Wednesday, February 26, 2003

GREYHOUNDS RANKED 7TH IN COMMONWEALTH PRESEASON POLL

ANNVILLE, PA --- The Moravian College baseball team has been selected to finish seventh in the Commonwealth Conference in a preseason poll of the conference’s coaches.

The Greyhounds, who return ten letterwinners and six starters, received 13 points in the poll. Lebanon Valley College was selected as the top team in the preseason, garnering five first-place votes and 47 points. Elizabethtown College received the other first place vote and was ranked second followed by Messiah College, Albright College, Widener University and Juniata College. Susquehanna University was ranked behind Moravian in the poll.

Leading Moravian on the field this season will be senior first baseman Bob Frey (Hellertown, PA/Saucon Valley HS) and senior third baseman/catcher Jeff Meila (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS). Frey already owns the Moravian single season and career home run records with nine homers last spring and 17 in his career. Frey also set Moravian single season marks with 38 RBIs and 29 walks while he hit .305 a year ago with 40 hits, 21 runs scored and five doubles last year. Meila also finished the season with 40 hits and he contributed 30 RBIs, 20 runs scored, eight doubles and two homers. Meila, who was the 42nd toughest player in all of NCAA Division III to strikeout last season, and Frey, who was tied for 37th in the nation in walks per game, both have a chance to break the Moravian career record for hits. Meila has 99 hits for his career and Frey has 95 while the Greyhound record is 131.

Moravian, under the direction of head coach Ed Little, will open the 2003 season on Tuesday, March 4th in a non-conference home game against Haverford College at 3:00 p.m. The Greyhounds will begin their 2003 Commonwealth Conference season on Saturday, March 8th with a doubleheader against Juniata College at the Gene Cusic Classic in Fort Myers, Florida.

2003 Commonwealth Conference Baseball Preseason Poll