AZUSA, Calif. -- Coming off a 26-24 campaign and a third place finish in the GSAC, Azusa Pacific head baseball coach Paul Svagdis has reloaded and retooled his roster in anticipation of making a run at a GSAC title in his second year.

Nearly 20 new players, the majority of which are incoming freshmen, replace 13 departures (7 seniors), including All-GSAC Matt Dzama (.326, 11 HR, 45 RBI, 55 R), one of 2 Cougars to receive all-conference honors last year.

“Although we will certainly miss the seniors we lost to graduation, we are very optimistic about this year’s recruiting class”, said Svagdis. “We felt like we needed to make up for last year since we took over late in the recruiting process and had little time to piece together a final roster. However, this year, we feel we now have a good mix of veteran experience and youthful excitement.”

Heading the list are senior transfers Glen Hedgepeth and Jeremy Hess, both of whom transfer from NAIA-member Lubbock Christian (Texas) after playing 1 season with the Chaparrals. Hedgepeth, a 2003 All-Sooner Athletic Conference selection, split time between shortstop and pitcher. He started all 62 games for the 39-23 Chaps, hitting .330 (65-for-197) with a team-high 17 home runs and 66 RBIs. He also made 8 appearances on the mound, going 3-1 with a 5.84 ERA while collecting 2 saves and 14 strikeouts in 12.1 innings.

Hess, meanwhile, was second on the team with 17 appearances. He made 8 starts, threw 3 complete games and finished 5-2 with a team-high 5 saves and a 2.48 ERA. In 65.1 innings, Hess allowed just 18 earned runs and recorded 64 strikeouts against just 10 walks.

True freshmen C/1B Stephen Vogt (Visalia, Calif./Central Valley Christian HS), LHP Brandon Sisk (Elkhart, Texas/Elkhart HS), LHP Daniel Sloan (Moreno Valley, Calif./Valley View HS) are also expected to make immediate impacts.

Vogt, whose brother Danny plays at GSAC-rival Westmont, is a catcher/first base combo. A 3-time All-East Sierra League first-team honoree, Vogt hit .554 as a senior last year, setting CIF Central Section career records with 79 walks while going 65-for-65 in stolen bases. He is also No. 2 on the CIF-Central Section career list with 160 hits and 142 runs.

Sisk was a 3-time all-area first team selection at Elkhart (Texas) High. Last season, He threw 31 innings, recording 53 strikeouts and allowing just 10 walks while posting a 0.67 ERA. In 158.2 career innings, Sisk tallied 319 strikeouts, including a whopping 123 Ks in 58.2 innings during his sophomore season.

Last season at Valley View High, Sloan was an All-Ivy League selection after leading the 23-7 Eagles to an Ivy League championship and an appearance in the CIF championship game.

Also expecting to have an impact are true freshmen RHP Johnny Soberal (Los Angeles, Calif./Fairfax HS), SS/2B Anthony Hernandez (Moreno Valley, Calif./Valley View HS), RHP Scott Hodsdon (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga HS) and 3B/RHP Jonathan Dravecky (Monument, Colo./Colorado Springs Christian HS).

Soberal was a 2-time All-Western League and all-city second team honoree as a pitcher at Fairfax High, while Hernandez, a teammate of Sloan’s at Valley View High, was an All-Ivy League and All-CIF Division first team selection. Hernandez hit .431 last season and was selected to the All-Riverside County team and the Riverside County All-Star team.

Hodson was the Baseline League MVP last year after posting a 1.04 ERA while batting .411 with 4 home runs. He was also the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin’s Player of the Year. Dravecky, son of renowned former major league pitcher Dave, was a 2-time All-Tri Peaks League honoree and a 2-time all-area second team selection after hitting .600 as a junior and .527 as a senior. He also posted a 6-0 mark with a 2.92 ERA in his junior campaign while leading the Lions to a Tri-Peaks title.

Junior college transfer OF Joe Morrison (Redlands, Calif./Yucaipa HS/Orange Coast JC), whose older brother Ollie played for Svagdis at Pomona-Pitzer, comes in looking to fight for an outfield spot. A 2-time All-San Andreas League pick at Yucaipa High, Morrison hit .407 as a freshman and .327 as a sophomore at Orange Coast JC.

LHP Brad Boekstein (Artesia, Calif./Valley Christian HS), RHP Peter Dunn (Calabasas, Calif./Oaks Christian HS), OF Tyler Engle (Medford, Ore./North Medford HS), C Jake Hoffman (Glendale, Ariz./Greenway HS), and RHP Drew Sampson (Phoenix, Ariz./Mountain Pointe HS) round out the list of true freshmen looking to have an impact on the Cougar program throughout the next 4 seasons.

Boekstein was a 3-time All-Olympic League and a 2-time All-CIF selection at Valley Christian High in Cerritos, Calif., after leading the Crusaders to a pair of CIF championships. Dunn was an All-CIF Division IVAA first team selection and the Frontier League MVP after going 8-3 on the mound and hitting .520 at Oaks Christian High.

Engle, a 3-year starter at North Medford (Ore.) High, was an All-Southern Oregon Conference selection last year. Sampson was an all-region selection last year at Mountain Pointe High.

The Cougars have begun their fall workouts and have 8 scrimmages on the schedule. The regular season gets underway Tuesday, Feb. 3, with a doubleheader vs. Bethany College.