CHARLOTTE, N.C.- For the fourth straight season the Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers will open the season as the #1 ranked team in the land as announced by the NJCAA National Office on Monday. The last three seasons it has happened, the Bucs proved the voters right with NJCAA National Championships in May.
FSW finished last season 54-5, culminating in their third consecutive NJCAA National Championship. The Bucs eclipsed the 50 win mark despite playing one of the toughest schedules in the country, defeating 18 ranked foes in 2023 including four straight Top 10 teams to win their third straight crown in Oxford, Alabama. Offensively the Bucs return All-American outfielder Sydney McCray who hit .410 and stole 26 bases for FSW last season as well as D'Yani McKinley, Sietske Drijvers, and Maddy Golka who were all All-Conference selections as freshmen in 2023. In the circle FSW returns Lea Chevrier who was the Most Outstanding Pitcher at the 2023 FCSAA State Tournament and who was the winning pitcher in the Bucs National Championship game victory over Northwest Florida as well as Esmee Ames who posted a 1.87 ERA as a freshman last season.
The Preseason Poll is loaded with FCSAA squads as FSW leads the way at the top and is followed by #2 Northwest Florida State, #7 Central Florida, #10 Indian River, and #13 Seminole State. Behind the Bucs and Raiders, Wallace State, Odessa, and Grayson round out the Top 5.
FSW opens up their title defense on Saturday when they travel to Clearwater for the 2024 Juco Kickoff Classic where they will take on Georgia Military and St. John's River on opening day before returning home to play New College of Florida in their home openers on February 1st.