West Liberty Baseball Picked No. 2 in North
BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. – Coach Eric Burkle’s West Liberty University baseball team was the No. 2 pick in the Mountain East Conference North Division on Wednesday afternoon when the MEC coaches released their annual preseason poll.
Burkle welcomes back several key figures from last year’s North Division runner-up squad, led by the All-MEC trio of outfielder Ty Helmke – a preseason All-Atlantic Region selection – infielder Kaden Blomquist and starting pitcher Ian Brady. The veteran coach is also looking forward to seeing another strong recruiting class hitting the Kovalick Field diamond for the Black and Gold.
Wheeling beat out the Hilltoppers for the No. 1 spot in the North with Fairmont State, Frostburg State, Notre Dame (Ohio) and Alderson Broaddus slotting in behind the West Liberty.
In the South Division, Concord barely held off West Virginia State and Charleston for the No. 1 preseason ranking. Glenville State was a distant fourth with Davis & Elkins and West Virginia Wesleyan rounding out the list.
West Liberty baseball is scheduled to make its 2022 debut on Feb. 11 with a 1 p.m. non-conference doubleheader at Union (Tenn.) University.
BASEBALL
2022 MEC Preseason Poll
North Division
1. Wheeling (8) 63
2. WEST LIBERTY 45
3. Fairmont State (1) 39
4. Frostburg State (2) 38
5. Notre Dame (1) 37
6. Alderson Broaddus 24
South Division
1. Concord (7) 57
2. W.Va. State (4) 56
3. Charleston (1) 53
4. Glenville State 38
5. Davis & Elkins 25
6. W.Va. Wesleyan 17