TUSCON, Ariz. - The Collegiate Baseball Newspaper released its 2023 College Preview Section this past week, including their NCAA Division III Top Players to Watch list and their preseason Top 40 list. Among the players listed were three Plattsburgh State baseball players, junior infielder Alex Kornblau (Pound Ridge, N.Y./Fox Lane), senior outfielder Conner Gonzalski (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse), and senior pitcher Sean Malamud (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan E. Wagner). 

The team also received votes in the preseason 2023 Top 40 poll, after the program had its best season in a decade, posting its best record and first playoff appearance since the 2012 season finishing at 21-19 overall. 

Kornblau enjoyed a breakout sophomore campaign in 2022, hitting .372, recording a .497 on-base percentage and a .593 slugging percentage. He had 42 hits, 11 doubles, one triple, four homeruns, 33 RBI, and scored 37 runs in 35 games over his second college season, putting up some of the best numbers in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC). He had five games with three or more hits, with his only four-hit game likely being the highlight of the season as he had a double and homerun in the team's win over SUNY Canton. 

Gonzalski vaulted himself into a permanent role in the middle of the order for Plattsburgh State in 2022, as the junior hit .331 with a .422 on-base percentage and a .567 slugging percentage. He also had 42 hits, and four homeruns, adding 12 doubles, three triples, and 30 RBI in 35 games played. He had a team-high 13 multi-hit games in the spring season, with the highlight of his season coming in a three-game series versus New Paltz when he had seven hits and homered in each game. 

Malamud was one of the team's top arms in the spring, establishing himself as a weekend starter. He finished the year with six wins on the mound in 13 appearances and 11 starts, striking out 36 batters over 59.2 innings pitched. His season ERA stood at 5.43 after the season, as his year was highlighted by a complete game effort against SUNY Oneonta to secure a series win over the Red Dragons. His 11 starts tied a program record for a single season and his six wins tied him for sixth place in the team's single-season record book. 

The full release from the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper can be purchased and viewed here.

Plattsburgh State opens its season against Maritime College on Feb. 25 at 12 p.m., in Throggs Neck, N.Y.