Long Beach State University Athletics
Dirtbags Ranked No. 17 in Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll
12/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
LONG BEACH, Calif. - Collegiate Baseball has released its 2017 national preseason poll, and Long Beach State has been ranked as the No. 17 team in the country. It's the first time the Dirtbags will enter a season in the national ranking since 2008, when LBSU was No. 17 in the very same Collegiate Baseball poll and as high as No. 13 according to Baseball America.
During the 2016 season, Long Beach State moved up to No. 17 in the nation twice in the Baseball America poll, and got up to No. 20 inCollegiate Baseball. In last year's preseason poll, LBSU was included in the "Receiving Votes" category, just outside the Top 40.
Long Beach State will play six of the teams ranked in this year's preseason Top 40, led by the nation's No. 1 team, TCU. The Horned Frogs will visit Blair Field on Tuesday, Mar. 14 in one of the marquee home games of the season. LBSU will also host Big West rival and No. 10 ranked Cal State Fullerton Mar. 24-26 for a non-conference series, and visit the Titans to close the regular season May 25-27.
Also on the schedule is a trip to No. 15 North Carolina for a three-game series Mar. 3-5 in Chapel Hill, plus a Big West road trip to No. 18 UC Santa Barbara Mar. 31-Apr. 2 to open conference play. The Dirtbags will also visit a pair of ranked Pac-12 schools in No. 24 Stanford (Mar. 28) and No. 25 Arizona State (Mar. 10-12).
Also of note, Long Beach State checks in two spots ahead of defending national champions Coastal Carolina at No. 19 in the country.
The 2017 Dirtbags season opens with a three-game series vs. Oklahoma, Feb. 17-19 at Blair Field. Season tickets are on sale now, starting at $99 each.
CLICK HERE to view the complete national rankings from Collegiate Baseball.
