LAKELAND, Fla.- After claiming their second NAIA National Title in four seasons, Southeastern University baseball will begin their hunt for a third red banner.
The Fire have also been voted as favorites in the NAIA and the Sun Conference, a conference with four NAIA Top 25 teams and one receiving votes.
Last season, the Fire posted a dominating 59-4 overall record and 22-2 SUN record to claim their second consecutive Sun Conference Tournament title.
Head coach
Adrian Dinkel stated, "Staying healthy is going to be a huge key to our success in conference. With so many front-line teams in the Sun Conference the team that finds a way to stay on the field and put pressure on teams early usually has a chance at the end of the year to be a good position to win the conference."
In Lewiston, the top-seeded Fire earned a spot in the final with wins over No. 8 Georgia Gwinnett, No. 4 LSU Shreveport, No. 2 Tennessee Wesleyan, and No. 3 Lewis-Clark State. In the final against Lewis-Clark, the Fire fell short 10-9 but claimed the title in the if-necessary game after downing LC State 11-5.
This season, the Fire return First Team NAIA All-Americans and NAIA Preseason All-Americans
Gary Lora and
Robb Adams.
Designated hitter Lora posted a dominating batting average of .388 with 20 home runs for the Fire and drove in 67 runs. The Orlando native was the team co-leader in hits with 94 and had a .454 on-base percentage.
Adams was named the NAIA and Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year after ending the season tied for the NAIA lead in wins with 14 and working an NAIA-best 113.2 innings with a 2.45 ERA. The left-handed pitcher's 133 strikeouts were the eighth-most nationally.
Also returning for the Fire is First Team All-Sun Conference selection,
Isaac Nunez, after posting a .385 batting average with 89 hits, 71 RBI's, and 62 runs scored in 2022. The shortstop also posted slugging percentage of .606 after tallying 19 doubles and 10 home runs.
Starting first baseman,
Stephen Cullen also returns after hitting .316 last season with 54 hits, 10 doubles, and 12 home runs while posting a .984 fielding percentage with a team-best 437 chances.
Southeastern will be tasked with replacing one of the best bats in the NAIA and the World Series MVP in
Brian Fuentes who led the Fire in batting average (.418), runs (83), home runs (25), RBI's (89), and on-base percentage (.494) while tying Lora for the team-lead in hits with 94.
"There are plenty of new faces that are going to need to step right in and make an immediate impact. This incoming class doesn't lack the talent piece and have proven in the past they know how to be successful. We just need them to prove it on a different stage," stated Dinkel.
Joining the pitching staff are Darien Smith, a right-handed pitcher from Florida Gulf Coast, and
Hayden Brock, a righty from Utah State University Eastern.
Smith joins the Fire after leading Florida Gulf Coast in appearances with 25 last season, 24 of which were out of the bullpen, and held opponents to a .230 batting average with 36 strikeouts in 47 innings. The 6-3 Jacksonville, Fla. native also led the nation in strikeouts in 2021 at Eastern Florida State College with 103 in 70 innings of work.
Brock spent the 2021 season at Utah State University Eastern where he tallied 12 appearances and 61 innings pitched. The 6-6, 250-pound righty from West Valley City, Utah concluded the season with a 3.98 ERA and 76 strikeouts for an average of 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings.
Two new faces in the Fire outfield will be
Brandon Fields and
Josh Pigozzo. Fields joins the outfield after spending the 2021 season at the State College of Florida-Manatee where he posted a .324 average in 54 games with 48 RBI's and 58 runs scored. Pigozzo played 51 games in the 2022 season at Tallahassee Community College and posted a .369 average with 65 hits, 18 doubles, 40 RBI's and 19 stolen bases. The junior from Palm Harbor, Fla. was named First Team All-Conference and Second Team All-American in 2022.
Adonys Hererra, a junior from La Romana, Dominican Republic, will look to make a difference on the Fire infield after spending the previous two seasons at Western Oklahoma University where he posted a career batting average of .393 with 137 hits, 26 doubles, 23 home runs, and 112 RBI's. The 6-2 infielder posted an on-base percentage of .488 with 41 stolen bases and a .699 slugging percentage and was named All-Region and an All-American.
The 2023 season kicks off on February 1
st as the Fire host Arizona Christian at 6 p.m. for the first game of the East/West Challenge.
