ERIE, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend baseball team is projected to finish second in the conference, according to the 2024 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Baseball Preseason Coaches' Poll.

Head coach Paul Benim begins his 32^nd season at the helm after leading Behrend to a 22-19 overall and 9-5 conference record a season ago. The Lions captured their sixth Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) title and first since 2015, defeating Alvernia 6-4 in the final game of the best-of-three series.

Senior right-handed pitcher Evan Bromley (Bethel Park, PA/Bethel Park) and junior infielder Mac Ciocco (Venetia, PA/Peters Township) were named AMCC Preseason Players To Watch.

Last season, Bromley was an AMCC Second Team All-Conference selection, leading the team with six wins in seven starts. He tallied 26 strikeouts in 51 innings pitched, while recording a 4.94 ERA with a 6-3 record in 11 appearances.

Ciocco was an AMCC Second Team All-Conference selection and All-Region Third Team honoree a season ago. He led the team with a .378 batting average and 32 RBIs, while ranking fourth in the AMCC with a .444 batting average in conference play. 

The third-year infielder recorded an AMCC-high .571 on-base percentage in conference play and was tied for second with 11 walks. He was also third on the team in hits (44) and fourth in doubles (10).

This season, the Lions return 17 players (seven sophomores/four juniors/six seniors) and welcome 15 newcomers (14 freshmen/one transfer).

Alfred State, the 2023 AMCC regular season champions, was selected to finish ahead of the Lions in the preseason rankings

Preseason Ranking*
1. Alfred State (1)
2. Penn State Behrend (2)
3. Penn State Altoona (6)
4. Mount Aloysius (3)
5. Hilbert (T4)
6. Pitt-Greensburg (T4)
7. La Roche (7)
8. Pitt-Bradford (8)
9. Wells**

*Number in parenthesis is order of regular season finish in 2023
**2024 will be Wells' first season in the AMCC