Local standout, Kristian Heptner from Christian Brothers HS in Sacramento, joins a pair of Southern California signees in Huntington Beach's Jackson Kerins and Tujunga's Justin Wright. The trio will have a full four years of eligibility remaining.

 

"I think we've signed three outstanding student-athletes," Shaffer said. "They all fill specific needs in our program, which I'm really excited about, they all come from excellent clubs, and they've all played at an extremely high level in youth soccer. I certainly feel comfortable that all three of them will be able to compete for playing time and I'm looking forward to all three contributing as freshmen."

 

Heptner was named the player of the year by the Sacramento Bee as a senior after leading the state with 44 goals scored and a trip to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship match. As a junior, he led the region with 36 goals scored and helped lift the Falcons to a section title. On the club side, Heptner led the NorCal Premier League in scoring

 

"Kristian is an outstanding player who fills a huge need for our program," Shaffer said. "He is a big center forward, physically has some gifts at 6-foot-3, and is maturing into a strong young man. He's got great feet, a great work rate, has a tendency to score goals, excellent with his back to goal, and is getting better every time I've seen him play."

 

Kerins attends Edison HS in Huntington Beach, but has not played varsity soccer the last two years after earning a starting spot at center back as a sophomore, focusing instead on his club team, the Pateadores Academy Soccer Club, where he has scored four goals in nine matches thus far. A versatile defender, Kerins has helped his club teams to numerous titles -- including the 2012 Milk Cup in Northern Ireland, the Fall Southern California Developmental Soccer League U-16 Flight 1 championship, and the Nike Harvest Cup.

 

He also helped the FC Strikers to the semifinals of the 2013-14 United States Soccer Development Academy U-16 National Championships following an upset of the national No. 1 seed NY Red Bulls, leading the team in scoring.

 

"We were recruiting Jack to be a defender -- an outside back, possibly a center back -- but in his recent play through the national championships at the academy level last year, we saw how he has a tendency to score goals as a winger or outside back that gets forward," Shaffer said. "We're going to look at him at any position that he can help us. He's very academically oriented, athletically good enough and strong enough to play in the Big West, and he'll be able to come in an compete for time."

 

Wright is a four-year varsity starter for the Falcons, earning All-Area, All-CIF Division III, and All-Pacific League honors, as a junior, finishing with 18 goals and 16 assists (52 points). He helped the Falcons to a CIF Division IV title as a freshman after being called up to the varsity squad late in the regular season and has scored 15 goals to go with a pair of assists as a senior.

 

"Justin is an attacking player who is very quick… his first couple of steps are explosive," Shaffer said. "Physically he has grown-up quite a bit, but he caught my attention by just how explosive he was on the turn and working in tight spaces, using his quickness and technique to blow by defenders."

 

UC Davis finished 7-4-9 overall and 5-3-2 in Big West Conference play to finish second in the league's North Division and earn its fourth consecutive trip to the conference tournament. The Aggies set an NCAA record with 12 overtime matches -- all but two going to double overtime -- while tying another NCAA mark and setting a new Big West record with nine draws on the year.

 

Kristian Heptner (F, 6-3, 180, West Sacramento, Calif. / Christian Brothers HS, Placer United)

Jackson Kerins (D, 6-1, 170, Huntington Beach, Calif. / Edison HS, Pateadores Academy Soccer Club)

Justin Wright (MF, 5-11, 160, Tujunga, Calif. / Crescenta Valley HS, Santa Monica Soccer Club)