ACC Baseball Well Represented in Preseason Polls, All-America Lists

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – As the 2024 baseball season approaches, the preseason polls and superlatives have been announced from various organizations around the country with Atlantic Coast Conference schools being well represented.

Six ACC schools – Clemson, Duke, North Carolina, NC State, Virginia, and Wake Forest – have appeared in all five national preseason polls - Baseball America, D1Baseball, NCBWA, Perfect Game, and USA Today Coaches. Wake Forest, the preseason favorites as voted by ACC baseball coaches, was deemed as the consensus No. 1 team in the nation by all five organizations.

The ACC placed 15 studentathletes on the D1Baseball Preseason All-America teams which leads all conferences.A pair of Demon Deacons, Nick Kurtz and Josh Hartle, pair with the Blue Devils’ Fran Oschell as first team selections.

Kurtz and Hartle were once again First Team AllAmerica selections when Baseball America released its list. There, the Wake Forest duo was joined by flamethrowing teammate Chase Burns and North Carolina outfielder Vance Honeycutt. The Tar Heel outfielder was ranked among the top three in several Baseball America superlative categories, including best athlete, best defensive outfielder, and best outfield arm.

A total of 10 student-athletes from around the ACC were named to USA Baseball’s Golden Spikes Award watch list. Hurtle, Kurtz, Burns, and King all represent Wake Forest, giving the Demon Deacons a chart-topping four members on the watch list. Other representatives from the ACC include Honeycutt, Ethan Anderson (Virginia), Cam Cannarella (Clemson), Jacob Cozart (NC State), Griff O’Ferrall (Virginia), and Gage Ziehl (Miami).

Perfect Game honored a pair of Demon Deacons with preseason player of the year honors. Infielder Nick Kurtz earned the organization’s

Preseason Player of the Year nod, while Tennessee-transfer Chase Burns was tabbed as the Preseason Pitcher of the Year.

ACC coaches selected the Demon Deacons as the preseason favorites in the league’s coaches poll. Wake Forest was picked to finish atop the Atlantic Division, while fellow 2023 Men’s College World Series participant Virginia earned top honors for the Coastal Division.

D1BASEBALL PRESEASON RANKINGS

1 - Wake Forest 10 - Clemson 12 - Duke 13 - NC State 14 - Virginia 15 - North Carolina

D1BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAMS 1B - Nick Kurtz, Wake Forest

OF - Cam Clemson

Cannarella,

SP - Josh Hartle, Wake Forest

RP - Fran Oschell, Duke

C - Jacob Cozart, NC State

SS - Griff O’Ferrall, Virginia

DH - Ethan Anderson, Virginia

SP - Chase Burns, Wake Forest

SP - Michael Massey, Wake Forest

SP - Jonathan Santucci, Duke