Baseball Preseason Ranked No. 30 By Collegiate Baseball
12/24/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Dec. 24, 2005
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Collegiate Baseball, one of the oldest and most respected college baseball publications, has ranked the Southern Miss baseball team No. 30 in the nation in its preseason poll.
Conference USA newcomer Rice was ranked No. 5, Tulane appears at No. 24, Houston at No. 32, UCF at No. 55 and East Carolina at No. 56. Golden Eagles non-conference opponents Ole Miss was ranked No. 20, Wichita State is ranked No. 26, Mississippi State at No. 34, Stetson is No. 37, Alabama is ranked No. 43, Birmingham Southern is at No. 62, South Alabama at No. 64 and Troy at No. 66.
The Golden Eagles return 20 letterwinners, including five starting position players, four starting pitchers, and five bullpen pitchers from last year's squad that finished 41-21 overall and tied for second-place in Conference USA with a 20-10 record, advanced to the Conference USA Tournament semifinals and also made its school-record third-straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Golden Eagles have produced a 133-56 record over the past three seasons for a 70.4 winning percentage, including a school-record three-straight 40-plus win seasons.
Southern Miss opens its season on Feb. 15 when it hosts Nicholls State in a 3 p.m., start.