NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Great West Conference officials released the coaches' preseason baseball poll on Monday and Utah Valley was picked as the favorite to repeat in 2011. The Fighting Sioux were selected fifth in the poll voted on by the league's eight head coaches.
Utah Valley, the defending regular season and tournament champion, was a near unanimous choice to repeat, garnering seven first-place votes. The Wolverines took the top spot with 63 points and were followed by Northern Colorado, who received the other first-place vote, in second with 52 points. Houston Baptist finished third with 44 points and NYIT came in fourth with 41 points.
UND garnered 30 points to place fifth and was followed closely by Texas-Pan American with 29 points. NJIT and Chicago State rounded out the poll with 17 and 12 points, respectively.
The race for the 2011 title will begin on April 8 with a full slate of weekend conference games. The Sioux open league play at Houston Baptist that weekend.
The regular-season championship will be decided by a single-round robin format of four-game series. UND will host the 2011 GWC Postseason
Tournament at renovated Kraft Field on May 24-28.
2011 Great West Preseason Baseball Coaches' Poll
1. Utah Valley (63)
2. Northern Colorado (52)
3. Houston Baptist (44)
4. NYIT (41)
5. North Dakota (30)
6. Texas Pan-American (29)
7. NJIT (17)
8. Chicago State (12)
– Go Sioux –
