2024 North Alabama Lions baseball team

Last updated

2024 North Alabama Lions baseball
North Alabama Athletics wordmark.svg
Conference Atlantic Sun Conference
Record17–31 (9–17 ASUN)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Chris Blakey (3rd season)
  • Nick Patton (2nd season)
  • David Mervis (2nd season)
Home stadium Mike D. Lane Field
Seasons
 2023
2025 
2024 ASUN Conference baseball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT
Austin Peay  20100 .66736210 .632
Stetson  y20100 .66740200 .667
Florida Gulf Coast  20100 .66730260 .536
Kennesaw State  19100 .65532240 .571
Jacksonville  18120 .60027310 .466
Lipscomb  15150 .50022340 .393
Eastern Kentucky  14160 .46720370 .351
Central Arkansas  12180 .40026300 .464
North Florida  11171 .39721301 .413
North Alabama  10191 .35018351 .343
Queens*  10200 .33314410 .255
Bellarmine*  9210 .30010450 .182
* Ineligible for the 2024 NCAA tournament due to transition from Division II
Conference champion
Tournament champion
y Invited to the NCAA tournament
As of May 26, 2024 [1]
Rankings from D1Baseball

The 2024 North Alabama Lions baseball team represented the University of North Alabama during the 2024 NCAA Division I baseball season. They were led by head coach Jad Prachniak, in his 2nd season at UNA. The Lions played their home games at Mike D. Lane Field as a members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.

Contents

This was the Lions' last season at Mike D. Lane Field as it was demolished to make room for their new stadium, Bank Independent Stadium. [2]

Previous season

The 2023 team finished the season with a 14–37 record and a 8–22 record in ASUN play. They finished 13th in conference standings after a tiebreaker put UNA ahead of Bellarmine. [3] [4]

Preseason

Preseason ASUN honors

First baseman Kyle Machado was selected to the Preseason All-ASUN Team. He was the only North Alabama player selected to the fourteen person team. [5]

Preseason All-ASUN Team
PlayerNo.PositionClass
Kyle Machado51B

Graduate Student

Coaches poll

The ASUN baseball coaches' poll was released on February 8, 2024. [5]

ASUN Preseason Coaches' Poll
Predicted
finish
TeamPoints
1Lipscomb137 (7)
2FGCU123 (2)
3Jacksonville115 (1)
4Stetson103
5Kennesaw State99 (1)
6Austin Peay84 (1)
7EKU77
8Central Arkansas65
9North Florida56
10Queens30
11North Alabama25
12Bellarmine22

Personnel

2024 North Alabama Lions roster
 

Pitchers

  • 7 – Carson Howard – Junior
  • 10 – Jacob James – Senior
  • 11 – Quinn Petty – Junior
  • 15 – Jacob Bradshaw – Senior
  • 18 – Avery Brown – Sophomore
  • 19 – Dane Sykes – Senior
  • 21 – Justus Agosto – Redshirt.svg Sophomore
  • 22 – Brycen Parrish – Redshirt.svg Junior
  • 23 – Evan Kingma – Senior
  • 24 – Kevin Henrich – Sophomore
  • 25 – Bryce Richter – Graduate
  • 27 – Anthony Pingeton – Junior
  • 29 – Justin Battle – Sophomore
  • 31 – Raleigh Claunch – Redshirt.svg Sophomore
  • 33 – Josh Bowerman - Sophomore
  • 45 – Josh Allen Stogner – Junior
  • 48 – David Burton – Junior
  • 51 – Caleb Menina – Sophomore
 

Catchers

  • 12 – Levi Jensen – Senior
  • 14 – Andrew Knight – Graduate
  • 28 – Andin Johnson – Redshirt.svg Junior
  • 40 – Charlie Cochran – Sophomore

Infielders

  • 2 – Leighton Jenkins – Junior
  • 4 – Gehrig Frei – Redshirt.svg Sophomore
  • 5 – Kyle Machado – Graduate
  • 9 – Jackson Ferrigno – Redshirt.svg Sophomore
  • 17 – Cal Cook – Senior
  • 30 – Zak Majer – Senior
  • 34 – Bryant Loving – Freshman
  • 36 – Braden Ebeling – Freshman
  • 37 – Ryan West – Junior
  • 44 – Brady Moore – Redshirt.svg Junior
 

Outfielders

  • 3 – Brant Brown – Redshirt.svg Junior
  • 8 – Jonathan Lane – Junior
  • 13 – Dominick McIntyre – Senior
  • 16 – Ethan Walker – Sophomore
  • 20 – Jackson Cheek – Sophomore
  • 35 – Alex Wilson – Junior
 

