ULM Warhawks

ULM (4-4 overall, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference) vs. Grambling (2-5 overall, 0-0 SWAC)
6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023 | Lou St. Amant Field | Monroe, La.
LISTEN: 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
GAME NOTES

MONROE, La. - The ULM baseball team closes out a four-game homestand at 6 p.m. Tuesday when they welcome Grambling to Lou St. Amant Field. The Warhawks are 4-4 on the season after dropping two out of three games over the weekend to SIUE, falling 7-4 on Friday and 8-5 on Sunday with a 7-1 win on Saturday in the middle. Grambling is 2-5 and is coming off the Andre Dawson Classic in New Orleans. The Tigers knocked off Alabama A&M on Saturday, 3-2, while falling to Alabama State, 10-4 in 10 innings, on Friday and Jackson State, 12-11 in 12 innings, on Sunday.

ULM and Grambling will meet for the first time since 2021 on Tuesday. The two teams split a pair of midweek games in 2021, with ULM winning, 9-1, on March 3 in Monroe and Grambling winning, 4-1, on March 30 in Grambling. The Warhawks swept a weekend series from the Tigers, winning 15-0, 7-6 and 23-12 on Feb. 21-23, 2020. ULM leads the all-time series, 55-16.

ULM head coach Michael Federico is in his sixth season with the Warhawks. After leading the club to an 11-win improvement in his first year and a two-win improvement in his second year, he led the Warhawks to their first .500-or-better season since 2012 with a 26-26 mark in 2021 as ULM finished third in the Sun Belt Conference West Division. In 2022, Federico led the Warhawks to their third consecutive appearance in the SBC Championship, including a first-round win against Georgia State before falling to eventual regional-finalist team Texas State in the rain-altered single-elimination quarterfinals.

ULM is looking to bounce back after dropping two of three games over the weekend to SIUE. On Friday, the Cougars scored six runs over the third and fourth innings to build a 6-1 lead. Cardell Thibodeaux's 3-run home run in the fifth inning brought the Warhawks back within two, 6-4, but ULM was unable to get closer, as SIUE won, 7-4. On Saturday, Cole Cressend allowed just one run over six innings on the mound, while Zack Floyd had three hits, including a triple and a solo home run, as ULM rolled to a 7-1 win. On Sunday, the Warhawks led 4-0 through five innings before SIUE scored four runs with two outs in the sixth inning and added four more runs over the final three innings to pull away for the 8-5 series-clinching win.

The Warhawks split a double midweek set with Mississippi State last week. ULM rolled to an 11-5 win last Tuesday at Dudy Noble Field, building an 11-0 lead before MSU scored five runs across the seventh, eighth and ninth innings. Michelle Artzberger hit a pair of home runs and picked up five RBIs, while left-handed pitcher Hollis Huff threw 4 2/3 shutout innings in his ULM debut, allowing just one hit. On Wednesday, MSU extracted its revenge, scoring the first 14 runs of the game ahead of a 14-3 win. Last Tuesday's win over Mississippi State was ULM's first win over the Bulldogs since April 1, 2009, when the Warhawks defeated the Bulldogs, 7-1, at Warhawk Field. It was ULM's first win in Starkville against MSU since March 7, 2001, an 8-7 ULM win.

Red-shirt freshman Kade Dupont continues to have a solid start to the season, picking up 12 hits over his first eight games to lead the team with a .387 batting average. Michelle Artzberger ranks third in the Sun Belt Conference with 13 RBIs while adding two doubles and two home runs. Riley Davis is hitting .400 (8-for-20), but does not have enough plate appearances per team games to qualify for stat leaders. He has four doubles, which leads all Warhawks.

Tuesday's will air on the Warhawk Radio Network from Learfield on 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB, KMLB.com and the TuneIn app with Rickey Robertson on the call. Due to the Sun Belt Conference's contract with ESPN, there will be no video stream available, but all 15 home SBC games will be available on ESPN+. A link to live stats can be found on the baseball schedule page at ULMWarhawks.com.

WARHAWKS, GRAMBLING MEET FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2021
ULM and Grambling meet on the diamond for the first time since 2021 season, when the two teams split a pair of midweek games. ULM won, 9-1, on March 3 in Monroe and Grambling won, 4-1, on March 30 in Grambling. The Warhawks swept a weekend series from the Tigers, winning 15-0, 7-6 and 23-12 on Feb. 21-23, 2020. ULM leads the all-time series, 55-16.

