Baseball Picked to Finish Fifth; Love and Teasley Honored

2012 Atlantic Sun Baseball Preseason Poll

MACON, Ga. – The Atlantic Sun Conference announced its 2012 Baseball Preseason awards on Wednesday afternoon, as chosen by the league's 10 head coaches. Senior Brandon Love and junior David Teasley were named to the Preseason All-Atlantic Sun team, while the Bears were picked to finish fifth in the league’s Preseason Coaches’ poll.

“The fifth place ranking in the preseason poll really doesn’t mean much to us,” head coach Craig Gibson said. “We want to be ranked first at the end of the season when it really matters and contend for another A-Sun championship and a chance to go back to the NCAA’s.”

Love had a stellar 2011 campaign for Mercer, serving as the Bears number one starter all season long. The Augusta, Ga. finished tied for second in the A-Sun with a 3.26 ERA and sixth in the league with a .260 opposing batting average. He finished the season with an 8-1 overall record and ranked tied for first on the team with 80.0 innings pitched on his way to being named an A-Sun All-Conference first team selection.

Teasley followed up an exceptional freshman campaign with an equally impressive sophomore season. The Elberton, Ga. product went 6-5 in 2011 with a 4.57 ERA in 45.1 innings pitched. He ranked tied for sixth in the A-Sun with 32 appearances and tied for 10^th in the league with six wins.

“I am very excited and proud that the other coaches in our league recognized the past accomplishments of Brandon and David,” said Gibson. “I thought we had some other players that were just as deserving, but hopefully our play throughout the year will have us better represented at the end of the season.”

Picked to finish fifth in the league, the Orange and Black return 13 letterwinners from their 2011 squad that went 39-20 overall and finished the season ranked #56 in the National Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). Joining Love and Teasley among returnees include Freshman All-Americans Derrick Workman (.332 avg., 12 2B, 9 HR, 47 RBI) and Austin Barrett (.286 avg., 7 2B, 8 HR, 25 RBI).

Stetson was picked to finish first in the preseason poll with 99 points, while Jacksonville (89), Kennesaw State (67), Belmont (64) and Mercer (58) rounded out the top five. FGCU (57), North Florida (42), ETSU (41), Lipscomb (18) and USC Upstate (15) made up the remainder of the poll.

Mercer opens up the 2012 season on February 17, when it welcomes Morehead State to Claude Smith Field for a four-game set.