Northern Kentucky University Athletics

INDIANAPOLIS – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team has been selected as the East Division favorite in the Great Lakes Valley Conference preseason poll, the league office announced Thursday.

NKU, which claimed its second straight GLVC Tournament championship last spring en route to a 41-22 record, received nine first-place votes and 75 total points in the poll. The Norse edged Indianapolis, which received the remaining four first-place votes and 70 total points in the poll.

NKU and Indianapolis shared the GLVC East Division crown a year ago with 18-6 records.

Bellarmine was selected third in the East Division poll with 51 total points, just ahead of Saint Joseph’s 49 total points. Lewis (33), Kentucky Wesleyan (22) and Wisconsin-Parkside (15) rounded out the poll.

Southern Indiana was tabbed as the West Division favorite in the GLVC poll with 79 total points and 12 first-place votes. The Screaming Eagles have won the GLVC West Division title the past two seasons.

NKU will be led by returning All-GLVC first-team selections Evan McDole and Jason Cisper. McDole, a senior first baseman and the 2009 GLVC Player of the Year, batted .355 with a .670 slugging percentage last season. He also hit 15 home runs, 17 doubles and drove in 55 runs last spring.

Cisper, a senior outfielder, led the Norse with a .413 batting average last season with 38 runs batted in and 15 stolen bases. NKU is guided by Todd Asalon, who was named GLVC Coach of the Year last season. Asalon has led the Norse to GLVC Tournament titles in 2002, ’04, ’06, ‘08 and ‘09.

NKU opens the season Feb. 17 at Lincoln Memorial. The Norse open the home portion of their schedule March 11 against UC-Clermont at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex at Friendship Field.

This season marks the first with the GLVC’s newest member Maryville, bringing the number of baseball-playing institutions in the league to 14. The Saints will not be eligible for the GLVC Tournament this year.

The GLVC Tournament will expand to eight teams this season with the top three teams in each division and two wild cards earning berths. The GLVC Tournament will be played at GCS Ballpark in Sauget, Ill., and at the Missouri-St. Louis baseball field. The

GLVC Tournament will be conducted on May 6-9 with the winner of the event earning the GLVC championship and an automatic berth to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

The complete poll follows:

Team (First-place votes) Total Points
East
Northern Kentucky (9) 75
Indianapolis (4) 70
Bellarmine 51
Saint Joseph’s 49
Lewis 33
Kentucky Wesleyan 22
UW-Parkside 15

West
Southern Indiana (12) 79
Drury (1) 61
Rockhurst 58
Quincy 48
Missouri S&T 32
Missouri-St. Louis 31
Maryville# 13

#Not eligible for GLVC Tournament and did not vote in preseason poll