DUPONT OFF TO QUICK START FOR WARHAWKS
Red-shirt freshman Kade Dupont has started at second base and hit in the top third of the lineup in the first eight games of the season. The Watson, Louisiana, native has hit safely in seven of eight games and carries a six-game hitting streak. He had a pair of three hit games coming against Bradley (Feb. 17) and at Mississippi State (Feb. 21). He added two hits with an RBI on Saturday vs. SIUE. His 12 hits are tied for sixth most in the Sun Belt Conference, while he is seventh in the league with 10 runs scored.

He hit safely in all three games over the weekend against SIUE. He was 1-for-3 on Sunday against the Cougars with a walk and a run scored. He had two hits on Saturday while adding an RBI, two runs scored and a walk. He opened the series on Friday with a 1-for-5 day at the plate with a run scored.

He picked up a hit in both games at Mississippi State last week. After opening the midweek set with a 3-for-5 game with a double, RBI and three runs scored, he went 1-for-3 at the plate on Wednesday.

In his collegiate debut against Bradley on Feb. 17, he had three hits, scored twice and stole a base. He closed out the series with Bradley on Feb. 19 by going 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Despite going 0-for-3 at the plate on Feb. 18, he picked up an RBI on his first sacrifice fly.

ARTZBERGER MAKES THE MOST OF HIS EARLY SEASON HITS
ULM junior first baseman Michelle Artzberger has made the most out of his contact through the first eight games of the 2023 season. He is hitting .300 at the plate, going 9-for-30 with two doubles and two home runs among his nine hits. He has 13 RBIs on the season after picking up three over the weekend against SIUE, ranking third in the Sun Belt Conference entering midweek action. Only James Madison's Fenwick Trimble (15) and Old Dominion's Jake Ticer (14) have more RBIs in the SBC than Artzberger.

He picked up four hits in the weekend series against SIUE, adding three RBIs with four runs scored and a walk. He opened the series on Friday with two hits, an RBI and a run scored. On Saturday, he picked up a walk with a run scored. He closed the series on Sunday with two more hits, driving in two runs while scoring twice.

Last Tuesday at Mississippi State, he hit a 2-run home run in the fifth inning to give ULM a 3-0 lead, and then belted a 3-run home run in the sixth inning to push the lead to 7-0 as the Warhawks went on to the 11-5 win. 

He opened the season with a double and an RBI on Feb. 17 vs. Bradley before adding a hit and an RBI on Feb. 18. He had a ground-rule double and also drove in three runs in the series-clinching win on Feb. 19. 

He has reached base safely in all eight contests, drawing seven bases on balls and has been hit by a pitch once. He has reached base safely in a career-high 21 consecutive games dating back to last season.

RUNNIN' DOWN A DREAM
ULM freshman outfielder Cardell Thibodeaux and junior outfielder Shawn Dalton Weatherbee are tied for the team lead with four stolen bases apiece through the first eight games of the year, which is tied for fifth-most in the Sun Belt Conference.

Thibodeaux stole three bases in the regular season opener vs. Bradley on Feb. 17 and added another against the Braves on Feb. 19. He is hitting .286, going 8-for-28 at the plate with a double, home run, seven RBIs and five runs scored. He hit his first collegiate home run, a three-run blast, on Friday against SIUE.

Weatherbee has stolen one base in each of the last three games and also swiped a bag on Feb. 19 against Bradley. He has eight hits on the season, picking up two hits on Friday and again on Sunday against SIUE. He has scored one run in each of the last three games and has scored seven times this season. He joins Thibodeaux, Artzberger and Dupont as the only four Warhawks to start all eight games.

DAVIS COMES ON STRONG AT MISSISSIPPI STATE, VS. SIUE
ULM junior catcher Riley Davis has started each of the last five games, collecting all eight of his hits in that span. He is hitting .400 (8-for-20) with a team-high four doubles with five RBIs and two walks. He went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs last Tuesday vs. Mississippi State for his first three hits as a Warhawk. He continued the hot streak by hitting safely in all three games of the weekend series against SIUE. He picked up two hits, including a double, on Friday against the Cougars. On Saturday, he picked up another double with a pair of RBIs and a walk. He wrapped up the series on Sunday wtih two more hits, including another double, with an RBI.

