COCHRAN, Ga. – The Peach Belt Conference announced the 2026 Baseball Preseason Poll on Friday, January 23^rd and the Knights were picked to finish ninth, ahead of Claflin University and USC-Beaufort. The Knights will look to add another chapter to their successful program with the move to NCAA Division II and the Peach Belt Conference.

Middle Georgia is coming off a 30-23 season including an 18-12 mark in the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) from a season ago. Their season ended at the SSAC tournament in Jackson, Tenn.
 
Columbus State earned the No. 1 spot in the PBC preseason poll after closing out the 2025 regular season in fourth place and receiving the #4 seed in the PBC Tournament.
 
Reigning PBC Regular Season Co-Champions, North Georgia, have been tabbed to finish second in 2026. The Nighthawks completed one of their best seasons in history in 2025, completing their season with a 41-17 record following an NCAA Southeast Region appearance.
 
Reigning PBC Regular Season Co-Champions and PBC Tournament Champions, Lander, have been projected to finish third in 2026. The Bearcats completed their season with a 43-15 record, the third-most victories in program history. Alongside their regular season and tournament victories, the Bearcats advanced to the NCAA Southeast Region tournament for the first time since 2016.
 
Georgia Southwestern were voted to finish in fourth place, followed by GCSU, Flagler, USCA, Augusta, Middle Georgia, USC Beaufort and Claflin who round out the Preseason Coaches Poll. 

The Knights open their season on January 30^th with an eight game home stand starting with Union University and start conference play on February 13^th on the road against Lander University. The Peach Belt Conference Tournament runs May 1^st – May 3^rd with the top two seeds hosting the opening weekend and concludes on May 8^th – May 10^th with a best-of-3 series, hosted by the highest remaining seed.