ANDERSON, S.C. -- Driven by a disappointing finish to the 2003 season, the Anderson College baseball team is primed and ready for the 2004 campaign. The Trojans, 31-22 last spring, were in the running for the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference championship and their first-ever regional bid. But then the Trojans lost seven of their last eight and had their season come to an end in the first round of the CVAC Tournament. Anderson opens the 2004 season Feb. 7-8 at Armstrong Atlantic in Savannah, Ga. "Last year our players saw that they can play with these guys and compete in this region," said AC head coach Joe Miller. "I hope I never have another year that has as tough of an ending as we had last season. I think it's still eating at all the players who were a part of it. You can see it in how hard they worked last summer and how hard we worked in the fall. Several of the guys who are returning have made significant improvement." With all of the field players returning from a team that averaged 6.9 runs per game last season, Miller is optimistic the Trojans will be able to generate some offense. "Offensively, we have high expectations, especially if we get everybody back healthy," Miller said. "We have a chance to be a real good offensive team. We've got to take the pressure off our pitching staff with our offense. I think we'll play solid defense. Offensively, we can't get shut out." AC's offense is built more on speed than power. The Trojans stole a school record 72 bases last spring. "Power-wise we won1t break any records," Miller said. "We broke the school record in stolen bases last year. I expect us to break that again. We'll have five base stealers in the lineup every day." Missing from the AC roster are three key pitchers -- starters Donnie Fetner and Jason Rutland and reliever Nick Wates, who was second in the country in saves last season with 12. "Pitching is our biggest question mark," Miller said. "But after the fall, we feel real good about it. The freshmen are solid and the returnees have made some improvements." Here is a look at the 2004 Trojans position by position: First Base -- Starter F.A. Vildosola (Jr., Pembroke Pines, Fla.) returns to first. He batted .338 with 19 doubles and 34 RBI. Joe Whitham (Sr., Central Square, N.Y.), John Mac White (So., Saluda, S.C.), and Marcus Smith (So., Anderson, S.C.) also could get some time at first. Second Base -- Donavon Schmidt (Jr., Hilton Head), who battled leg injuries in 2003, is the incumbent. He batted .317 and led the team in home runs with seven. If Schmidt can't go, Kyle Lewis (Fr., Beaufort, S.C.), Tony Graham (Fr., Abbeville, S.C.), Brett Newton (So., Newberry, S.C.), and Johnny Garrett (Sr., Greenville, S.C.), who can play second, shortstop, or third, are candidates. Shortstop -- The leader is Jared Taylor (Sr., Jonesville, S.C.), who split time between short and center field last season. Taylor was second on the team last season at .359. Behind Taylor are Jeremy McCauley (Jr., Pelzer, S.C.), who is coming off shoulder surgery, and Lewis, who was the leading hitter in fall practice. Third Base -- Jonathan Pitts (Fr., Easley, S.C.) took the lead in the fall ahead of two experienced players - Seth Thompson (Jr., Easley, S.C.) and Anthony Gonzalez (So., Pembroke Pines, Fla.), who missed last season because of elbow surgery. Outfield -- In the outfield, Miller will use Caleb Owen (Jr., Westminster, S.C.) in left, Taylor and Jason Ratliff (Sr., Prosperity, S.C.) in center, and Ratliff and Whitham in right. Because of a hand injury, Owen played in just 26 games last season, but he scored 25 runs. Ratliff led the team in hitting (.380) and runs scored (53). Justin Sterling (Sr., Beaufort, S.C.) and Cody Nye (So., Saluda, S.C.), who has made the move from infield to outfield, also will get some playing time. "You would be hard pressed to find another Division II school with three guys at the top of the order who can run like Owen, Taylor, and Ratliff," Miller said. "If they put up the numbers they've put up in the past, we're going to score some runs." Catching -- Jason Jones (Sr., S. Boston, Va.) caught in 20-plus games last season and led the team in RBI with 48, but he has been slowed by an elbow injury and a stress fracture in his right foot. Miller also expects Bryan Cato (Jr., Leesville, S.C.) and Jesse Whiteside (Fr., Beaufort, S.C.) to see some action behind the plate. Pitching -- The leading candidates to be the starters for CVAC games are Brett Youngblood (Jr., Greer, S.C., 5-2, 5.28 ERA), Nat McCarty (Jr., Elberton, Ga., 2-3, 6.21 ERA), Desmond Robson (Fr., Easley, S.C.), Nate Miller (So., Canal Fulton, Ohio, 2-1, 6.94 ERA), and Brian Devereaux (So., Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) "Youngblood is going to give you a chance to win," Miller said. "He1s one of the best competitors I've had. McCarty had the best fall. He throws hard. He's throwing a slider instead of curveball and that has helped him cut down on his walks." In the mid-week games, Miller anticipates Brad Owens (So., Barnwell, S.C.), Jonathan Rawls (So., Chester, S.C.), Will Cheatham (So., Lexington, S.C.), and Jacob Reid (Fr., Georgetown, S.C.) to get the starts. Adam Dymond (Sr., Williamsville, N.Y.) is the leading candidate to replace Wates as the closer. Also coming out of the bullpen will be Joe Hall (So., Anderson, S.C.), Gib Bethea (Fr., Saluda, S.C.), Simms Brown (Fr., Columbia, S.C.), and Aaron Griffin (So., Greenville, S.C.) Designated Hitter -- Whitham, Jones, Nye, and Smith are the top candidates.