HUFF MAKES SECOND CONSECUTIVE MIDWEEK START VS. GRAMBLING
ULM head coach Michael Federico hands the ball to junior left-handed pitcher Hollis Huff for his second-consecutive Tuesday start as a Warhawk. He made his first appearance and start as a Warhawk on Tuesday at Mississippi State, throwing 4 2/3 shutout innings, allowing just one hit with two walks and three strikeouts. 

Huff is a transfer from Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kansas. The Norman, Oklahoma, native appeared in eight games as a red-shirt second-year freshman in 2022, going 1-1 while throwing 9 2/3 innings, allowing 11 runs with 10 strikeouts and nine walks. He did not pitch in 2021 after having elbow surgery. As a true freshman in 2020, he appeared in six games for the Cougars, going 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA over 7 2/3 innings before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He originally committed to Wichita State out of high school. Huff helped Norman North High School win district and regional championships, going 9-1 with a 1.00 ERA on the mound as a senior.

WELCOME TO "THE LOU"
ULM baseball is playing its first season at the school's baseball facility with its newly-appointed name: Lou St. Amant Field. The name change to honor the former baseball head coach and Northeast Louisiana University alumnus was approved by the Louisiana Board of Supervisors on Aug. 25, 2022.

St. Amant spent 18 seasons as the head coach of the NLU baseball team, picking up 414 career victories, and was instrumental in both the initial construction of the baseball facility in 1983 and the turf and Stadium Club renovation project, which culminated prior to the 2022 season.

There were several high points in St. Amant's career. His first feat came in his initial season as head coach. After spending two years as an assistant, the 1970 NLU graduate took over in 1976 and led Northeast to a 20-13 record, halting a string of four consecutive losing seasons.
 
His first victory as a head coach came in his very first game, 6-2 over Northwestern State.
 
Northeast was an NCAA Division I independent when the Norco, Louisiana, native took over. St. Amant's first three seasons were as an independent before NLU joined the Trans America Athletic Conference in 1979. The best finish for NLU in the TAAC was a tie for first in the West Division during the 1982 season.
 
Northeast joined the Southland Conference in 1983 and made a sudden impact. St. Amant led the Indians to their first conference title in any major men's sport in the SLC. The Indians also advanced to the NCAA playoffs for the first time. They had previously played in the NAIA playoffs four times, reaching the 1970 World Series, before becoming an NCAA member.

Prepping at Destrehan High School, St. Amant was an outstanding high school player who continued his career at LSU. Difficulties with his pitching arm ended his career at LSU. After leaving LSU, St. Amant started his teaching and coaching career at schools in south Louisiana. He spent time at Sacred Heart School in Norco (1960-64), St. Charles Boromeo in Destrehan (1964-66 and 1967-68) and St. Joan of Arc School in LaPlace (1966-67) before coming to Northeast as an assistant and completing his bachelor's and master's degrees.
 
After his graduation in 1970, St. Amant returned to the high school ranks. His greatest success came during five years as athletic director and head football coach at Lutcher High School, where he posted a 44-13 record, including LHSAA Class 3A state championship and runner-up teams. His 1975 squad went undefeated at 13-0-1 in taking the Class 3A title.
Returning to NLU in January of 1976, he was also an assistant football coach, but dropped those duties in 1979 to devote all of his time to baseball.
 
His wife Marilyn was a fixture at home games and enjoyed traveling and cheering on Lou and his teams. The couple was married for 58 years before her passing in July 2020.
 
St. Amant has also had his number retired by ULM baseball and was named a Warhawk Ambassador Award winner by the ULM Foundation in May of 2022.
 
A formal dedication ceremony will take place later this season.

LOCAL CONNECTIONS
The 2023 ULM baseball roster includes six players who played high school baseball inside Ouachita (wah-shuh-tah) Parish. The roster includes three players from Sterlington High School in senior outfielder Jarrett McDonald, freshman infielder Seaver Sheets and sophomore left-handed pitcher Adam Tubbs; two players from West Monroe High School in junior infielder and right-handed pitcher Chase DeJean and junior infielder Carson Jones; and one player from Ouachita High School in sophomore right-handed pitcher Zach Shaw.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
The 2023 ULM baseball roster features both a Canadian and an Australian. Pitcher Russell Derbyshire (Leamington, Ontario) represents Canada on the roster. It marks the sixth consecutive season ULM has had at least one Canadian on the roster. Pitcher Max Mrakovcic (Sydney, Australia) is the lone Australian on the roster.

