Waxahachie, Texas- January 27, 2016- The months and months of off-season has officially come to an end for the Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) baseball team. The Lions will kick off their 2016 season with a two-day home stand against Hillsdale Freewill College .
This 2016 roster has mostly a new look from the year before. Head coach Sam Blackmon has seven upperclassmen returning to bring leadership to his young crew; utility player Carson Conarty , catcher Griffin Glenn , outfielder Eric Hagstrom , outfielder Josh Terry , utility player Collin Gifford, pitcher Sal Rico and outfielder Tallon Ralstin .
“We have some sophomores that got thrown into the fire of this conference a year ago that have really came on strong this year,” explains Blackmon, “ Chris Wallace , Brett Carrol l, Keegan Harris and Anthony Montalvo will all be players to watch.”
Blackmon also welcomes back three players that missed last season, Raul Castro, Spenser Hart and Elijah Young . Along with a solid freshman class, SAGU will bring in several junior college transfers that he believes will make an immediate impact. The transfer-juniors include; Jacob Keltner, Colton Glover, Jake Clary, Jake Payonk, Maverick Keffer, Brandon Ventura, Drew Hanna, Mark Martinez, AJ Munoz and James Duvall .
“Throughout the fall and the preseason they have shown that they play hard. They also have one of the best team chemistries I’ve seen on any team. I think it will be a fun group to watch and we are anxious to see them compete,” says Blackmon.
Along with an overhauled roster, Blackmon welcomes two new coaches. The SAGU baseball program now has its first full-time assistant in pitching coach Stephen McNett. Also Preston Hornbeck is now a graduate assistant after finishing his playing career last year.
On Friday, January 29, 2016 the SAGU doubleheader against Hillsdale Freewill College begins at 4pm and will be played at Waxahachie Sports Complex . On Saturday, January 30, 2016 the home stand continues and will be played at SAGU. Game time is noon.
Southwestern Assemblies of God University is a private, Christian university located 30 minutes south of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in Waxahachie, Texas. The university was established in 1927, and now offers more than 70 associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees on campus or online. More information is available at www.sagu.edu or by calling 1-888-YES-SAGU.
Contact: Natalie Tristan, Sports Information, [email protected]
