SOCON RELEASE
 
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (Feb. 6, 2025) – A little over a week from the beginning of the 2025 season, the Southern Conference released its annual preseason poll and All-Conference teams on Thursday. Six Buccaneers earned Preseason All-SoCon honors, including Michael Harpster who was named the league's Co-Preseason Pitcher of the Year. Fellow Bucs Cody Miller and JD Yakubinis landed spots on the first team, while Jamie Palmese, Blake Jacklin and Will Smoot all were named to the second team. As a team, the Bucs were picked to tie for fourth place with Mercer. UNC Greensboro, which won the league's regular season title last season, were picked to repeat as league champions.
 
In his first season in Johnson City, Harpster was a key part of ETSU's rotation making a team-high 12 starts in 2024. He led the team with eight victories on the season and eight of his 12 starts went five innings or longer. Harpster also tallied wins against Wagner, James Madison, UNC Greensboro, Mercer, Purdue, The Citadel and VMI. Overall, Harpster went 8-1 with a 5.26 ERA in 66.2 innings pitched as a freshman. For his play all season long, Harpster landed spots on both the All-SoCon Second Team and the All-SoCon Freshman Team. 
 
Miller, a Preseason All-SoCon Second Team selection last spring, started and played in 54 games for ETSU in 2024. Serving as ETSU's primary third baseman, he hit .340 with two home runs and 33 RBI on the season to go with a team-high 19 stolen bases. Miller also was fourth on the the team with 53 runs scored and hits with 67. He logged 22 multi-hit outings as a sophomore including four three-hit performances. Miller also had a 13-game hitting streak at one point during the 2024 campaign and drove in multiple runs seven times as a sophomore.
 
In his first season in Johnson City, Yakubinis played in 42 games (30 starts) for the Bucs. For most of the season, Yakubinis was ETSU's primary right fielder. He made a splash in his ETSU debut on February 16 vs. Lafayette going 3-for-4 with four runs scored, three RBI, and a home run. Overall, Yakubinis hit .315 with one home run and 30 RBI. The Charlotte native also scored 24 runs, totaled 11 doubles and added a pair of triples. Along with fellow Buc Noah Gent, Yakubinis broke the program's single season record for sacrifice flies in a season with seven. He posted 10 multi-hit games in 2024 and knocked in multiple runs eight times. Against SoCon opponents, Yakubinis hit .310 with 12 RBI and finished the conference slate with a .799 OPS. He also did not make an error in the field in 70 chances and played a part in three double plays.
 
Palmese made an immediate impact for ETSU in 2024. As a freshman, Palmese played in 50 games and started 43 of those serving as ETSU's primary center fielder. Palmese hit .301 with three home runs and 28 RBI. The sophomore outfielder also worked 24 walks to go against 29 strikeouts to finish his freshman campaign with an on-base percentage of .398. He also went a perfect 15-for-15 on stolen base attempts and paced the Bucs with six sacrifice bunts. Following the regular season, Palmese was rewarded for his play by landing a spot on the SoCon's All-Freshman Team. Palmese continued to play well for the Bucs in the SoCon Tournament collecting six hits in 13 at-bats (.462 average) with four RBI.
 
In his first season with the Bucs, Jacklin appeared in 33 games and made 23 starts. With time in all three outfield spots for ETSU, Jacklin hit .306 with seven home runs and 27 RBI. He recorded eight multi-hit performances, including three contests where he totaled three hits. He closed the season on a nine-game reached base streak and finished the season third on the team with seven home runs and stole seven bases in 2024 as well. Jacklin's seven home runs came against Harvard, Radford, Purdue, Appalachian State, Wofford (two) and Miami (OH).
 
Smoot joins ETSU after spending the last two seasons at Iowa Western Community College. In 2024, Smoot had a breakout campaign offensively hitting .366 with 17 home runs and 76 RBI in 54 games. Smoot also scored 62 runs, totaled 64 hits and 19 doubles in 2024. In his first season of college baseball in 2023, Smoot played in 31 games and hit .383 with five home runs and 26 RBI.
 
ETSU will open the 2025 season when it welcomes Northern Kentucky to Thomas Stadium for a three-game series starting next Friday. Game times for the series against the Norse are 3 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets for next weekend's opening series can be purchased at ETSUTickets.com.

For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball tab.