2013 GLIAC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL 1. Grand Valley State - 117 points (7) 2. Wayne State - 104 points (4) 3. Ashland - 97 points (1) 4. Saginaw Valley State - 88 points 5. Lake Erie - 75 points 6. Ohio Dominican - 73 points 7. Tiffin - 65 points 8. Northwood - 39 points 9. Malone - 37 points 10. Hillsdale - 31 points 11. Findlay - 30 points 12. Walsh - 28 points

DETROIT - The Wayne State University baseball team was picked to finish in second place in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, according to the 2013 GLIAC preseason coaches' poll released Wednesday afternoon.

Wayne State collected 104 points and four first place votes in the poll, just behind Grand Valley State, the defending conference champion. The Lakers totaled 117 points and seven first-place votes.

2013 SEASON PREVIEW

After a second-place finish in the GLIAC last season, coach Ryan Kelley and the Wayne State University baseball team have their sights set on the league crown for 2013. With the return of 18 letterwinners to go along with an exciting recruiting class it's easy to see why expectations are so high. The 2012 campaign marked the third year in a row the Warriors advanced to the NCAA post season and that honor has grown to be an expectation over coach Kelley's tenure.
              
The pitching staff will be the foundation of this squad and with a deep league it will need to be. The overall depth of the staff is something that has Kelley excited. “The GLIAC has changed a bit with the addition of Walsh and Malone, you're going to have a lot of games in a short period of time. Every team will have to look at how they set up their rotation and we will need to utilize our pitching depth.”
              
Senior pitchers and co-captains RHP Ethan Vasiliaskas and LHP Alex Pierse will headline that staff in 2013. The duo combined for 13 starts in 2012 and compiled a 13-4 overall record. Lefthander Greg Spiess and newcomer righty David Frederick will fill out the middle of the rotation with lefty Kyle Zimmerman making the trot from first base to round out the staff.  Other pitchers looking to make solid contributions include veteran upperclassmen Jeff Sorenson, Kirk Stambaugh, Brock Bates, Christian Bilkovic and Keaton LeBlanc.  Newcomers to the mound who look to make impacts include Jimmy Jackson, Jake Davis, Clayton Ruch, Brandyn Hall, Taylor Horn and Joey Hartfelder while redshirt freshman Alex Kinch looks to establish his collegiate athletic career.  Commanding that staff will be senior catcher Brad Guenther, Kelley referred to Guenther as “our anchor, a leader and a true competitor.”  Eric Cunningham also looks to compete behind the plate while newcomers Spencer Church, Nate Gendron and Sean Winkelseth add depth at catcher. 
               
Zimmerman will spend the majority of his time at first base where he started 45 games last year in adition to being a member of  the rotation. Redshirt sophomore Mark Lepri will add a strong bat from the right side of the plate and patrol first base when Zimmerman is on the mound.  Second base looks to be a competition between redshirt junior AJ Matos, redshirt freshman Justin Sherman and freshman Jeremy Carrell.  Senior Kenny Davis locked down the shortstop position late last year and will compete to start with Cameron Walker, who returns from a medical redshirt in 2012 and freshman Randy Kuzdak. Davis, a transfer from Grand Rapids Community College, hit .287 last year while platooning throughout the infield and tied for the team lead with 10 sacrifice bunts. Third base is still a wide open competition with freshman Daniel Peake and Warrior quarterback Mickey Mohner as the current front runners for that final spot on the infield.
               
The outfield will be filled out daily with varying and talented depth led by Kasey Koster. The redshirt senior finished tied for third in the GLIAC in home runs (6), fifth in slugging (.519), tied-for-eighth in doubles (10) and ninth in runs batted in (33). Redshirt junior Chris Gebara was a 38-game starter in right field and hit .328 with 28 RBI in 2012. Redshirt freshman Travis Rodery is ready to make an impact offensively and defensively while Chike Springer provides depth in the outfield. The Warriors also welcome a youthful influx of outfield talent that will compete for innings for the Green and Gold including freshmen Griffin Harms and Hank Van Ooyen.
               
Leading the offensive attack will be Guenther who also looks to take the role as the Warriors top baserunner.  Koster led the team in home runs and will be a source of power again in 2013. Gebara hit over .300 last year and has the goals and potential to be an all-league player according to Kelley.
               
The freshman class for WSU will be led Rodery, an outfielder, infielders Carrell and Peake along with the right-hander Hartfelder who Kelley said has the best arm on the team. “Joey has a world of talent in his right shoulder but will need to develop into a pitcher rather than a pure thrower.”
                       
The league as a whole will be very competitive. Unlike many other sports baseball works with one large league with no divisions. The 33 league games are played in trios against the 11 other GLIAC foes. Grand Valley is the defending champion and Ashland is a perennial power. Lake Erie finished just behind Wayne State to take third and will be looking to solidify their program in its third year in the league. Kelley also acknowledged the talent at Saginaw Valley and Northwood while also noting that Hillsdale has a great recruiting class hitting the field.

The GLIAC Tournament is scheduled for May 8-11 at V.A. Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe, Ohio.  Wayne State has qualified for the postseason eight times in the last nine years, and certainly the Warriors hope that 2013 is the year they break through and advance to Cary, N.C., for the NCAA Division II Championship Tournament.