NWC POLL: Bruins Picked to Finish 2nd in NWC Baseball to Defending Champ Wildcats

NEWBERG, Ore. - Anchored by a solid staff of returning pitchers and some strong new arms on the mound, the George Fox University Bruins have been tabbed to finish second to defending Northwest Conference champion and NCAA Division III pre-season No. 4 Linfield College in the 2012 NWC baseball race, according to a poll of the league’s nine coaches. 

George Fox received the only first-place vote that did not go to Linfield and 52 points overall in the poll.  The Bruins are coming off a 26-13 record in 2011 and a 14-10 conference record that left the Bruins in a tie for third with Pacific University.

Leading the Bruins into the new season will be a pitching staff headed by First Team All-NWC and Third Team All-West Region selection Brian Ranta (8-2, 2.40 ERA, 68 strikeouts in 93.2 innings).  Other key hurlers back for the Bruins are Clay Gartner (3-4, 3.99, 33 K’s in 65.1 innings) and Brian Davis (2-1, 4.38, 34 K’s in 39.0 innings). 

Six starters are gone from the starting lineup, including First Team All-NWC and Second Team All-Region right fielder Dan Winterstein, but the Bruins will have a stellar defensive infield returning in Taylor Hunter (.326-1-24), Zac Israel (.270-0-22), and Derek Blankenship (.268-1-17).  Hunter spent most of the time as a designated hitter after suffering a shoulder injury early in the season, with Israel at second and Blankenship at short, but the new season could see Hunter back at short, with Blankenship at second and Israel possibly at third.  The defense led Division III in fielding in 2011 with a .975 mark, the third time since 2003 the Bruins have been the best in the nation.

Linfield (33-11, NWC 20-4), fourth nationally in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association / D3baseball.com poll, is a solid favorite to win again as the Wildcats received eight of nine first-place votes and 72 points.  Scott Brosius, the 2011 NWC Coach of the Year, welcomes back five First Team All-NWC recipients, including 2010 NWC Pitcher of the Year Ryan Larson and pitcher Robert Vaughn, shortstop Kevin Allan, designated hitter Clayton Truex, and utility player Tim Wilson.

Pacific Lutheran University (19-20, NWC 13-11) is third with 48 points, followed by Pacific (21-16, NWC 14-10) with 42 points. All-NWC first baseman Brock Gates and All-NWC outfielder Jacob Hoffman will lead the Lutes.  The Boxers will be led by the 2011 NWC Pitcher of the Year Rob Dittrick and infielder Nate Rasmussen.

The University of Puget Sound (17-17, NWC 15-9) is fifth with 36 points.  UPS will look to Second Team All-NWC infield selections Andrew Grady and Matt Cox as well as Second Team All-NWC pitcher Matt Robinson for guidance.

Whitworth University (20-20, NWC 13-11) is sixth with 32 points, followed by Willamette University (22-17, NWC 12-12) with 25 points.  The Pirates will be led by All-NWC third baseman Landon Scott, while the Bearcats will be led by Second Team All-NWC honorees first baseman Brandon Chinn and pitcher Brandon Simon.

Whitman College (5-30, NWV 4-20) is eighth with 19 points, while Lewis & Clark College (5-32, NWC 3-21) is ninth with eight points.

George Fox opens its fifth season under head coach Marty Hunter, who is 113-54 (.677), in the Guardian Plumbing, Heating, & Air Conditioning Tournament at Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho, Feb. 10-12.  The Bruins will play the University of British Columbia on Friday at 10:00 a.m., Concordia University-Portland at 10:00 a.m. and host Lewis-Clark State at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, and a to-be-determined game on Sunday.  The Bruins’ first home games will be March 10-11 in a three-game NWC series with Pacific.

2012 Northwest Conference Pre-Season Baseball Coaches’ Poll

(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on 9-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. Coaches cannot vote for their own team.)