Costa is Third Titan Invited to Team USA Trials June 12, 2002 – Fullerton, Calif.
Cal State Fullerton sophomore outfielder Shane Costa has been added to
the list of collegiate players invited to participate in the 2002 USA
Baseball National Team Trials in Tucson, Arizona from June 18-23.
Costa joins a pair of Titans – sophomore righthanded pitchers Wes
Littleton and Chad Cordero – who have already been invited to the
trials. Only Georgia Tech, with four invitees, will have more representatives
at the trials. As of today, the USA National Team will be selected from
a pool of 33 players. The official team roster
will be determined and announced on June 24. (For a complete list of the
invitees, visit the USA
Baseball web site)
Costa earned first-team All-Big West Conference honors this season after
batting .365 with 23 doubles, 40 RBI and 14 stolen bases. He was hit by
26 pitches, tied for the eighth most in a season in NCAA Division I history.
Costa hit in 22 consecutive games over one stretch, the longest streak
by a Titan since 1999. He was also the lone Titan named to the all-regional
team at Stanford.
Louisville's Lelo Prado will serve as the head coach for Team USA. He
will be assisted by Terry Alexander of Jacksonville, Sunny Golloway of
Oral Roberts, and Terry Rupp of Maryland. Team USA will play a total 30
games this summer, including 17 on the domestic side of their Red, White
and Blue Summer Tour, which will also take the team to The Netherlands
and to Italy.
Fullerton has had nine players on Team USA, including Olympians Bob Caffrey
(1984), Phil Nevin and Jason Moler (1992) and Mark Kotsay and Brian Loyd
(1996). Kirk Saarloos was the most recent Titan to don the red, white
and blue when he served as the team's closer during their 2000 summer
tour.