Coaching Staff

NamePositionSeasons at
North Alabama
Alma Mater
Jad Prachniak Head Coach2 University of Rhode Island (2005)
Chris BlakeyAssociate Head Coach3 University of North Alabama (2018)
Nick PattenAssistant Baseball Coach / Hitting Coach2 University of Delaware (2021)
David MervisAssistant Baseball Coach / Pitching Coach2 University of Delaware (2021)

Source: [6]

Schedule and results

Legend
 North Alabama win
 North Alabama loss
 Postponement/Cancellation/Suspensions
BoldNorth Alabama team member
2024 North Alabama Lions baseball game log
Regular season

Source: [8]

* The May 12 game against North Florida ended in a tie at the end of the 13th inning as the game reached the travel curfew for the away team [9] [10]

Records broken

Jacob James broke the school's all-time strikeout record in the third to last game of the season against Austin Peay. In the second-inning, James threw career strikeout No. 281 which put him in sole possession of the record. The previous record holder was Chad Boughner, who had 280 career strikeouts at North Alabama. [11] James would finish the season with 284 career strikeouts.

Postseason honors

Two North Alabama Lions were selected for postseason ASUN honors. [12]

Third Team All-ASUN
PlayerNo.PositionClass
Gehrig Frei43B

Redshirt.svg Sophomore

Jacob James10P

Senior

Related Research Articles

The North Alabama Lions football program represents the University of North Alabama (UNA) in college football as the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the United Athletic Conference (UAC). The conference, which played its first season in 2023, is a merger of the football leagues of UNA's primary home of the ASUN Conference and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). UNA had played the 2022 season in the ASUN, and before that had played football in the Big South Conference for three seasons. UNA plays its home games at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama. The team's head coach is Brent Dearmon. UNA was an NCAA Division II member from 1972 to 2017.

The North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represents University of North Alabama in Florence, Alabama, United States. The school's team currently competes in the ASUN Conference. On July 1, 2018, they joined the Atlantic Sun Conference. Since joining NCAA Division I, the Lions have not yet appeared in the NCAA Tournament. At the NCAA Division II level, North Alabama won the 1979 and 1991 national championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Alabama Lions</span> Collegiate sports teams in Florence, Alabama

The North Alabama Lions are the athletic teams of the University of North Alabama, located in Florence, Alabama. The Lions are a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and compete within the ASUN Conference for all sports except football, which plays in the United Athletic Conference. The university has a total of 14 varsity sports teams, six men's teams and eight women's teams. The fall of 2018 marked the Lion's first year of their transition into Division I. They have a storied tradition in Division II and have earned numerous national titles competing in NCAA Division II's Gulf South Conference.

The North Alabama Lions baseball team represents the University of North Alabama, which is located in Florence, Alabama. The Lions are an NCAA Division I college baseball program that competes in the ASUN Conference. They began competing in Division I in 2019 and joined the ASUN Conference the same season.

The 2017 ASUN Conference men's soccer season was the 40th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The regular season began on August 25, 2017 and ended on October 28, 2017. The regular season culminated with the 2017 ASUN Men's Soccer Tournament, which was held from November 3–11, 2017. The tournament determined the conference's tournament champion, and automatic berth into the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2018–19 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represented the University of North Alabama during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by head coach Tony Pujol in his first season at North Alabama. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as first-time members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.

The 2018 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 26 through November 3, 2018. The first round of the tournament was hosted at the #1 and #2 seed's home stadium. Then the remaining rounds of the tournament were hosted by the higher seed. The six-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles were the defending tournament champions. However, they were unable to defend their crown, as they lost to the Lipscomb Bisons in the semifinals. Lipscomb went on to win the tournament, beating North Alabama in the final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 NCAA Division I softball season</span> College softball in the United States

The 2019 NCAA Division I Softball season, play of college softball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began February 7, 2019. The season will progress through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and will conclude with the 2019 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2019 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament will be held annually in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, will end in June 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019–20 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2019–20 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represented the University of North Alabama in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Lions, led by second-year head coach Tony Pujol, played their home games at Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN). They finished the season 13–17, 8–8 in ASUN play, to finish in fifth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ASUN tournament to Stetson.

Mike D. Lane Field was a baseball venue in Florence, Alabama, United States. It was home to the North Alabama Lions baseball team of the NCAA Division I ASUN Conference. The facility had a capacity of 1,500 spectators and is named for former head coach Mike D. Lane who has the most wins in North Alabama history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 Liberty Flames baseball team</span> Baseball team season

The 2021 Liberty Flames baseball team represented Liberty University during the 2021 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Flames played their home games at Liberty Baseball Stadium as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference They were led by fifth-year head coach Scott Jackson.

