Rock Hill, S.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs have been picked to finish fourth in the preseason South Atlantic Conference baseball poll, which was released Monday morning. The Bulldogs had six players named SAC Preseason Players to Watch –
Jake Courville,
Jalen Evans,
Will Farrell,
Gavin Groppuso,
Cam Harris and
Chad Harvey.
Catawba is the preseason favorite, earning seven of the 12 first-place votes. Lenoir-Rhyne is second, collecting four first-place votes, followed by Carson-Newman and Wingate. Coker is fifth, with LMU, Newberry and UVA Wise rounding out the top eight. Anderson is ninth, followed by Tusculum, Mars Hill and Emory & Henry.
Courville started all 52 games last season, hitting .304 with eight doubles, two triples and a homer, driving in 29 runs and scoring 45 times. He led the team in hits and runs scored on the year, while compiling a .459 on-base percentage.
Evans appeared in 42 games, making 38 starts last year. He led the team with a .344 average, registering three doubles and a homer while driving in 43 runs and scoring 31 times. Evans also piled up 21 stolen bases in 26 attempts, while compiling a .431 on-base percentage.
Farrell appeared in 39 games in 2025, hitting .327 with five homers and three doubles, driving in 29 runs and scoring 29 times. He stole 10 bases in 11 attempts while registering a .510 slugging percentage.
Groppuso appeared in 50 of 52 games last year, posting a .260 average with eight doubles and two triples. He drove in 27 runs and scored 40 times, notching a .422 on-base percentage. Groppuso piled up 27 stolen bases in 32 attempts.
Harris made 43 starts last season, notching a .273 average with seven doubles, two triples and two homers. He ranked second on the team with 35 RBI, adding scored 26 runs. Harris was an All-American in 2024, hitting .395 with 90 hits including 15 doubles, two triples and five homers, driving in 35 runs while scoring 68 times.
Harvey earned All-American accolades in 2025. He made 17 appearances out of the WU bullpen, going 3-2 with a 2.30 ERA. He also notched six saves on the season. Harvey piled up 53 strikeouts in 43 innings of work, holding opponents to a .164 average, giving up just 24 hits on the year, including only seven extra-base hits.
Wingate opens the season this weekend, traveling to Florida for three games. The Bulldogs are at Lynn Friday at 2 p.m., then travel to Barry Saturday at 2 p.m. The 'Dogs wrap up the weekend Sunday at Nova Southeastern at 1 p.m. Wingate opens the home slate next weekend with a three-game series against Millersville, starting with a doubleheader Saturday, Feb. 7 at 1 p.m.
2026 SAC Baseball Preseason Poll
| Rank |
School (First Place Votes) |
Score |
| 1. |
Catawba (7) |
126 |
| 2. |
Lenoir-Rhyne (4) |
122 |
| 3. |
Carson-Newman |
112 |
| 4. |
Wingate |
102 |
| 5. |
Coker |
87 |
| 6. |
Lincoln Memorial (1) |
78 |
| 7. |
Newberry |
71 |
| 8. |
UVA Wise |
70 |
| 9. |
Anderson |
56 |
| 10. |
Tusculum |
45 |
| 11. |
Mars Hill |
28 |
| 12. |
Emory & Henry |
27 |
2026 Baseball Preseason All-SAC
Outfield
OF – Mackenzie Wainwright, Lenoir-Rhyne
OF – Braeden Harrison, Anderson
OF – Sam Hunter, Catawba
Infield
1B – Logan Floyd, Carson-Newman
2B – Cole Nathan, Carson-Newman
SS – Nathan Chrismon, Catawba
3B – Terick Bumgarner, Mars Hill
Catcher / DH
C – Nathan Kidder, Lenoir-Rhyne
DH – Sean Shelly, Catawba
Pitchers
SP – Kolton Casson, Carson-Newman
SP – Kemper Nix, Catawba
SP – Kellen Gradisar, Lenoir-Rhyne
RP – Ryan Whitson, UVA Wise
Players to Watch
Anderson: Mac Ketchin, Zach Stover, Walker Noland, Dom Bello, Levi Medford
Carson-Newman: Johno Pierce, Bradley Soto Diaz, Jackson Underwood
Catawba: Matthew Connolly, Casey Gouge
Coker: Casey Cleghorn, Rocco Wojcik, Peter Adams, Gavin Johnson, Owen Brockner, Patrick Larson
Emory & Henry: Jacob Nester, Jaret Hoppes, Kyle Fields, Drew Lanzo, Rhett Barker, Ky Gregoire
Lenoir-Rhyne: Seth Christmas, Mike Joyce, Matt Procopio
Lincoln Memorial: Brooks Hagedorn, Easton Barnett, Alex Kowalski, Brady Morse, Eli Edds, Caleb Jordan
Mars Hill: Peyton Starkey, Chapel Matson, Austin Kutz, Mel Rubiera
Newberry: Jacob Clark, Keilor Osbon, Andrew Peck, Bryson Nuckols
Tusculum: Ryan Ortega, Mason Johnson, Evan Cage, Owen Canter, Brice Anders, Walker Pedante
UVA Wise: Jacob Boyle, Houston Sarvis, Joshua Morgan
Wingate: Chad Harvey, Jake Courville, Gavin Groppuso, Jalen Evans, Will Farrell, Cam Harris
