Jan. 17, 2013

Newport News, Va. - The Atlantic 10 Conference announced the baseball preseason poll for 2013 on Thursday, as voted on by the league's coaches. Saint Louis was tabbed as the favorite, with Rhode Island picked second and league newcomer VCU was selected third. Fordham was picked to finish ninth.

The Billikens, who captured their A-10 titles in 2006 and 2010, received 210 points from the coaches, including 10 first-place votes. Under the direction of reigning A-10 Coach of the Year Darin Hendrickson, SLU returns nine starting pitchers among 18 lettermen from a team that won a program-record 41 games a year ago (41-18).

Saint Louis captured a share of its first A-10 regular season title in 2012 and finished atop the league standings with Dayton (17-7), who won the A-10 Championship tournament, held at Fordham's Houlihan Park.

Behind Saint Louis, Rhode Island, and VCU, Charlotte was selected fourth, followed by Dayton, Richmond, Xavier, Saint Joseph's, Fordham, Massachusetts, St. Bonaventure, La Salle, Temple, Butler, and George Washington.

The newly-expanded, seven-team, double-elimination A-10 Baseball Championship will remain on campus in 2013. This year's event will be played May 22-25 at Robert and Mariam Hayes Stadium on the campus of Charlotte. For more information on A-10 Baseball or the 2013 Championship, please visit the league's online home at atlantic10.com.

The Rams head into 2013 under the direction of second-year head coach Kevin Leighton. Fordham finished 12-12 in the Atlantic 10 in 2012, which was good for eighth place. The Rams return 23 players from a year ago and a promising recruiting class, featuring 10 freshmen. Fordham begins 2013 with a three-game series against the Michigan Wolverines, February 22-23, in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

2013 A-10 BASEBALL PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
RANK SCHOOL (1ST-PLACE VOTES) - 2012 RECORD
1. Saint Louis (10) - 41-18/17-7
2. Rhode Island (2) - 33-25/16-8
3. VCU (3) - 34-25/15-15 CAA
4. Charlotte - 21-32/9-14
5. Dayton - 31-30/17-7
6. Richmond - 30-26/14-10
7. Xavier - 28-28/13-11
8. Saint Joseph's - 25-32/13-10
9. Fordham - 22-34/12-12
10. Massachusetts - 22-22/14-10
11. St. Bonaventure - 23-25/10-14
12. La Salle - 20-33/7-17
13. Temple - 19-34/7-17
14. Butler - 22-34/10-20 Horizon
15. George Washington - 20-35/6-18