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December 19, 2009

Pacers Ranked Sixth in Preseason Collegiate Baseball Poll

Collegiate Baseball NCAA Division II Preseason Poll

AIKEN, S.C. - The University of South Carolina Aiken baseball team was tabbed sixth in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division II preseason poll released recently.

The defending Peach Belt Conference champions are the highest ranked PBC school in the preseason poll. In total, five PBC schools are ranked in the preseason poll with Francis Marion (12th), North Georgia (24th), Georgia College & State (27th) and UNC Pembroke (40th) also picked among the preseason top 40. Columbus State and Armstrong Atlantic State both received votes.

USC Aiken's 2009 baseball team ended the year tied with Central Missouri for 10th in the final Collegiate Baseball NCAA Division II Top 30 poll.

The final ranking of 10th was the highest for the 2009 Peach Belt Conference regular season champions under head coach Kenny Thomas.

USC Aiken ended the 2008 season ranked 11th, while they concluded the 2005 season 12th.

The Pacers reached as high as No. 2 nationally in 2009 en route to their second ever Peach Belt Conference regular season championship. The regular season title was the first for the Pacers since 1994. The Pacers also have two PBC Tournament crowns, having won the league tournament in 1992 and 1993.

The Pacers' prowess during the regular season helped USC Aiken to top honors in the Southeast Region, enabling the program to host its second ever NCAA Division II Tournament regional.

The Pacers advanced to the regional final for the second consecutive season before bowing out to NCAA Division II Baseball Championship semifinalist and Conference Carolinas Tournament champion Belmont Abbey in the first game of the championship round.

USC Aiken (42-19) concluded its season having been a part of its fifth consecutive NCAA Division II Baseball regional.

The Pacers' 42 wins in 2009 leave the program entering the 2010 campaign with five consecutive 40-win seasons.

USC Aiken has been a participant in the NCAA Division II Tournament seven times (1992, 1993, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009).  

The 2010 Pacers begin their season with a three-game home series against the South Atlantic Conference's Lincoln Memorial. USC Aiken's regular season opener will be at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5 against the Railsplitters. The three-game set will conclude with 1 p.m. games on Saturday (Feb. 6) and Sunday (Feb. 7).