FROSTBURG, Md. – Frostburg State Athletics will be taking a preview of each team competing in the spring season, covering nine total sports.  Over the next couple weeks, each team will be broken down into their matchups, key players, and overall outlook for their season and program.  To round out the second week is Baseball.
 
Overall
Frostburg State Baseball will play their 87th season in 2024, coming in first in the North Division in the Mountain East Conference Preseason Poll, followed by a No. 7 ranking in the NCBWA Atlantic Region Preseason Poll.  To conclude the preseason, senior Ethan Kiple and juniors Randy Steen and Danny Estrada were named to the NCBWA Preseason All-Region Team, with Kiple also being named NCBWA First Team All-American.  Head Coach Anthony Williams enters his fifth season at the helm of the program as he is accompanied by Larry Williams and Noah Freimuth who rejoin the staff, with new additions in assistant coaches Michael Austin and Brian Wirth, and student manager Keegan Runge.
 
Last Season
FSU finished with an overall record of 33-20 last season, with a solid 22-8 record in conference play, setting them up to be crowned MEC North Division Champions.  The Bobcats made it to their first-ever MEC Championship game in 2023, having fallen just shy to Charleston by a score of 12-8.  Frostburg received plenty of accolades last year, with Williams leading six players in Kiple, Steen, Estrada, Max Proctor, Jacob Stretch, and Trevor Jones to All-MEC honors.  Kiple, Steen, Estrada, and Stretch were all also named NCBWA All-Atlantic Region, as Kiple, Steen, and Stretch went on to earn D2CCA Atlantic All-Region honors and ABCA/Rawlings All-Region Second Team honors as well.   
 
The Returners
Williams welcomes back a total of 25 players from his active roster last year, after losing a solid number of seven seniors.

On the offensive side of the ball, Frostburg brings back their top three hitters in batting average with Steen, Kiple, and junior Mikey Guy.  Kiple led the team in hits and RBI last season, while also breaking the program single season and career records for home runs.  Steen batted a .379, the highest on the team, on 66 hits, 39 runs, and 35 RBI, as Estrada returns as well, going for 45 hits, 43 RBI, and a team-leading 53 runs in 2023.

On the mound, Williams brings back a substantial number of pitchers, leading with Proctor, who will pitch his senior season coming off a 7-2 record last year along with a 3.88 ERA, one complete game, and 65 strikeouts in 55.2 innings.  Kiple, a relief pitcher, returns to the mound as well, finishing with a 4-0 record, a .34 ERA, five saves, and a total of 39 strikeouts.  Senior Will Grove, junior Cael Huyer, and sophomore Joe Pippin all return, having seen a chunk of time on the mound last season as well.     
 
The Newcomers
Williams brings in a large freshman class of seven pitchers for 13 total players.  He also adds four transfers to the squad in junior pitchers Jacob McDonald and Ethan Grieb from Anne Arundel Community College, graduate pitcher Daniel Morgano from Allegheny College, and junior pitcher Patrick Bauer from CCBC Catonsville. 
 
Kick Off to the Season
The Bobcats open their season in a three-game series against Barry University with the first game taking place on Friday, February 16 at 6 PM in Miami Shores, FL.  Frostburg will open MEC play in their first home series of the season, as FSU welcomes in Concord for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 16, with the first game set for 1 PM.  The MEC Tournament is set to begin on Thursday, March 9 in Charleston. W.Va. at GoMart Park. 
 
For more information and upcoming previews, visit frostburgsports.com.