Coker baseball team is 11th in 2021 poll
The Coker University baseball team was picked 11th in the 2021 South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll, announced by the league Jan. 25. Defending conference champion, No.7/10 Catawba topped the poll with 156 points and 12 first-place votes, with No. 21 Newberry ranked second with 141 points. No. 23 Wingate was third with 137 points and one first-place vote, and Carson-Newman came in fourth totaling 115 points. Tusculum was selected fifth (112 points), Lenoir-Rhyne sixth (100 points), Lincoln Memorial seventh (91 points), and Anderson (S.C.) was eighth with 72 points. Queens (N.C.) came in ninth with 71 points and Mars Hill came in 10th with 52 points. The Cobras were tabbed 11th in the poll, receiving 46 points. Rounding out the poll, Limestone was selected 12th (41 points) and UVA Wise was selected 13th (36 points). Coker won eight games in 2020 including two in the South Athletic Conference before their season was shortened due to COVID-19. The Cobras return 22 players this season from last year’s team. From the plate, Coker posted the fourth-best batting average in the league at .289, a .374 on base percentage, a .392 slugging percentage and 10 home runs. The Cobras open the 2021 campaign on Feb. 13 when they face Lenoir-Rhyne on the road. First pitch is set for noon from Bears Field in Hickory, N.C.