Sophomore Drew Avans slides into third base during the game against Utah Valley, which ended with a 3-2 win.
The Lion's Roar/Megan Ferrando
Lions baseball’s historic season came to an end on Jun. 6 against the Rice Owls 0-15 in the Baton Rouge Regional. The Lions finished the season with a 40-21 record their second straight 40-win season and their first at large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
“I’m proud of this club,” said Lions Baseball Head Coach Matt Riser. “I hate the way this thing ended, but I can’t overlook what we have done over the year: back-to-back 40-win seasons, 3.15 team GPA and 600 community service hours as a team. That’s a special group of young men not just as ballplayers but as people.”
Despite the success the team’s had this season, the shutout loss left the Lions without their ultimate goal of playing in Omaha for the College World Series.
“To earn the first-at-large bid our program has ever had took our program to the next level,” said Riser. “But, we are not content with this. This is not a good feeling. I told the guys at the end of the day, ‘Only one team is happy at the end of the year and I want to be that team.’”
This season was the last for six seniors and possibly two redshirt juniors: pitchers Gabe Von Rosenberg, Kyle Cedotal, Pat Cashman and Domenick Carlini, outfielder Daniel Midyett, first baseman Jameson Fisher and catchers Sam Roberson and Chris Eades. These are also the last players that were coached by SLU Director of Athletics Jay Artigues.
“As far as today goes, I was going out and playing knowing that it had a chance to be my last game ever,” said Midyett. “I was loose. I felt pretty good and I was just taking my bats one at a time. As far as my time at Southeastern there really aren’t many words I can say to describe it all, but I learned more than I thought I would. I have become a completely different person than when I came in and it has been really great.”
The Owls had 16 hits to the Lions’ three hits. In the second inning the Owls scored four runs and then in the fourth inning they scored three runs. In the fifth inning, the Owls took the game away from the Lions as they scored six runs, making the score 0-13 before the rain delay that started at the bottom of the eighth inning.
Trailing behind the Owls, the Lions showed their character as rain fell once again and the LSU tarp crew began to cover the field. The crew struggled to pull the tarp over the field until the Lions raced from the dugout to help them, despite the rain and the disappointing score of the game.
Midyett finished the game with two hits and was the only Lion other than second baseman Carson Crites to get a hit in the game.
“Well I didn’t know that till now,” said Owls pitcher Ricardo Salinas when asked about Midyett’s two hits. “But, I guess he had my number.”
The Lions had a lot of individual success this season. Shortstop Brennan Breaud was named Southland Freshman of the Year, junior pitcher Kade Granier won Southland Relief Pitcher of the year. And both of these players won all-conference honors with their teammates: junior outfielder Webb Bobo, sophomore pitcher Mac Sceroler, junior outfielder Jacob Seward, Fisher, Carlini, Cedotal, Crites, Midyett and Roberson.
The player that put the nation on notice this season is Fisher. The Southland Conference Player of the Year finished the season with a .424 batting average, second best in the nation, 11 home runs, 66 RBI’s, 54 walks and 15 stolen bases. Fisher was also named as a Louisville Slugger All-American first team, earned All-America honors from Baseball America, won the HERO Sports 2016 D1 Baseball Fan Choice Award and is a semifinalist for three awards: Golden Spikes, Dick Howser and the Gregg Olson award.
“First of all I say thanks to Coach Riser and all of the coaches for everything they have done,” said Fisher. “It was definitely not the way we wanted to go out, but I am proud of the way I finished my career here possibly. I can’t thank everyone at Southeastern enough for everything they have done for me. I hope the team continues to go on.”
The Lions never lost their pride through this record setting season and look forward to the future of the program. They also hope to continue to have national recognition.
“It’s awesome to see the way we kinda started building things,” said Midyett. “And twenty or thirty years down the road it’s going to be exciting to look back and see what continued after we left. To see what they did from where we started. For me that’s what is going be the best part of this season.”
Teammates watch on from the dugout at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge.
The Lion's Roar/Megan Ferrando
Many Lion fans came out to Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge to support the baseball team during their regional games. Despite the rain delays in each game, many fans stuck around until the end cheering on the Lions.
The Lion's Roar/Megan Ferrando
Many Lion fans came out to Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge to support the baseball team during their regional games. Despite the rain delays in each game, many fans stuck around until the end cheering on the Lions.
The Lion's Roar/Megan Ferrando