2018 PRESEASON ALL-PACWEST BASEBALL TEAM

2018 PacWest Baseball Poll
1.	California Baptist (7)	116
2.	Azusa Pacific (4)	111
3.	Dixie State	100
4.	Point Loma	84
5.	Concordia	79
6.	Fresno Pacific	66
7.	Hawai`i Pacific	46
8.	Biola	44
9.	Academy of Art	40
10.	Holy Names	23
11.	Hawai`i Hilo	17
First-place votes in parenthesis

IRVINE, Calif. – After finishing just two games out of first place last year, California Baptist was picked by coaches as the preseason favorite to win its fourth PacWest title in the 2018 season. The Lancers’ Dylan Stowell was named the Preseason PacWest Pitcher of the Year, while Azusa Pacific’s Pablo O’Connor received recognition as the Preseason PacWest Player of the Year.

California Baptist edged defending champion Azusa Pacific for its sixth consecutive nod in the preseason poll. The Lancers received seven first-place votes with all of the other four going to the Cougars. Dixie State finished in second place in the standings last year and was picked third in the preseason poll.

O’Connor, who was a finalist for the Josh Willingham award, was the 2017 PacWest Player of the Year and a consensus All-American. He led the PacWest in slugging percentage at .755 with 19 home runs and 65 RBIs, ranking in the top 10 in the nation for all three categories. O’Connor led Azusa Pacific to a PacWest title last year, resulting in the right to host the NCAA West Regional.

Stowell was the 2016 PacWest Pitcher of the Year and West Region Pitcher of the Year when he compiled a 9-0 record with a 1.52 ERA. The All-American struck out 81 batters in 82.2 innings of work and held opposing hitters to a .235 batting average.

The Lancers have advanced to the postseason in each of the last three years. Last year, California Baptist won eight of its final nine games in the regular season to earn a spot in the NCAA West Regional. The Lancers last PacWest title was in 2016, which was the last season that Stowell played in as he prepares for his return this season.
 
Stowell is joined on the Preseason All-PacWest team by senior second baseman Luke Navigato, junior outfielder Ryan Williams and senior designated hitter Tommy Bell. Williams had a .518 slugging percentage last year, while Navigato recorded a .409 on-base percentage. Bell played in 32 games last year and recorded a .425 batting average with six home runs and 26 RBIs.
 
Azusa Pacific won its first PacWest title last year with the help of a pitching staff that recorded 10 shutouts and a 2.93 ERA on the season. Layne Henderson returns out of the bullpen of that pitching staff after recording a 1.21 ERA in 14 relief appearances to earn a spot on the Preseason All-PacWest team.
 
Along with O’Connor in the outfield, the Cougars’ batting lineup returns junior catcher Justin Gomez, who was named to the Preseason All-PacWest team. Gomez registered a .314 batting average in 2017 with seven home runs and 35 RBIs. In his junior season, he also threw out 15 would-be base stealers.
 
Dixie State went 21-5 at home last year to finish in second place in the conference. That included a sweep of California Baptist early in the season before eliminating the Lancers in the NCAA West Regional. Both Azusa Pacific and Dixie State were eliminated by losing twice each to eventual national runner-up UC San Diego.
 
The Trailblazers return both of their corner infielders Logan Porter and Bryce Feist, who are on the Preseason All-PacWest team. Both players had a .376 batting average, while Porter blasted 10 home runs with a program-record 72 RBIs to be named a finalist for the Josh Willingham Award. Feist had a .923 OPS with four stolen bases on the season.
 
Point Loma is picked fourth in the preseason poll, which matches where the Sea Lions finished the 2017 season. They won the final seven games of the season and return senior left-handed pitcher Stephen Young, who was named to the Preseason All-PacWest team. Young was an All-West Region selection with a 2.05 ERA and two shutouts in five complete games in 2017. His average of 5.72 hits per nine innings led the PacWest and ranked 10th in the nation.
 
Picked to finish fifth for the second year in a row, Concordia had two players named to the Preseason All-PacWest team in Haloa Dudoit and Jair Donovan. Dudoit ranked 16th in batting average in the PacWest at .328 with a .926 fielding percentage at shortstop. Donovan was a three-time PacWest Freshman of the Week and had 16 extra-base hits last season, finishing with 74 total bases.
 
Fresno Pacific is picked sixth in the coaches poll followed by Hawai`i Pacific in seventh. In the poll, the Sharks edged Biola, which is in its first year competing in the PacWest after going 19-11 in the Golden State Athletic Conference last year. Academy of Art is picked ninth followed by Holy Names and Hawai`i Hilo to round out the 11 teams.
 
The season will begin on February 1 with Azusa Pacific at San Francisco State, while Hawai`i Hilo hosts Augustana. In the second weekend, Concordia will play a three-game series against West Region champion UC San Diego that’ll be interrupted by a doubleheader against South Central Region champion Colorado Mesa. PacWest play will begin on February 22 with Concordia playing at Azusa Pacific, while Academy of Art hosts Fresno Pacific.