UNCW baseball team ranked 66th best in the nation

UNCW baseball has announced their 2024 schedule (Photo: WWAY)

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — UNCW’s baseball program has been ranked in the top 100 programs in the entire country.

According to D1Baseball.com, the leading outlet for college baseball coverage, UNCW is ranked the 66th best team in the nation out of 309 NCAA Division level lineups.

In 2022, the Seahawks posted a record of 15-9 in conference play as freshmen RJ SalesCyle Phelan and Zane Taylor combined to start 23-of-24 games on the mound.

In 2021, the Seahawks won the South Division of the CAA and reached the conference championship game for a league-record sixth consecutive season.

Five players have gone on to the professional ranks during the past three seasons and had three players drafted in 2021, including Landen Roupp (12th round), Adam Smith (14th) and Brooks Baldwin (15th). Baldwin, though, returned to school for one more season and was drafted following the 2022 season by the Chicago White Sox in the 12th round.

The program boasts 15 players currently playing in professional baseball, including three that have played in the Major Leagues since 2020. Ryan Jeffers reached the major leagues in 2020 as a member of the Minnesota Twins. Austin Warren made his MLB debut with the Los Angeles Angels in 2021 and Evan Phillips is a go-to reliever with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Academically, UNCW has earned the ABCA’s Team Academic Excellence award each of the last three years and in 2022, the program achieved the highest grade point average in the CAA and was recognized as the top academic performer with a combined 3.31 GPA.

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