Baseball Signs Five
5/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 30, 2000
SPOKANE, Wash. - Fresh off the heels of their most successful season as members of the West Coast Conference, the Gonzaga University baseball program looks to continue that success with the addition of five members for the 2000-2001 school year. Signing national letters of intent with the Bulldogs baseball program are junior college transfers Nate Gold and Kevin Richardson joining high school players Richard Bartlett, Jeff Culpepper and Jon Shepherd.
Nate Gold comes to the Gonzaga program after two stand out seasons as a first baseman at Treasure Valley Community College in Oregon where he played for former Gonzaga baseball player, Gary Van Tol. As a sophomore, the right-handed slugger led the Scenic West Athletic Conference with 57 RBI's while ranking fifth with a .369 batting average. The native of Centerville, Utah, helped guide Treasure Valley to a 27-27 record and third place finish in the SWAC baseball tournament.
Kevin Richardson comes to the Bulldogs after two seasons as a first baseman at Community Colleges of Spokane where he was named the team MVP as a freshman. As a sophomore the Bellingham, WA, native, helped guide CCS to an 18-12 record and third place finish in the Eastern Division of the NWAACC. After setting a school record for doubles as a freshman, the right-handed hitting Richardson hit .306 as a sophomore.
Richard Bartlett is considered one of the top three pro prospects in Washington this year as listed by Baseball America. The right-handed pitcher has dominated the high school ranks this year at Kamiakin High School in Kennewick. He opened the season with a 7-0 record and 0.54 earned run average as Kamiakin moved into the Top 10 rankings in the national high school poll.
Jeff Culpepper will join the Zags after a solid season as a third baseman at Woodinville High School. Culpepper was an all-league stand out while hitting .450. The left-hand hitting Culpepper is a steady prospect after leading the league in runs scored and RBI during his senior campaign.
Jon Shepherd comes to Gonzaga out of West Lake Village (CA) High School in California, which was ranked number one in the nation earlier this year. Shepherd has impressed coaches with his speed and ability to run down balls in the outfield. Although lacking power at the plate, the left-hand hitting Shepherd does a good job at the plate hitting .520 with an on base percentage over .600.
"I think the addition of these five young men will help us continue to compete for the conference championship," stated Coach Steve Hertz. "We lost some quality guys this year who helped turn around our program the last two seasons. This recruiting class should enable us to keep up that high level of play that has allowed us to become one of the top teams in the West Coast Conference."
Coach Hertz and his staff are still on the recruiting trail and look to add a few more quality players to the Gonzaga program before starting fall practice in September.
