IRVINE, Calif. – After helping lead Azusa Pacific to its third-consecutive PacWest title in his first year with the program, the PacWest coaches voted
Cole Kleszcz the PacWest Player and Newcomer of the Year to top the selections to the All-PacWest team.
Point Loma’s
Zack Noll is the PacWest Pitcher of the Year as he helped the Sea Lions finish in third place in the conference and earn a berth to the NCAA postseason.
Haloa Dudoit from Concordia earned recognition as the PacWest Defensive Player of the Year.
Tido Robles joined his teammate Kleszcz among the winners of special awards as the PacWest Freshman of the Year. For the third year in a row, Azusa Pacific head coach
Paul Svagdis was selected by his peers as the PacWest Coach of the Year, becoming the first coach to ever win the award three years in a row.
Kleszcz tied the PacWest single-season home runs record during the regular season by belting 22 longballs, including three in the Cougars’ doubleheader sweep of Point Loma to tie the record. Along with leading the PacWest in home runs, the junior from Valencia, California, was tied for the lead in doubles with 16 and had a conference-best 158 extra-base hits. Kleszcz finished the year with a .380 batting average and .859 slugging percentage, which is currently the second best in PacWest history. He joins Pablo O’Connor as the second Cougar to be named the PacWest Player of the Year.
Noll went 9-2 on the season as he helped Point Loma return to the NCAA West Regional as the No. 3 team in the region. He had a 3.14 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 77.1 innings pitched, and is just one win away from becoming the sixth PacWest pitcher ever to win 10 games in a season. The junior didn’t allow an earned run in any of his first three outings. He twice reached double digit strikeouts in a game, including 14-strikeout performance in only six innings against Academy of Art for a 7-3 victory.
Dudoit earned recognition as the PacWest Defensive Player of the Year after registering a 96.6 fielding percentage at shortstop for the Eagles. The first-team shortstop and three-time All-PacWest selection made 140 assists and 86 putouts. He also helped the Eagles turn 23 double plays this season.
Robles earned his spot in the Cougars’ starting lineup during the Cougars’ sweep of Hawai`i Pacific when he went 4 for 6 with four runs, two home runs and six RBIs. He went on to finish his freshman campaign with a .314 batting average, 10 home runs and 35 RBIs. Against Biola, Robles hit two home runs and recorded seven RBIs in the first game of the series. He finished the year with 17 extra-base hits as he earned third-team honors at first base.
Svagdis helped Azusa Pacific become the first PacWest team to win three PacWest titles in a row. The Cougars were 26-6 in the conference season along with a 22-4 mark at home overall. Azusa Pacific finished the regular season ranked in the top 10 in the nation. The Cougars’ longest winning streak this year was 11 games, including a sweep of Hawai`i Hilo during the run.
Kleszcz is joined on the first team by his teammates
Justin Gomez,
Osvaldo Tovalin,
Joe Quire, Jr. and
Nick Estrella. Gomez made his third All-PacWest team and Tovalin was a unanimous first-team selection at first base.
Christian Kapeliela from Hawai`i Pacific repeated all-conference selection as the first-team first baseman. Academy of Art’s
Thomas Delgadillo and Point Loma’s
Micah Pries were on the All-PacWest first team outfield. Holy Names’
Garrett O’Callaghan is a first-team starting pitcher, and Hawai`i Hilo is represented on the first team by relief pitcher
John Kea. Biola’s
Joey Magro is the utility player on the first team and Point Loma’s
John Balliet repeated as utility pitcher after playing right field and being a relief pitcher.
In the last three years, Azusa Pacific baseball has now won eight special awards, which is the fifth-most in the PacWest. Across all sports, Azusa Pacific has won a total of 70 special awards, now ranking fourth all-time in the conference’s history and second among active members, behind only Hawai`i Pacific.
