DAHLONEGA – The University of North Georgia (UNG) baseball team was selected to finish second in the Peach Belt Conference Preseason Poll, as announced Friday by the league.

The Nighthawks are coming off a historic 2025 season in which they posted a 41-17 overall record and a 23-4 mark in conference play, earning a share of the PBC regular-season championship. North Georgia advanced to the NCAA Regional final, finishing the year as regional runner-up.

UNG enters the 2026 campaign under first-year head coach Nolan Belcher, who joins the Nighthawks after spending the previous five seasons as head coach at Georgia College & State University.

Three Nighthawks were named to the PBC Preseason All-Conference Team: Jake Prince, Kyle Robitzsch and Matthew Heard.

Prince started 36 of 39 games in 2025, recording a .275 batting average with a .389 slugging percentage and a .366 on-base percentage. Defensively, he totaled 52 putouts and 79 assists, finishing the season with a .956 fielding percentage.

Robitzsch made 44 starts in 45 appearances, batting .305 with a .390 slugging percentage and a .431 on-base percentage. He added 73 putouts and posted a .975 fielding percentage.

Heard appeared in 23 games with six starts on the mound, compiling a 5-3 record with a 4.14 ERA and 72 strikeouts. He limited opposing hitters to a .240 batting average while facing 317 batters.

North Georgia opens the 2026 season Jan. 30–Feb. 1 with a three-game series at Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, Fla.