Baseball Picked to Finish Second in GNAC with Season Opener on Saturday
WINTHROP, Mass. – The Mitchell College baseball team was picked to finish second in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Preseason Coaches' Poll, as announced by the league on Tuesday, February 13th. The Mariners earned 141 points, including two first place votes, in this year's voting, which was conducted by the league's 13 head baseball coaches last week.
The Mariners will enter their first season in the GNAC coming off another successful campaign in 2023, which saw the team post a 33-10 overall record, one shy of the program record, on route to their third consecutive New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) title and third in a row. Making their eighth appearance in the NCAA Division III Tournament, the Mariners hosted a regional round for the first time in program history. With victories against Tufts University and Wheaton College over the first two days of regional action, the Mariners were in the driver's seat, but a pair of losses to the Lyons on the final day ended their season.
For the first time since the 2011 season, Mitchell will have a new person calling the shots in the dugout, as Shawn Gilblair is set to make his collegiate head coaching debut with the Mariners. Gilblair returns to New London, where he served as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator for Mitchell from 2019-2022. Most recently he spent a year at his alma mater, Eastern Connecticut State University, where he held the role of pitching coach.
Despite suffering losses to graduation and the transfer portal, the Mariners return multiple starters, including senior outfielder Owen Robbins (East Lyme, Conn.) and senior shortstop Angel Galindez (Carolina, PR), both of whom were named to the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Div. III All-Region teams last spring. Robbins and Galindez were also All-Conference selections by the NECC, while Robbins earned All-Region honors from D3baseball.com after slashing .369/.481/.550 with 42 RBI, 38 runs scored, 10 doubles, and three home runs. Galindez, meanwhile, is coming off a year where he batted .335 with 69 runs, good for eighth most in the nation at the Division III level.
Also returning for the Mariners is junior pitcher Chris Gibbs (New Britain, Conn.) who was an NECC All-Tournament Team selection, along with senior Camren Varney (Manchester, N.H.), who has made 24 starts over his career and was an NECC All-Conference First Team selection in 2021.
The Mariners will kick off their season in North Carolina with a non-conference doubleheader against William Peace University on Saturday, February 17th. Mitchell will again face William Peace on Sunday, February 18th, before returning north for their home opener against Brandeis University on March 3rd.
The top spot in the GNAC Preseason Coaches' Poll with 167 points and 11 first place votes went to the reigning conference champions, Johnson & Wales University. The Wildcats finished 15-3 in GNAC play (30-15 overall) last season and earned the top seed in the 2023 GNAC Baseball Championship. They cruised their way through the double-elimination tournament without losing a game, eventually besting Anna Maria in the Championship.
Anna Maria and Lasell, earned the No. 3 and No. 4 spots in this year's voting with 136 and 131 points, respectively. They were followed by Elms and Saint Joseph's (Maine), which each received 114 points to tie for fifth in the poll. Another new addition to the GNAC, New England College, received 83 points from the league's head coaches to secure the No. 7 spot, while Rivier ranked eighth with 76 points. Albertus Magnus and Colby-Sawyer tied for ninth place with 46 points apiece. The University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) will conduct its first varsity season this spring and sit in the No. 11 spot in the poll with 45 points. Dean and Norwich each earned 42 points to wrap up the poll.
The top eight teams at the end of the regular season earn berths into the 2024 GNAC Baseball Championship Tournament. This year's tournament features a new format as the eight teams will be split into two double-elimination pods. Pod play will take place from Friday, May 3 to Sunday, May 5 with the two pod champions advancing to the 2024 GNAC Baseball Championship Series. The best-of-three GNAC Championship Series is scheduled for Thursday-Friday, May 9-10. The winner of the GNAC Championship Series will be named the 2024 GNAC Baseball Champion and earn the league's automatic qualifier into the 2024 NCAA Division Baseball Championship.
2024 GNAC Baseball Preseason Poll
|
1. |
Johnson & Wales |
167 (11) |
|
2. |
Mitchell |
141 (2) |
|
3. |
Anna Maria |
136 |
|
4. |
Lasell |
131 |
|
T-5. |
Elms |
114 |
|
T-5. |
Saint Joseph's (Maine) |
114 |
|
7. |
New England College |
83 |
|
8. |
Rivier |
76 |
|
T-9. |
Albertus Magnus |
46 |
|
T-9. |
Colby-Sawyer |
46 |
|
11. |
University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) |
45 |
|
T-12. |
Dean |
42 |
|
T-12. |
Norwich |
42 |