| 2019 ALL-PACWEST BASEBALL AWARDS |
| Player of the Year |
Cole Kleszcz |
Azusa Pacific |
| Pitcher of the Year |
Zack Noll |
Point Loma |
| Defensive Player of the Year |
Haloa Dudoit |
Concordia |
| Newcomer of the Year |
Cole Kleszcz |
Azusa Pacific |
| Freshman of the Year |
Tido Robles |
Azusa Pacific |
| Coach of the Year |
Paul Svagdis |
Azusa Pacific |
| 2019 ALL-PACWEST BASEBALL TEAM |
| Name |
School |
Pos. |
Class |
B/T |
Hometown/Previous School |
| FIRST TEAM |
| Justin Gomez ** |
Azusa Pacific |
C |
Sr. |
L/R |
Claremont, Calif./Bonita |
| Christian Kapeliela * |
Hawai`i Pacific |
1B |
Sr. |
R/R |
Kaneohe, Hawai`i/Castle |
| Joe Quire, Jr. |
Azusa Pacific |
2B |
Sr. |
L/R |
La Verne, Calif./Bonita |
| Osvaldo Tovalin * |
Azusa Pacific |
3B |
So. |
L/R |
Chula Vista, Calif./Otah Ranch |
| Haloa Dudoit ** |
Concordia |
SS |
Jr. |
S/R |
Wailuku, Hawaii/Baldwin |
| Thomas Delgadillo |
Academy of Art |
OF |
Jr. |
L/R |
Diamond Bar, Calif./Fullerton College |
| Cole Kleszcz |
Azusa Pacific |
OF |
Jr. |
R/R |
Valencia, Calif./Valencia |
| Micah Pries * |
Point Loma |
OF |
Jr. |
L/R |
San Jan Capistrano, Calif./JSerra Catholic |
| Cooper Moore |
Concordia |
DH |
Jr. |
R/R |
Huntington Beach, Calif./Irvine Valley |
| Joey Magro |
Biola |
UF |
Sr. |
R/R |
Redlands, Calif./Arrowhead Christian |
| John Balliet * |
Point Loma |
UP |
Sr. |
L/L |
Mission Viejo, Calif./Mission Viejo |
| Nick Estrella * |
Azusa Pacific |
SP |
Jr. |
R/R |
Tucson, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge |
| Zack Noll |
Point Loma |
SP |
Jr. |
L/L |
Temecula, Calif./Great Oak |
| Garrett O’Callaghan |
Holy Names |
SP |
Sr. |
L/L |
Grass Valley, Calif./Nevada Union |
| John Kea |
Hawai`i Hilo |
RP |
So. |
R/R |
Kapolei, Hawai`i/St. Louis School |
| SECOND TEAM |
| Michael Palos |
Point Loma |
C |
Sr. |
R/R |
Monterey Park, Calif./UC San Diego |
| Jackson Collins |
Biola |
1B |
So. |
L/R |
Watsonville, Calif./Monte Vista Christian |
| Elijah Smith * |
Academy of Art |
2B |
Sr. |
R/R |
Richmond, Calif./Contra Costa College |
| Jared Aguilar |
Fresno Pacific |
3B |
Fr. |
R/R |
Fresno, Calif./Clovis East |
| Tristen Alvarez |
Fresno Pacific |
SS |
Sr. |
R/R |
Madera, Calif./Madera |
| Connor Kostecka |
Biola |
SS |
So. |
L/R |
Temecula, Calif./Linfield Christian |
| Jair Donovan |
Concordia |
OF |
So. |
L/L |
Chino Hills, Calif./Chino Hills |
| Griffen Herrera |
Azusa Pacific |
OF |
Jr. |
R/R |
Glendora, Calif./Glendora |
| Jerron Largusa * |
Biola |
OF |
Sr. |
R/R |
Las Vegas, Nev./Palo Verde |
| Jordan Mopas |
Hawai`i Pacific |
OF |
Sr. |
R/R |
Ewa Beach, Hawai`i/St. Louis |
| Joseph Kim |
Azusa Pacific |
DH |
So. |
L/R |
Glendora, Calif./Diamond Bar |
| Casey Yamauchi |
Hawai`i Hilo |
UF |
Fr. |
R/R |
Hilo, Hawai`i/Waiakea |
| Joshua Nelson |
Holy Names |
UP |
Jr. |
R/R |
Pleasant Hill, Calif./College Park |
| Garrett Cooper |
Fresno Pacific |
UP |
Fr. |
R/R |
Kingsburg, Calif./Clovis North |
| Nic Boatman |
Fresno Pacific |
SP |
Jr. |
R/R |
Pacific Grove, Calif./Pacific Grove |
| Declan Kearney |
Azusa Pacific |
SP |
So. |
R/R |
Las Vegas/St. Monica Catholic |
| A.J. Woodall |
Azusa Pacific |
SP |
So. |
L/L |
La Verne, Calif./Bonita |
| Tripp Aversa |
Azusa Pacific |
RP |
Jr. |
L/R |
Fountain Valley, Calif./Fountain Valley |
| THIRD TEAM |
| Angel Flores |
Fresno Pacific |
C |
Jr. |
R/R |
Porterville, Calif./Porterville |
| Zak May |
Academy of Art |
C |
Sr. |
R/R |
Albuquerque, N.M./Scottsdale CC |
| Bailey Collins |
Concordia |
1B |
Jr. |
L/L |
Littleton, Colo./Dakota Ridge |
| Tido Robles |
Azusa Pacific |
1B |
Fr. |
R/R |
Paramount, Calif./St. John Bosco |
| RobertAnthony Cruz |
Biola |
2B |
So. |
R/R |
Riverside, Calif./UC Riverside |
| Nick Grimes |
Concordia |
3B |
Sr. |
R/R |
Laguna Beach, Calif./Aliso Niguel |
| Matt Lautz |
Concordia |
OF |
Jr. |
R/R |
Agoura Hills, Calif./Agoura |
| Tanner Tokunaga |
Hawai`i Pacific |
OF |
Sr. |
R/R |
Pearl City, Hawai`i/Pearl City |
| RJ Bates |
Biola |
DH |
Jr. |
R/R |
Los Angeles/USC |
| Nick Dodd |
Fresno Pacific |
UF |
Jr. |
R/R |
Kingsburg, Calif./Stanislaus State |
| Nathan Garkow |
Point Loma |
SP |
So. |
R/R |
Glendora, Calif./Charter Oak |
| Gonzo Rios |
Academy of Art |
SP |
Sr. |
R/R |
Shadow Hills, Calif./La Mission College |
| Dylan Spain |
Hawai`i Hilo |
SP |
Jr. |
R/R |
Honolulu/St. Louis School |
| Josh Ludeman |
Biola |
RP |
Jr. |
R/R |
Corona, Calif./Santa Ana |
* - Indicates previous All-PacWest selection