Three UCI pitchers are preseason All-Americans

UC Irvine junior pitchers Eric Pettis, Christian Bergman and Danny Bibona have been named preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Assn.

The Anteaters have been ranked No. 20 by Collegiate Baseball in its preseason poll.

Pettis, whose 17 saves last season tied a UCI single-season record and ranked No. 2 in the nation, is a first-team honoree.

Bergman earned second-team honors and Bibona was named to the third team.

Pettis was named second-team All-American by the NCBWA last season after the right-hander was 4-3 with a 2.62 ERA and struck out 50 in 44 2/3 innings. He surrendered just 37 hits en route to first-team All-Big West Conference honors.

Bergman, a first-team All-Big West honoree in 2008, was 5-2 with a 1.94 ERA, 10th-best in the nation. The right-hander was second on the team with 24 appearances and posted an 0.64 ERA in conference games.

Bibona was 9-3 as a sophomore with a 3.08 ERA. He allowed 97 hits and struck out 97 in 102 1/3 innings, walking only 21.

He earned Lincoln Regional All-Tournament team honors after pitching a career-best eight innings in the win against the Cornhuskers.

The Anteaters open the season with a four-game series at Hawaii beginning Feb. 20.

— From staff reports