The Cochise College baseball team is ranked No. 8 in the NJCAA Division I preseason poll released by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
The Apaches closed last season with their second-straight trip to the Juco World Series in Grand Junction, Colo., after beating South Mountain to claim the Western District title.
In the World Series bracket, Cochise opened with a 7-4 loss to Blinn (Texas), followed by a 9-5 win over Delgado (La.) before falling in the elimination game to Columbia State (Tenn.), 12-11 in 12 innings.
Topping the preseason poll is Iowa Western, which beat Miami Dade in the national championship game last year. Cochise is the only Arizona team in the preseason poll top 10. Central Arizona is at No. 18.