BRENTWOOD, Tenn.- The Ohio Valley Conference has released its predicted order of finish and preseason team for the upcoming 2024 season and the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team was picked fourth with a school-record four honorees on the 18-man list.
The fourth-place pick in the poll marks the first time that the Skyhawks have ever landed in the top-five in the preseason rankings, as voted by the league’s head coaches and communication directors. UT Martin Preseason All-OVC honorees include shortstop Andrew Fernandez, third baseman Mac Danford, first baseman Blaze Bell and left-handed pitcher Zach Wager as those four will spearhead a Skyhawk team that brings back 26 players and welcomes in 14 newcomers.
Last season, UT Martin rewrote the record book as 19 school records were shattered. Included in those new milestones were 14 OVC victories, which tied for the second-most wins in league play and were good enough to earn the No. 3 seed in the OVC Championship tournament.
The 2023 Skyhawks topped the OVC in batting average for the first time in school history (.329, 20 points higher than second place), on-base percentage (.409), runs scored (191), hits (276) and doubles (63) in league play.
UT Martin’s offense also ranked inside the top-five in the school’s NCAA Division I Era in doubles (115, first), triples (15, first), runs scored (347, second), walks (224, second), stolen bases (72, second), home runs (57, third), total bases (857, third), times hit by pitch (58, third), RBI’s (313, fourth), slugging percentage (.455, fourth) and hits (541, fifth).
On the pitching side, the Skyhawks combined for 12 saves (second-most in program history), dialed up 381 strikeouts (fourth in the school’s NCAA Division I Era) and allowed the fewest home runs (24) of any OVC squad in league play.
Named to the All-OVC first team a season ago (first shortstop to garner that accolade), Fernandez will be looking to build off a record-setting junior season. The Kissimmee, Fla. native ended the regular season as the league leader in hits, finishing with 80 base knocks while smoking 21 doubles with 53 RBI’s (fourth-highest tally in UT Martin history). The switch-hitter was responsible for a .375 batting average against league opponents and had a team-high 23 multi-hit games last spring.
Danford is coming off a remarkable junior year where he was named to the All-OVC second team. The right-handed slugger from Grand Ridge, Fla. was at his best against OVC pitching as he was ranked in the top-10 in batting average (.414, third), doubles (nine, third), hits (36, sixth) and slugging percentage (.713, ninth) in league play. He hit .386 (54-for-140) from March 18 forward while cranking all 10 of his home runs in his final 28 games.
A redshirt junior out of Murfreesboro, Tenn., Bell will look to make it three consecutive years with OVC postseason honors. The 2023 second-teamer and 2022 All-Freshman was a mainstay in the lineup, making 53 starts at first base where he ranked in the OVC’s top-10 in doubles (18, third), putouts (390, third) and triples (three, seventh). During league play, the right-handed hitter was a force with a .391 batting average and a 1.013 OPS (.575 slugging, .438 on-base).
The reigning OVC Freshman of the Year and first-ever Skyhawk pitcher to be named a Freshman All-American, Wager accounted for a 2.44 ERA over a team-high 22 appearances on his way to all-league second team honors a year ago. Primarily serving as the team’s closer down the stretch, the southpaw from Columbus, Ind. went 2-1 with four saves (fifth in the OVC). He shined in league play, posting a 1.08 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP in 16.2 frames against OVC opposition.
UT Martin officially opens up the 2024 season on Friday, Feb. 16 at home with the first of three games against Northern Kentucky.
2024 OVC Baseball Predicted Order of Finish
1. Little Rock (12 first-place votes) – 155
2. Morehead State (8 first-place votes) – 148
3. Southeast Missouri – 127
4. UT Martin – 106
5. Eastern Illinois – 100
6. Tennessee Tech – 93
7. SIUE – 67
8. Southern Indiana – 52
9. Lindenwood – 31
10. Western Illinois – 20
2024 Preseason All-OVC Baseball Team
C: Hayden Gilliland, Tennessee Tech
C: Grant Lashure, Eastern Illinois
1B: Blaze Bell, UT Martin
2B: Skyler Trevino, Little Rock
2B: Nick Gooden, Morehead State
SS: Andrew Fernandez, UT Martin
SS: Colton Becker, Morehead State
3B: Nico Baumbach, Little Rock
3B: Mac Danford, UT Martin
OF: Ryley Preece, Morehead State
OF: Tyler Williams, Little Rock
OF: Josh Cameron, Southeast Missouri
DH: Roman Kuntz, Morehead State
SP: Jackson Wells, Little Rock
SP: Luke Helton, Morehead State
SP: Haden Dow, Southeast Missouri
RP: Zane Robbins, Eastern Illinois
RP: Zach Wager, UT Martin
