AUGUSTA, GA -- The Peach Belt Conference has released the 2024 baseball season preview consisting of the preseason coaches poll and All-Conference team. All ranking and voting was done by the league's head coaches.

Following on the footsteps of a historic season, Georgia Southwestern is the preseason choice to repeat as league champions. The Hurricanes led the way with eight first-place votes and 80 total points. Columbus State was second with one first-place vote and 68 points, just edging USC Aiken who also had a first-place vote and 67 points.

Georgia Southwestern captured their first PBC regular-season championship and conference tournament titles last year, reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time. The 2024 Hurricanes look to repeat with 10 seniors and graduate students on the roster along with 21 juniors. All four of GSW's All-Conference players return this year.

Columbus State finished second in the league standings last year and reached the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars will also bring back an experienced squad with eight seniors and 14 juniors on the roster, including four All-Conference selections.

Preseason Coaches Poll
 

Rank	Team	Points
1.	Georgia Southwestern (8)	80
2.	Columbus State (1)	68
3.	USC Aiken (1)	67
t4.	Lander	51
t4.	North Georgia	51
6.	Georgia College & State University	47
7.	Augusta	33
8.	Flagler	27
9.	USC Beaufort	16
10.	Claflin	10

Preseason All-Conference Team

1b - Joseph Mozingo, USC Aiken

• A junior from Huntingtown, Md.
• A second-team All-Conference selection, he led the Peach Belt with a .393 batting average
• Added nine doubles, one home run and 31 RBIs in 38 games played
• Was second on the team with a .481 slugging percentage and ranked sixth in the PBC in OPS and seventh in on-base percentage

2b - Koby Ayala, Augusta

• A senior from Lilburn, Ga.
• Started in 47 of 48 games for the Jaguars, leading the team in hitting with a .355 average
• Ranked fourth in the PBC in batting average, he had seven doubles, one home run and 34 RBIs
• A PBC Presidential Honor Roll Gold Scholar and named to the PBC Team of Academic Distinction

3b - Jace Bowen, North Georgia

• A sophomore from Clermont, Ga.
• Started all 52 games for the Nighthawks as a freshman
• Ranked eighth in the PBC with a .345 batting average, he was also fourth in the league in on-base percentage, fifth in runs, tied for second with 71 hits and seventh with 14 doubles
• The PBC Freshman of the Week on Feb. 7, he failed to collect at least one hit only eight times last year, adding 13 stolen bases

SS - Miles Hartsfield, Georgia Southwestern

• A senior from Gainesville, Ga.
• A second-team All-Conference selection, he hit .296 with eight doubles, two home runs and 27 RBIs
• Hit .322 with a .426 slugging percentage in conference games
• Ranked ninth in the PBC in stolen bases, he was also 10th in fielding assists

C - Will McClellan, Lander

• A sophomore from Anderson, S.C.
• A PBC first-team All-Conference selection at catcher and utility player, he was named the PBC Freshman of the Week three times during the season
• Hit .296 with 14 doubles, three triples, seven home runs and 44 RBIs
• Ranked fifth in the PBC in slugging percentage, sixth in on-base percentage, fourth in RBIs and second in walks drawn; was also second with 14 base stealers caught

DH - Connor Droze, Lander

• A junior from Roebuck, S.C.
• A first-team All-Conference selection in 2023, he hit .311 with eight doubles, eight home runs and 39 RBIs
• The 2022 PBC Freshman of the Year, he led the conference in 2023 in walks and on-base percentage, was third in slugging, eighth in RBIs and eighth in home runs
• Had 12 multi-hit games last season including a 4-for-5 outing with two doubles and four RBIs against Claflin

OF - Jake Blinstrub, Georgia Southwestern

• A graduate student from Peachtree City, Ga.
• A PBC first-team All-Conference selection, he hit .338 with 15 doubles, one home run and 33 RBIs
• The PBC Player of the Week on April 10, he was second in the PBC in total hits, third in runs scored and on-base percentage and tied for fourth in doubles
• Had 24 multi-hit games last season including a 4-for-5 performance against Young Harris in the PBC Tournament championship game

OF - Andrews Opata, North Georgia

• A sophomore from Lawrenceville, Ga.
• Played and started in 44 games as a freshman, hitting .322 with six home runs and 25 RBIs
• Ranked ninth in the PBC in slugging percentage and runs scored and tied for fifth in stolen bases
• A PBC Presidential Honor Roll Silver Scholar

OF - Derek Wylie, Columbus State

• A senior from Warner Robins, Ga.
• A first-team All-Conference selection, he was named All-Region by the ABCA, D2CCA and NCBWA
• The PBC Player of the Week on Feb. 27, he hit .325 with 19 home runs and 64 RBIs
• Led the PBC in RBIs, slugging percentage and OPS, he was also second in runs scored and fifth in hits

P - Nick McCollum, Georgia Southwestern

• A senior from Richmond Hill, Ga.
• The 2023 PBC Pitcher of the Year, he was a first-team All-Conference selection and named D2CCA and NCBWA first-team All-Region
• Was 9-3 in 16 appearances with 15 starts with a 3.01 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 113.2 innings of work
• Threw four complete-game shutouts last year and led the PBC in innings pitched; was second in wins and strikeouts

RP - Peyton Burton, Columbus State

• A junior from Phenix City, Ala.
• Made 20 appearances last season, 14 in relief, going 3-1 with eight saves, a 3.43 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 42 innings pitched
• The eight saves was tied for second in the PBC
• Allowed no earned runs over his final 12 appearances and only four hits in his final eight