DENVER – The Western Athletic Conference released the 2019 WAC Preseason Coaches' Poll on Wednesday and Utah Valley University was picked to finish ninth in the league's preseason poll.
The Wolverines, who received a total of 26 points on the 2019 preseason conference poll, were just one point behind Northern Colorado for eighth place (27), nine back of CSU Bakersfield for seventh place (35), and 11 back of fifth as both WAC newcomer California Baptist and UT Rio Grande Valley tied for fifth with 37 points.
Defending WAC champion Grand Canyon was projected to repeat in the conference this season with five first place votes and a total of 75 points. New Mexico State, the 2018 WAC Tournament champions, then followed right behind the Antelopes with a trio of first-place votes and 74 points for second place, while WAC baseball affiliate Sacramento State followed in third with the other two first-place votes and 69 points in all. Seattle U was next in fourth place with 54 points, while Chicago State rounded out the preseason conference poll with 12 points.
The WAC Preseason Poll was voted on by the league's 10 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team.
GCU's Quin Cotton earned WAC Preseason Player of the Year honors while NM State's Brock Whittlesey took home WAC Preseason Pitcher of the Year accolades. New Mexico State led the way with six selections on the 2019 Preseason All-WAC Team, while Seattle U followed with three, GCU and Sac State each with two, and Northern Colorado one.
UVU will get the 2019 season underway on Feb. 15 with a four-game non-conference series at Mountain West foe Fresno State (Feb. 15-18). The Wolverines will then head to Columbia, South Carolina, the following weekend for a three-game series at South Carolina (Feb. 22-24), before returning to California to face UC Davis for three games from March 1-3. After a UCCU Crosstown Clash at neighboring rival BYU on March 5 at Miller Park in Provo, Utah Valley will then open a nine-game homestand on March 8 with a three-game weekend series against Saint Mary's of the West Coast Conference. WAC play will then begin March 22 at Seattle U.
2019 Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll
| Rank |
Team (1st Place Votes) |
Points |
| 1. |
Grand Canyon (5) |
75 |
| 2. |
NM State (3) |
74 |
| 3. |
Sacramento State (2) |
69 |
| 4. |
Seattle U |
54 |
| T5. |
California Baptist |
37 |
| T5. |
UT Rio Grande Valley |
37 |
| 7. |
CSU Bakersfield |
35 |
| 8. |
Northern Colorado |
27 |
| 9. |
Utah Valley |
26 |
| 10. |
Chicago State |
12 |
2019 Preseason All-WAC Team
Catcher: Braden Williams, Sr., NM State
First Base: Caleb Henderson, Sr., NM State
Second Base: Nick Gonzales, So., NM State
Third Base: Austin Lively, Jr., Seattle U
Third Base: Pikai Winchester, Sr., Grand Canyon
Shortstop: Joey Ortiz, Jr., NM State
Outfield: Tristen Carranza, Sr., NM State
Outfield: Quin Cotton, Jr., Grand Canyon
Outfield: Jack Pauley, Sr., Northern Colorado
Utility/DH: Justin Mazzone, So., Seattle U
Starting Pitcher: Jake Prizina, Sr., Seattle U
Starting Pitcher: Scott Randall, So., Sacramento State
Starting Pitcher: Brock Whittlesey, Sr., NM State
Relief Pitcher: Tanner Dalton, Sr., Sacramento State
Preseason Player of the Year: Quin Cotton, Jr., OF, Grand Canyon
Preseason Pitcher of the Year: Brock Whittlesey, Sr., RHP, NM State
