Pack earns first place votes in RMAC Preseason poll

Bovard, Mattivi honored as Preseason all-RMAC selections

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The ThunderWolves received first place votes in the 2009 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Coaches' Preseason Poll, as two Pack players, Rutger Bovard (Sr., Kent, Wash.) and Mario Mattivi (Sr., Pueblo, Colo.), were selected to the preseason all-RMAC team, the RMAC announced Tuesday.

The ThunderWolves, despite being picked to finish fifth overall in the RMAC poll, received one first-place vote, one of only three schools to earn such votes.  The remaining first place votes went to Mesa State, the preseason pick to win the conference, and Regis, who was selected alongside defending RMAC champion, Nebraska-Kearney, to be Plains Division champions.  CSU-Pueblo was picked to finish third in the Plains Division.

Bovard, who led the ThunderWolves in batting with a .415 average in 2008, is entering his fourth season with the ThunderWolves.  He finished 2008 in the midst of a 24-game hit streak, nine away from the school record of 33, and led the ThunderWolves in multi-hit games with 29, including three four-hit games.

Mattivi, the Pack's top starting pitcher in 2008, leading all Pack starters with a 4.92 ERA. He led the team in wins with 7 and winning percentage (.777), going 7-2.  He also led the team in strikeouts with 53, averaging 0.83 strikeouts per inning.

Both Mattivi and Bovard were second-team all-RMAC selections in 2008.

The ThunderWolves will have a series of new challenges in 2009, many of them playing in the Pack's favor.  The RMAC will be part of a new region in 2009, moving from the West Region to the Central Region.  As a result, the Central Region will send six teams to the national playoffs, two more than the West Region had. 

CSU-Pueblo is also the home of the RMAC Baseball Tournament from May 6-9.  The RMAC's top six teams will qualify for the tournament.

To view the RMAC's preseason baseball release, click here.