With Auburn High School graduate Keith Reed on its roster, the Concord University baseball team has been selected by the coaches to finish second in the Mountain East Conference South Division.
Reed is a freshman outfielder.
Concord was able to get 10 games in before the coronavirus pandemic halted the season in mid-March. Concord is scheduled for 40 games this spring with 32 against MEC foes. The season gets underway March 5 with a non-conference doubleheader against Wheeling and Salem in Nutter Fort, W.Va.
Mercer County rival Bluefield State is scheduled for March 11 and March 31, and old MEC rival
UVa.-Wise is on the slate for a home-and-home match-up on March 17 and April 14.
Concord starts MEC play on March 20 against Wheeling. MEC South Division contests get underway April 10 when Concord visits West Virginia State.
Headlining the returners to the lineup is 2019 consensus all-region selection and All-MEC First Team junior shortstop Anthony Stehlin. During the 2019 campaign, Stehlin batted .369 with 62 runs scored and 17 stolen bases. The Woodbridge, V.a, native was on a similar pace last season as he batted .385 in the 10 games.
Junior catcher Chance Davis has played in 20 games behind the plate through his first two seasons at Concord. One-time Charleston transfer sophomore outfielder Richard Ortiz started all 10 games last season and hit one of CU’s five home runs.
On the mound, fifth-year senior Trent Abernathy has tossed 132 career innings with 138 career strikeouts. Abernathy was an All-MEC Honorable Mention performer in 2018.
In 32 career innings, senior pitcher Spencer Hoyt has struck out 38 batters. Second-year pitchers Caleb Hare, Nick Herrerias and Andrew Neff combined for 13.2 innings with 14 strikeouts in their first collegiate seasons in 2020.