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COLUMBIA (WACH) -- After being back-to-back NCAA champions, the Gamecock baseball team looks forward to another great season.

South Carolina has the number one recruiting class in the country according to Collegiate Baseball.

University officials say seven new players were drafted, including several standouts from both high school and junior college ranks.

“We are ecstatic with this group of newcomers that have entered our program,” said South Carolina recruiting coordinator Chad Holbrook.  “This is a class we are excited about because of its depth, athleticism and versatility. We have a talented group of young, athletic infielders with the addition of Joey Pankake, T.J. Costen, Connor Bright, as well as outfielders Tanner English and Shon Carson. English and Carson were labeled as two of the best available athletes in the 2011 MLB draft. 

“We also feel Grayson Greiner was one of the best high school catchers in the country and only because of signability issues was he not drafted in the first 10 rounds,” added Holbrook.  “We think that our pitching signees will contribute immediately.”

School officials add that the new class has a lot of experience and maturity with the addition of junior college signees.

“Our JC signees have had great success at the college level, and they add maturity and experience to our 2012 team.  We felt it was important to have some balance with high school and junior college recruits to help replace some of the experience we lost in 2011.  Collectively, we believe it’s a talented class that will hopefully continue to put us in a position to compete for SEC championships and trips to the College World Series.”

Here's a list of the newcomers:

Evan Beal  RHP  Fairfax Station, Va. (South County HS)
Connor Bright  INF  Mt. Pleasant, S.C. (Wando HS)
Shon Carson  OF  Lake City, S.C. (Lake City HS)
Ahmad Christian INF  Jacksonville, Fla. (Trinity Christian HS)
Seth Constable OF  Lewisville, N.C. (Forsyth Country Day HS)
T.J. Costen  INF  Virginia Beach, Va. (First Colonial HS)
LB Dantzler  INF  Winter Haven, Fla. (State College of Florida (Manatee-Sarasota)
Robert DeCosmo RHP  Agawam, Mass. (Cathedral HS)
Tanner English  OF  Murrels Inlet, S.C. (St. James HS)  
Vince Fiori  LHP  Ramsey, N.J. (Ramsey HS)
Grayson Greiner C  Columbia, S.C. (Blythewood HS)
Mikal Hill          INF  Charlotte, N.C. (Mallard Creek HS)
Tanner Lovick  INF  Winterville, N.C. (Pitt CC)
Kyle Martin  1B  Simpsonville, S.C. (Wade Hampton HS)
Reid Moman  OF  Greenville, S.C. (JL Mann HS)
Jordan Montgomery LHP  Sumter, S.C. (Sumter HS)
Joey Pankake  INF  Easley, S.C. (Easley HS)
Hunter Privette  RHP  Hartsville, S.C. (Florence Darlington Tech)
Joel Seddon  RHP/INF St. Clair, Mich. (St. Clair HS)
Sean Sullivan  OF  Columbia, S.C. (Winthrop)
Chase Vergason INF  Orlando, Fla. (Brevard CC)

Signing Class Breakdown:

(16) High School Prospects
(5) JC/College Transfers