NEW ORLEANS – The Sun Belt Conference announced the annual baseball preseason coaches poll on Tuesday morning. Georgia Southern was picked third in the East Division by the league's coaches behind defending tournament champion South Alabama and Coastal Carolina.

Georgia Southern went 38-21 in 2017 and 18-12 in league play to finish third in the East Division behind Division Champion Coastal Carolina and South Alabama.

The Eagles return three weekend starting pitchers including Freshman All-American Seth Shuman. Shuman went 8-0 in nine starts in his freshman season, and has devoted all his time to Baseball entering the 2018 season. Chase Cohen, who led the team with 77 strikeouts last season returns for his junior season along with Brian Eichhorn who fanned 70 in 2017.

In the field, the Eagles return four student-athletes who started more than 40 games in 2017. Leadoff hitter Steven Curry led the team with a .312 average in his freshman season. Mitchell Golden, Mason McWhorter and power hitter Tyler Martin will look to reprise their roles with the team in 2018. Matt Anderson returns to the lineup this season after missing 2017 due to injury.

Georgia Southern enters 2018 following back-to-back appearances in the Sun Belt Tournament Championship Games. The Eagles had five student-athletes drafted in the 2017 Major League Baseball Draft with a further two playing independent ball or earning free agent contracts.

Season ticket packages for the 2018 season are now available at GSEagles.com/Tickets.

EAST DIVISION
1. South Alabama (12) - 72 pts
2. Coastal Carolina - 59 pts
3. Georgia Southern - 43 pts
4. Troy - 41 pts
5. Georgia State - 20 pts
6. Appalachian State - 16 pts

WEST DIVISION
1. Louisiana (9) - 68 pts
2. UTA (2) - 56 pts
3. Texas State (1) - 51 pts
4. Arkansas State - 36 pts
5. Little Rock - 27 pts
6. ULM - 11 pts

Georgia Southern will open the 2018 season on the road with a trip to Foley Field to face the Georgia Bulldogs. First pitch on Friday, February 16th, is set for 5 p.m. in Athens.

Georgia Southern Athletics provides current information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, which is fully responsive across all mobile devices. Information on Eagle athletics can also be found through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics and Instagram.com/GSAthletics. To purchase tickets to Georgia Southern athletics events, visit GSEagles.com/tickets.

In order to expedite entry and provide a safe environment for all patrons and participants, Georgia Southern Athletics has implemented a Clear Bag Policy for all ticketed sporting events, effective Aug. 1, 2017. Fans can find the complete policy as well as an FAQ section at GSEagles.com/ClearBag.