Jan. 27, 2005
SAN DIEGO - For the fifth time in the last six years, San Diego State has been picked to win the regular season Mountain West Conference baseball championship. In a vote of the six MWC head coaches and a select media panel, the Aztecs received eight of a possible 14 first-place votes and 78 points, while New Mexico received four first-place nods and 64 points to finish second in the poll.
Two-time defending MWC Tournament champion UNLV garnered two first-place votes and 61 points for a third-place standing in the poll, while BYU (49 points) was fourth, Utah (27 points) fifth and Air Force (15 points) sixth. SDSU placed five players on the preseason all-MWC team, followed by BYU with three and New Mexico and UNLV with two each.
San Diego State returns five starters from last year's regular season championship team, including preseason all-conference selections Brock Ungricht (So., UT/DH), James Guerrero (Jr., SS), Jake McLintock (Sr., OF), Lance Zawadzki (So., 2B) and Bruce Billings (So., RHP). Also back for the Aztecs is junior catcher Jordan Swaydan, an all-league honoree in 2004. The Aztecs were 35-29 overall last season (19-9 in the MWC) and posted a runner-up finish in the MWC Tournament.
MWC Preseason Poll(selected by MWC head coaches and select media)Rk. Team (1st place votes) Points 1. San Diego State (8).......78 2. New Mexico (4)............64 3. UNLV (2)..................61 4. BYU.......................49 5. Utah......................27 6. Air Force.................15