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<h1 align="right" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:right"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">BAYLOR</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"> </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">ATHLETIC
COMMUNICATIONS – January 29, 2020</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">Loftin Headlines Preseason All-Big 12 Honors</span></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;background:white">The junior shortstop is the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year</span></i></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">For more information contact:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">Rachel Caton, (254) 652-2061,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="mailto:Rachel_Caton@baylor.edu"><span style="color:#954F72">Rachel_Caton@baylor.edu</span></a></span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">WACO, Texas</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"> – Junior infielder Nick Loftin earns Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year honors as he
headlines the Preseason All-Big 12 team along with catcher Andy Thomas, the conference office announced today.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">The honorees were selected in a vote of the league’s head coaches. Coaches could not vote for their own players.</span><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Loftin, an All-Big 12 first team selection a season ago,
</span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;background:white">finished the 2019 season batting .323 (76-for-235), good for fifth best on a team that finished second in the Big 12. He was fourth on the team with 41 RBI and
his six home runs were fourth most. As a sophomore he was the 12</span><sup><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">th
</span></sup><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;background:white">toughest batter nationally to strike out, doing so only once every 13.8 at bats. </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><br>
<span style="background:white"> </span><br>
<span style="background:white">A slick fielder at short, the Corpus Christi, Texas, native also represented the Bears on the prestigious USA Collegiate National Team over the summer where he also saw action on the mound in addition to starts at five different
positions (short, second and third base, left and right field).</span><br>
<span style="background:white"> </span><br>
<span style="background:white">Loftin, a freshman All-American in 2018, has a career batting average of .315 through 108 games played, starting 106 of those. He has 77 career RBI, 12 home runs, a career slugging percentage of .473 and on-base percentage of
.375. He boasts 38 walks in his career to just 37 strikeouts. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">He has also been named the Preseason Player of the Year for the Big 12 by
<i>D1Baseball.com</i> and <i>Baseball America</i>, while earning Preseason All-America honors by
<i>Collegiate Baseball</i>, <i>D1Baseball.com</i> and <i>Baseball America</i>. <o:p>
</o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Thomas was also named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team as a catcher/infielder. The senior is the best returning hitter for the Bears after finishing second on the team with a
.335 average in 2019. He led the team with 22 doubles and finished with four home runs and 32 RBI through 47 games played. He drew 24 walks and boasted the second-best on-base percentage on the team at .413.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Thomas has seen action at first base, designated hitter and catcher throughout his career, but with Langeliers moving on to pro ball after the 2019 season, Thomas is set to be
the everyday catcher for the Bears. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Baylor will open up the 2020 campaign on Friday, Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m. as they welcome Nebraska to Baylor Ballpark for a three-game set.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Don’t miss a minute of the action at Baylor Ballpark this spring, visit
<a href="https://baylorbea.rs/2N0mL69">baylorbea.rs/2N0mL69</a> to purchase your season tickets today.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">-baylorbears.com-<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:black">__________________________________</span></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:6.5pt;color:black"> </span></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#154734">Rachel Caton</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black"> | Associate Sports Information Director</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black">Department of Athletics | Baylor University</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black">O: 254-710-3784 | C: 254-652-2061</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://baylorbears.com/"><span style="color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="160" height="44" style="width:1.6666in;height:.4583in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01D5D696.A636B7E0" alt="cid:image001.png@01D5070F.1E7C3CA0"></span></a><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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