teams from the WAC's regular season standings will advance to the tournament.The WAC Baseball Tournament is no stranger to the state of Arizona and the City of Mesa. The league's championship has been played in Arizona 13 times (1963, 65, 67, 69, 71, 73, 75, 76, 78, 2010, 11, 12, 14) and the event was held in Mesa in 1971, 1973, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. Sacramento State won the 2014 tournament, earning the WAC's automatic qualification to the NCAA Tournament.
LOOKING BACK ON 2015
ROADRUNNERS FALL TO BRUINS IN NCAA TOURNAMENT
After making history with their first NCAA tournament win in school history, the Roadrunners couldn't overcome the top-seeded Bruins, falling 9-4 in an elimination game to end a magical 2015 season. Bakersfield opened the tournament with a 7-2 loss to UCLA on Friday night but rebounded less than 24 hours later, knocking off Ole Miss, 2-1, to send the Rebels back to Oxford.
Pitcher Hayden Carter was one of two pitchers selected to the All-Regional team after posting his eighth complete game in the win over Ole Miss. He was joined by third baseman Joey Sanchez and designated hitter Max Carter as All-Regional honorees.
BAKERSFIELD WINS WAC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT
The Bakersfield Roadrunners took advantage of strong pitching, timely bats and a never-say-die attitude to overcome a trip to the losers bracket and win the 2015 WAC Baseball Tournament at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, Ariz. After falling to Seattle U, 9-3, in a semifinal on Friday, the Roadrunners blanked Sacramento State, 4-0, on Friday to set up a rematch with the Redhawks later that night. In the rematch, Seattle U was poised to win the title before a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the ninth allowed Jordie Hein to score from third and Joey Sanchez earned the bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the tenth to score Drew Seelman and force a game on Sunday.
In Sunday's game, it once again looked like Seattle U would earn the tournament title before the Roadrunners exploded for four runs in the top of the eighth to pull ahead 5-4 and CSUB held on to earn their first WAC baseball title and the WAC's automatic selection to the 2015 NCAA Baseball Tournament.
Bakersfield's David Metzgar was named tournament MVP after hitting .409 with a double, triple, home run, four runs scored and five RBIs. He was also solid at second base, posting a .967 fielding percentage on the week. He was was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Steven Gee, Joey Sanchez and Chance Gusbeth. Seattle U was represented by Michael McCann, Dalton Hurd and Landon Cray while Sacramento State's Chris Lewis and Ty Nichols were also honored. North Dakota's Ellery Bresnahan and Utah Valley's Craig Brinkerhoff rounded out the honorees.
ON TO THE PROS
A total of 16 players from nine WAC schools were selected in the 215 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, more than double the number of WAC players selected in 2014. Sacramento State's Nathan Lukes was the first WAC player taken as the outfielder was selected in the seventh round by the Cleveland Indians.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
Grand Canyon won their first WAC championship since 1998, finishing a half-game ahead of Seattle U for the top spot in the regular season standings. In 1998, the Antelopes finished first in the North Division, finishing three games ahead of BYU.