NORFOLK, Va. --The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s (MEAC) nine baseball-playing institutions will open the 2018 season this weekend, with seven of the nine teams throwing their first pitch on Friday.

 
Defending champion Bethune-Cookman is the preseason favorite to win the Southern Division, despite entering its first season under interim head coach Barrett Shaft, and the Wildcats boast both the MEAC Preseason Player of the Year (Danny Rodriguez) and Preseason Pitcher of the Year (Anthony Maldonado).
 
The Wildcats open the season on Friday, kicking off a three-game series at Mercer.
 
Delaware State, the preseason favorite in the Northern Division, will hit the road to open its season against Savannah State out of the Southern Division. The three-game set opens with a doubleheader on Saturday.
 
Coppin State and North Carolina A&T State will also play a three-game set to open 2018 this weekend, starting on Friday in Greensboro, N.C. The Aggies were picked to finish second in the Southern Division this season, and they are led by reigning MEAC Coach of the Year Ben Hall.
 
Florida A&M (against Marshall), North Carolina Central (against Wagner) and Norfolk State (against Villanova) will also open their 2018 seasons at home this weekend.
 
The Spartans, three-time defending Northern Division champions, are entering their first season under interim head coach Keith Shumate, and they come into 2018 having lost the reigning MEAC Player of the Year (Alex Mauricio) and Pitcher of the Year (Devin Hemmerich) to professional ball.
 
Maryland Eastern Shore will open the Brian Hollamon era on the road this weekend with a four-game set against Austin Peay, including a Saturday doubleheader.
 
The 2018 MEAC Baseball Championships will be held May 16-19 at a location to be determined.