The 2021 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 29 through November 6, 2021. All rounds of the tournament were hosted at the Western Division champions and Eastern Division champions home stadiums. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Liberty Flames were the defending tournament champions, and unable to defend their title, losing to Eastern Kentucky in the Quarterfinals. The Lipscomb Bisons won the tournament after defeating Kennesaw State 1–0 in the final. It was their third title in four years, and third title in program history for Lipscomb and coach Kevin O'Brien. As tournament champions, Lipscomb earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021–22 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2021–22 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represented University of North Alabama during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. They were led by ninth-year head coach Missy Tiber. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).

The 2021–22 ASUN Conference men's basketball season started non-conference play on November 9, 2021, and began conference play on January 4, 2022. The regular season ended on February 26, 2022, followed by the 2022 ASUN men's basketball tournament held March 1–8, 2022.

The 2021 ASUN men's soccer tournament was the 43rd edition of the postseason men's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference, held from November 5 through November 13, 2021. All rounds of the tournament were hosted at the first and second seeds home stadiums. The six-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Jacksonville Dolphins were the defending tournament champions, and were unable to defend their title, after not qualifying for the tournament. The Lipscomb Bisons won the tournament after defeating Central Arkansas 4–1 in the final. It was their third title in five years, and third title in program history for Lipscomb and coach Charles Morrow. As tournament champions, Lipscomb earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2021 NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Liberty Flames baseball team</span> American college baseball season

The 2022 Liberty Flames baseball team represented Liberty University during the 2022 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Flames played their home games at Liberty Baseball Stadium as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference They were led by sixth-year head coach Scott Jackson.

The 2023 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 26 through November 5, 2023. The tournament was hosted at campus sites, with the #3 and #6 seed hosting the First Round and Quarterfinals while the #1 seed hosted the Semifinals and Final. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles were the defending tournament champions. The Eagles successfully defended their tile, defeating North Alabama in a penalty-shoot out in the Final. It was Florida Gulf Coast's eighth overall title. All of the Eagle's titles have come under coach Jim Blankenship. As tournament champions, Florida Gulf Coast earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament.

The North Alabama Lions beach volleyball team represents the University of North Alabama in the Atlantic Sun Conference. They are currently led by head coach Kaleb VanDePerre and play their home games at the UNA Beach Volleyball Courts.

The 2024 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 31 through November 10, 2024. The tournament was hosted at campus sites, with the #3 and #6 seed hosting the First Round and Quarterfinals while the #1 seed hosted the Semifinals and Final. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles were the defending tournament champions. The Eagles were unable to defend their title, falling to Eastern Kentucky in the Semifinals. Eastern Kentucky went on to lose the final to Lipscomb 1–0. It was Lipscomb's fourth overall title. All of the Bison's titles have come under head coach Kevin O'Brien. As tournament champions, Lipscomb earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2024 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament.

The 2024–25 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represent the University of North Alabama during the 2024–25 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lions, led by first-year head coach Candi Whitaker, play their home games at the CB&S Bank Arena located in Florence, Alabama, as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).

References

  1. "2024 Baseball Standings". asunsports.org. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  2. Glovach, David (May 13, 2024). "For UNA, final days of baseball stadium 'bittersweet' but necessary". TimesDaily. Florence. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  3. "2023 Baseball Schedule". UNA Athletics. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
  4. "2023 Baseball Standings". Atlantic Sun Conference. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Lipscomb Tops ASUN Baseball Preseason Poll". Atlantic Sun Conference . asunsports.org. February 8, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  6. "2024 Baseball Roster". UNA Athletics. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  7. Mitchell, Taylor (March 13, 2024). "UNA moving Atlantic Sun Conference opener to Toyota Field this weekend". WHNT. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  8. "2024 Baseball Schedule". UNA Athletics. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
  9. Cohan, Max (May 12, 2024). "UNA Baseball ends senior day in historic draw with North Florida, 4-4". waaytv.com. WAAY 31. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  10. @UNABaseball (May 12, 2024). "Due to a travel curfew for North Florida, today's game has ended in a tie. We are back in action on Tuesday at Mississippi State" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  11. Glovach, David (May 21, 2024). "For James, UNA strikeout record 'definitely earned'". TimesDaily. Florence. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
  12. "2024 Baseball Postseason Honors Announced". Atlantic Sun Conference . asunsports.org. May 20, 2024. Retrieved October 28, 2024.