CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Winthrop University baseball team was slated third in the Big South Conference Preseason poll, earning a first-place vote, as Gabe Natividad, Josh Skowronski, and Harrison Wilson were selected to the Preseason All-Conference team, announced by the league office on Wednesday. 

Winthrop received 60 points in the poll, and one first-place vote for the highest preseason ranking for the Eagles since 2021. 

Natividad is coming off his first campaign with Winthrop, where he earned Big South First-Team honors. The Nevada native hit for a.347 batting average, the second highest on the team, all while leading the Eagles in runs, hits, and total bases, playing in all 60 games for Winthrop. 

Skowronski played in 58 of the 60 contests for the Eagles, showcasing his hand speed and power by leading Winthrop with 13 home runs on the year. Skowronski batted .305 with 49 runs batted in, while pacing the team in slugging percentage with a mark of .588. The Redshirt Sophomore was also named as a 2026 MLB Draft Gem by Baseball America's Peter Flaherty. 

Wilson enters his senior campaign after making 17 appearances on the mound for the Eagles, finishing ninth in the Big South league play in total strikeouts while also making 29 appearances at the plate and recorded ten hits, nine RBIs, and five runs on the year. Wilson was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watchlist and the John Olerud Two-Way Player Award Watchlist last season. 

High Point is predicted to win the Big South title, with 75 points and three first-place votes while last year's champions USC Upstate slot in at second with 71 points and four first-place votes. Winthrop was third in the poll with one first-place vote as Radford rounded out the top four with the remaining first-place vote. Charleston Southern, Presbyterian, Longwood, Gardner-Webb, and UNC Asheville complete the preseason poll. 

The top six teams in the final conference standings will advance to the Big South Baseball Championship, which will be held May 20-23 at legendary McCormick Field in Asheville, N.C. The champion receives the Big South's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. 

The full results of the poll and the full all-conference team can be found below. 
 

Rk.	Team (First-Place Votes)	Pts
1	High Point (3)	75
2	USC Upstate (4)	71
3	Winthrop (1)	60
4	Radford (1)	51
5	Charleston Southern	49
6	Presbyterian	35
7	Longwood	28
8	Gardner-Webb	25
9	UNC Asheville	11