The Big South Conference has announced the preseason poll, players of the year, and all-conference members for the upcoming 2026 season. Three Radford University players earned preseason honors including Hunter Keen, Breckin Nace, and Trey Ludy all on the Big South’s Preseason All-Conference team.
For the second consecutive year, High Point University has been voted the Big South Conference’s preseason baseball favorite by the league’s head coaches, it was announced today by the Conference office. In addition, the coaches voted Panthers’ infielder Landen Johnson (Haubstadt, Ind.) the conference’s Preseason Player of the Year and HPU hurler Wade Walton (Lithia, Fla.) the league’s Preseason Pitcher of the Year. Both players also earned spots on the preseason All-Conference team, which is listed below.
The Panthers are the preseason favorite for the third time overall (2017, 2025, 2026). HPU finished with the conference’s most overall wins last season with 39 and finished second in the league standings at 18-6. High Point received three first-place votes and 75 total points to win the league title in 2026.
Defending Big South Champion USC Upstate was second in this year’s preseason poll with 71 points (four first-place votes), while Winthrop finished in the third spot with 60 points (one first-place vote). Radford landed in the fourth spot with 51 points and received the remaining first-place nod — marking the Highlanders’ highest spot in the poll since 2022 (third). Charleston Southern was fifth in the voting with 49 points, while Presbyterian College finished sixth with 35 points. Longwood followed in the seventh position with 28 points, Gardner-Webb was eighth with 25 points, and UNC Asheville finished ninth in the voting with 11 points.
Johnson is the first High Point baseball player to be voted Preseason Player of the Year since 2016 and the second overall. Last season he was the NCAA Division I leader with 86 runs batted in and was third nationally in RBI per game (1.51), and batted .362 with 18 doubles, 16 home runs, 81 hits and an OPS of 1.105. Johnson started all 57 games he played in, slugged .656, scored 60 runs, tallied 22 multi-hit games and posted a team-leading 23 multi-RBI game. The 2025 Second-Team All-Conference honoree had four multi-home run games, recorded a season-high four hits and six RBI vs. Charleston Southern on May 22, and finished with a .989 fielding percentage at his first base position. Johnson batted .352 with six home runs and 38 RBI in 27 league games. He received four first-place votes and 19 points in the Preseason Player of the Year voting, just ahead of USC Upstate’s Johnny Sweeney (three first-place votes and 18 points) and Radford’s Breckin Nace (nine points, one first-place vote).
Walton is High Point’s second Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year honoree in three seasons, and third overall. The 2025 Big South Freshman of the Year, Walton made 15 starts and pitched to an 8-3 record and a 5.18 earned run average. He tossed two complete games — one of which was a shutout against NJIT on Feb. 14. Walton led the Big South with 91 strikeouts in 83.1 innings pitched, held opponents to a .252 batting average in 318 plate appearances, and recorded a season-high 11 strikeouts against Charleston Southern on March 14. He fanned at least six batters in 10 of his 15 outings, and went 4-1 with a 4.70 ERA and 54 strikeouts in 46.0 innings of conference action. Walton was a near unanimous selection for Preseason Pitcher of the Year, as he received seven of the possible eight first-place votes and 23 points in the voting, ahead of USC Upstate’s Chris Torres (17 points and the two remaining first-place votes).
The Highlanders enter the 2026 campaign predicted to finish fourth in the Big South, a significant rise after being ranked eighth just a year ago. With momentum on their side, Radford returns half of their roster from last season to provide a strong foundation of leadership and experience across the lineup. That veteran presence will be crucial as the Highlanders push through conference late in the season with sights on returning to the postseason.
After earning First-Team All-Conference honors in 2025, Keen is projected to be play a large role for the team once again. Keen led the Big South in assists (164), turned the second-most double plays (36), and recorded 85 putouts during the season. A consistent presence for the Highlanders, Keen looks to build on an impressive year and continue his role as a starter.
Nace looks to build on his 2025 Second-Team All-Conference performance with his selection to the 2026 preseason all-conference squad. A 2024 All-Freshman honoree as well, Nace continues to develop both offensively and defensively. After batting .359 and logging 45.0 innings on the mound in 2025, Nace is expected to remain a key weapon for the Highlanders.
Ludy’s breakout performance during the 2025 season earned him a spot on the 2026 all-conference team. Posting a team-best 5–3 record along with a team-high four saves, Ludy has developed into a reliable option out of the bullpen for the Highlanders. His presence on the mound is expected to continue posing problems for opposing batters.
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