Lawrenceville, Ga. – The Centenary baseball team is predicted to finish third in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference this season by the league's coaches based on balloting in the annual preseason coaches' poll, it was announced on Wednesday.
Trinity was picked to win the conference this season and received 62 points and seven first-place votes. Texas Lutheran was picked second with 56 points and one first-place vote. The Gents received 44 points. Southwestern was chosen to finish fourth with 41 points.
The Gents, led by 11th-year head coach Mike Diaz, were predicted to finish fourth in last season's preseason poll and were only able to play 13 total games due to COVID-19. The Maroon and White, though, as usual were successful and went 9-4. The Gents opened the season 3-0 and scored 10 runs or more in a game five times and were primed to make a run at the conference title and a potential NCAA Tournament berth.
Diaz owns a 219-165-1 overall record (.567 winning percentage) and a stellar 81-29 (.736) record in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference games and has led the Gents to SCAC regular season titles in 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2018. In 2017, the Gents made the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, becoming only the third Centenary athletics team (and the first in more than a decade) to reach NCAA postseason play. Diaz was named the SCAC Coach of the Year in 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2018. He was also named the West Region Coach of the Year by D3Baseball.com in 2017.
The Gents open their season on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at home versus the Louisiana College Wildcats with a single non-conference game set for 3 p.m. at Shehee Stadium. Live stats and live video will be available and are available for all home contests. The Gents open SCAC play on Friday, March 19 at Austin College. The 2021 SCAC Baseball Tournament will be held May 7-9 at The Depot at Cleburne Station.
A link to the Gents' complete 2021 schedule can be found here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/bsb/2020-21/schedule
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2021 SCAC Baseball Preseason Coaches' Poll |
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1. |
Trinity University (7) |
62 |
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2. |
Texas Lutheran University (1) |
56 |
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3. |
Centenary College |
44 |
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4. |
Southwestern University |
41 |
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5. |
University of Dallas |
30 |
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6. |
Schreiner University |
21 |
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University of St. Thomas |
21 |
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8. |
Austin College |
13 |
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