SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Reigning Men’s College World Series participant Oral Roberts was selected to finish first in the Summit League Preseason Baseball Coaches’ poll released Wednesday by League officials. The Golden Eagles won their 20^th regular season title and 21^st Summit League postseason title in 2023.

The Golden Eagles earned 25 points and received all five first-place votes they were eligible for, while North Dakota State secured the remaining first-place vote and was picked to finish second with 21 points in the poll voted on by the league’s six head coaches.

Oral Roberts broke a Summit League record for single season wins with 52 that included a Summit League Tournament title, an NCAA Regional title, an NCAA Super Regional and a win at the MCWS. The Golden Eagles finished 23-1 in Summit play a season ago and were tabbed No. 26 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association top 30 preseason poll.

The Golden Eagles and Bison, who were second a season ago with a 16-7 conference mark, were followed by South Dakota State. The Jackrabbits earned 16 points to sit third in the poll after going 13-11 in League play a season ago and reaching the Summit League Tournament title game.
 
Omaha collected 13 points to finish fourth after the Mavericks went 9-14 in League games. The top four in the preseason poll is the same as how the 2023 campaign ended.
 
Northern Colorado was selected fifth after posting an 8-16 record for the second consecutive season since joining the League. St. Thomas rounded out the poll in sixth after going 6-18 a season ago in Summit tilts.

The 2024 Summit League slate will feature eight three-game series. Each team will play the remaining five teams once and three of those opponents twice to make up a 24-game regular season. League play starts the weekend of March 15-17 with all six teams in action against each other.

The top four teams in the regular-season standings will qualify for The Summit League Baseball Championship scheduled for J.L. Johnson Stadium in Tulsa, Okla., May 25-28.

2024 Summit League Baseball Preseason Poll
Place	Team	Points (1st)	2023 Record
1.	Oral Roberts	25 (5)	52-14 (23-1)
2.	North Dakota State	21 (1)	23-30 (16-7)
3.	South Dakota State	16	24-28 (13-11)
4.	Omaha	13	21-28 (9-14)
5.	Northern Colorado	9	11-34 (8-16)
6.	St. Thomas	6	10-34 (6-18)

 
2024 Summit League Players and Pitchers to Watch
Will Busch | North Dakota State | Sr. | C
- Earned All-Summit League second team honors
- Made 36 starts as a junior last season, batting .252 with two home runs and 15 RBI
- Finished campaign with a .987 fielding percentage

Parker Puetz | North Dakota State | So. | RHP
- Earned All-Summit League second team honors and was named to the D1Baseball.com Freshman All-America Second Team
- Led the Summit League with a 2.51 ERA after making 16 appearances, including 10 starts
- Posted a 2.06 ERA in League play, which was second best among qualified pitchers

Dylan Smith | Northern Colorado | So. | RHP
- Earned All-Summit League honorable mention honors after going 4-3 with a 4.14 ERA against conference foes
- Went 5-6 overall and logged a team-high 74.1 innings pitched, striking out a 47
- Tossed a pair of complete-game shutouts to earn TicketSmarter Peak Pitcher of the Week twice as a freshman

Caden Wagner | Northern Colorado | Sr. | 1B
- Earned All-Summit League honorable honors after leading the Bears with a .318 batting average and 18 RBI against conference foes
- Batted .300 and led team with six home runs and 35 RBI
- Lone Bear to start all 45 games in 2023

Haiden Hunt | Omaha | Sr. | OF
- Started all 42 games he appeared in during first season as a Maverick
- Slashed .291/.390/.442, while driving in 14 runs and ranking second on team with 30 runs scored
- Errorless in 102 chances in the outfield in 2023

Caleb Riedel | Omaha | Sr. | LHP 
- Made eight appearances, including seven starts to log a 4.97 ERA and strike out 54 in 38 innings pitched
- Missed just over six weeks of the season before returning to make a relief appearance at the Summit League Tournament
- 2022 Summit League Newcomer of the Year and All-League first team selection after posting second best ERA among all DI hurlers (1.49)

Holden Breeze | Oral Roberts | Sr. | 3B
- Two-time All-Summit League honoree, earning second team accolades in 2022 and 2023
- Earned a spot on the 2023 Summit League All-Tournament Team
- Top returning hitter from ORU’s 2023 team after hitting .320 with six home runs and 42 RBI
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Jakob Hall | Oral Roberts | Jr. | RHP
- Earned All-Summit First Team honors and Summit League All-Tournament accolades
- Posted an 8-3 record with a 3.56 ERA over 18 starts as a sophomore and shared the Summit League lead with 94 punchouts
- Collected the first Men’s College World Series win by a Summit League pitcher after tossing five innings and striking out three in the victory over TCU

Evan Esch | St. Thomas | Jr. | LHP
- Led Tommie pitching staff with a 4.73 ERA, ranking among top 10 hurlers in the Summit League
- Compiled a 1.42 ERA in final three starts of April, allowing only three earned runs over 19 innings while striking out 25
- Picked up first career save in Tommies’ win at K-State

Ben Vujovich | St. Thomas | Jr. | OF
- Started 41 games for the Tommies a season ago with 27 of those coming in center field
- Led the Tommies with a .306 batting average overall and a .333 clip in League play
- Also topped the team in runs (29), RBI (23), doubles (11), multi-hit games (17) and multi-RBI games (5)

Alex Clemons | South Dakota State | Jr. | RHP
- Averaged 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings after racking up 42 in 30.2 innings as a sophomore
- Owned a 2-0 record thanks to a pair of relief wins at Utah Tech and St. Thomas
- Struck out five in two scoreless innings in a mid-week start at Iowa

Dawson Parry | South Dakota State | Sr. | 1B
- Top returning hitter among all Summit League players after batting .322 a season ago
- Earned honorable mention All-Summit League honors after registering 64 hits and 39 RBI
- Batted .375 in four games at the Summit League Championship
 
Note: Players to Watch selected by league's head coaches

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