Feb. 4, 2008

Erie, Pa. - The Mercyhurst baseball team, coming off its second-straight season of 30 or more wins, was ranked ninth in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association (NCBWA) North Central Region Preseason Poll.

Mercyhurst finished 32-20 last season and returns 17 letterwinners and seven position starters to this year's team. The Lakers received 13 points to rank ninth, finish ahead of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) foe Wayne State, which was ranked 10th with four points.

Defending GLIAC Champion and North Central Region runner-up Grand Valley State earned the No. 1 spot in the preseason poll with three of the five first place votes and 48 points. Southern Indiana, the 2007 regional champ, was voted second with 47 points.

Fellow GLIAC schools Ashland and Saginaw Valley State were pegged fourth and seventh respectively.

The Lakers made their second-straight appearance in the GLIAC Tournament in 2007 and narrowly missed a berth into the regional tournament. Among the returnees are four All-GLIAC selections.

Mercyhurst opens its season Feb. 22 at Lynn in Boca Raton, Fla. Game time is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.