ULM PICKED 11TH IN NEW LOOK SUN BELT CONFERENCE
The ULM baseball team was selected to finish 11th in the Sun Belt Conference in the preseason SBC Coaches' Poll, announced Feb. 8 by the SBC office.

The Warhawks finished with 58 points, sitting behind 10th-place James Madison at 73 points and ahead of App State at 43 points. Southern Miss earned 11 first-place votes and was picked to win the league with 192 points, ahead of Georgia Southern and Texas State, who tied for second. 

Seven different SBC programs were noted in at least one of the five major national preseason polls.

Southern Miss, which hosted a NCAA Baseball Regional and Super Regional a year ago, was ranked among the Top 25 in every major preseason poll. The Golden Eagles were listed as high as No. 18 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and D1Baseball, while also earning nods in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll (No. 19), the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason Poll (No. 20) and the Baseball America Preseason Top 25 (No. 21). 
 
2022 NCAA Baseball Regional host Georgia Southern was also listed at No. 35 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, which ranks the Top 50 teams in its preseason edition, and received votes in both the NCBWA and USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches preseason ledgers. 
 
The Sun Belt Conference fell one game short of sending a team to a Super Regional for the fourth and fifth time since 2014 a year ago—with both Coastal Carolina and Texas State reaching their respective regional finals. 
 
Both the Chanticleers and Bobcats received votes in all three preseason polls that publish a receiving votes category—Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, NCBWA and USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches. 
 
The Ragin' Cajuns, the Sun Belt's fourth postseason participant from 2022, earned preseason mention from both Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and NCBWA. 
 
Old Dominion—which was among the last four teams left out of last year's NCAA field—and Troy—which advanced to last year's Sun Belt Baseball Championship semifinals—received votes in the NCBWA preseason publication. 
 
The Sun Belt boasted the No. 6 conference RPI in the nation in 2022—trailing only the SEC, ACC, Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA. Four current Sun Belt programs were listed among the Top 30 in the final RPI in 2022—No. 20 Texas State, No. 22 Southern Miss, No. 25 Georgia Southern and No. 29 Coastal Carolina. 
 
No. 46 Old Dominion, No. 54 Ragin' Cajuns, No. 73 South Alabama, No. 97 Georgia State and No. 100 Troy gave the new-look Sun Belt nine teams among the Top 100 at the conclusion of the 2022 campaign. 
 
Sun Belt baseball programs have earned 18 NCAA berths over the past 10 seasons. 

WARHAWK BULLPEN HAS BRIGHT SPOTS ON OPENING WEEKEND
The ULM bullpen worked 12 1/3 innings over the first three games of the season against Bradley, with six pitchers combining to post a 2.92 ERA, allowing five runs, four earned, on 12 hits with five walks and 13 strikeouts. Junior right-hander Nicholas Judice led the way, tossing three shutout innings on Feb. 17 against the Braves, allowing one hit with one walk and five strikeouts. Freshman right-hander Justin Robinson earned the save on Feb. 19, firing the final 1 2/3 innings, giving up two walks with two strikeouts. Junior right-hander Russell Derbyshire also threw a scoreless and hitless inning with one walk and one strikeout on Feb. 17. On Feb. 18, Dalton Burrell threw three innings, allowing one run on four hits with one walk and one strikeout.

WARHAWK WALK-OFF
ULM picked up three walk-off wins last season.

ULM posted its only walk-off by run-rule of the season on May 11 vs. Jackson State. Ryan Cupit hit a 2-RBI single up the middle to put the Warhawks ahead 13-2 in the eighth inning, ending the contest. 

The Warhawks picked up their second walk-off of the year on April 20. In the 10th inning, junior Chase DeJean hit a sacrifice fly to deep left center, scoring Trace Henry to defeat McNeese, 4-3.

ULM senior Travis Washburn brought an end to the March 25 5-3 ULM win over Georgia State, hitting a 2-run walk-off home run to right field in the bottom of the 11th inning. It was his third home run of the season and capped a two-hit, three-RBI night for the junior.