FIRST PITCH
 

• The ULM baseball team opens the 74th season in program history with a three-game series at Lou St. Amant Field versus Eastern Illinois. The series begins on Friday (Feb. 14) with a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. while game two will be set for 5:30 p.m. The series concludes Sunday at 1 p.m.. The Warhawks are 3-1 all-time versus Eastern Illinois with the first meeting occuring in 2004. ULM and EIU opened the 2018 season in Monroe with the Warhawks taking two out of three games.

• All three games of the weekend series will air on KMLB.com and the TuneIn app. The Voice of the Warhawks, Mike Hammett, will have the call for all three games. Sunday's game will air on 

• ULM head coach Michael Federico begins his eighth season with the Warhawks on Friday. He has led the Warhawks to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in three of the last six seasons that the championship was contested. He was hired as head coach at ULM prior to the 2018 season and served as the club's pitching coach from 2018-22. During the 2024 season, Federico led the Warhawks to wins over NCAA regional finalists Coastal Carolina and Southern Miss as part of their 25 win season, which was the most since 2021. Two ULM pitchers that Federico coached signed free agent contracts with Major League Baseball organizations including Parker Seay (New York Yankees) and Chipper Menard (Baltimore Orioles).

• The Warhawks return 10 position players that saw time in 2024. Junior outfielder Bryce Blaser is the top returning hitter by average after hitting .326 last season with 59 hits, 13 doubles, one triple two home runs, 23 RBIs, 27 runs scored and 14 walks. The North Carolina transfer started in 48 games and 14 multi-hit games and five multi-RBI games in his first season on the bayou.

• Redshirt senior power hitting first baseman Michelle Artzberger is back as the top returner in runs scored (43), home runs (8) and RBIs (43). Artzberger was named to the 2022 SBC Championship All-Tournament Team and posted his highest single season average in 2024. He has belted 43 extra base hits in his ULM career and a career-long 55 game on base streak.

• On the mound, ULM returns 10 players who saw time in 2024. Sophomore Daniel Gonzalez is expected to start game one for ULM while Crowder College transfer Landon Grigg is game two's probable starter. Joey Cirelli is scheduled to start Sunday's game three in his second season with ULM. Notable relievers returning for the Warhawks include Brandon Brewer and Zach Shaw alongside Adam Tubbs returning after redshirting in 2024.

UPGRADES AT "THE LOU"

The ULM baseball team has introduced a new premium seating area experience behind home plate for the 2025 season.

The upgraded Charles R. McDonald Stadium Club features brand new premium seating behind home plate installed by DreamSeat. The front row of the new premium seating area includes 28 SuiteMax 3.5 padded chairs complete with embroidered ULM logos, padded armrests with cup holders and a 12" drink rail for food and drinks. The second row consists of five half-moon bar-height tables, each seating four. Spectators at these tables will have the comfort of the DreamSeat Ventilator swivel mesh-back chairs, which include armrests. Fans will also have the ability to enjoy quartz, pub-height tables along the back wall of the premium seating area. These tables allow spectators to stretch their legs and enjoy the game while standing and rooting on the Warhawks with their friends and family. Stadium Club members also have access to a fully stocked hospitality room with food and beverage, access to private restrooms and personal assistance from our ULM Scouts. A formal dedication ceremony will take place later this season.

NEW FACES FOR A NEW SEASON IN 2025

ULM features 20 newcomers on its 2025 roster.

The Warhawks added a trio of catchers behind the plate including Notre Dame graduate student transfer Tony Lindwedel. The Saint Louis native played four seasons in South Bend, appearing in 27 games and making 12 starts behind the plate. Monroe native Zach White joins the team with his brother, Barham. White was a two-time Class 1A Louisiana State Champion at Ouachita Christian in 2021 and 2023 and also won the 2023 Class 1A Football State Championship. True freshman backstop Zeke Seoane was also added to the Warhawks' roster.

In the infield, ULM signed Angelo Aleman from the College of the Canyons and Celina High School prospect Major Brignon. UTSA transfer Isaiah Walker hit .273 in 37 games for the Roadrunners and had seven multi-hit games his sophomore season before transferring to ULM. Colby Lunsford, Jake Haggard and Kade Dupont all return to the infield for the Warhawks. Three new outfielders arrive in Monroe, including freshman Ben Coke, Chaffey College transfer Jacob Billings and Howard College Transfer Henry Garcia Jr. Dual threat pitcher and hitter Sam Skarich arrives from Southeastern Community College in Iowa after winning a Rawlings Gold Glove Award and being voted Conference Reliver of the Year and Northwoods League All-Star. Skarich hit .329 at the plate with five home runs and 33 RBIs and added 23 strikeouts on the mound with a 2.35 ERA his final season at Southeastern CC.

Former Warhawk Jayson Zmejkoski was added to the coaching staff as a student assistant coach. "JZ" appeared in 81 games during his two seasons at ULM and posted a batting average of .257.

LOCAL CONNECTIONS

The 2025 ULM baseball roster features six players who played high school baseball inside Ouachita (wah-shuh-tah) Parish. The roster includes three pitchers from Sterlington High School in redshirt junior pitcher Seaver Sheets, redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Brandon Brewer, senior left-handed pitcher Adam Tubbs; two players from Ouachita Christian in freshman catcher Zach White and junior catcher Barham White; one player from West Monroe High School in freshman left-handed pitcher Brennan Eager; and one player from Ouachita High School in senior right-handed pitcher Zach Shaw.

OH, CANADA!

Freshman pitcher Jacob Wallace (Pincourt, Quebec) represents Canada on the roster. Wallace played for Team Canada while attending high school and won MVP for Academy Baseball Canada, a program that features the top 60 players in Quebec. He is fluent in French.

ULM PICKED 13TH IN SUN BELT CONFERENCE PRESEASON POLL

The ULM baseball team was selected to finish 13th in the Sun Belt Conference in the preseason SBC Coaches' Poll, announced Feb. 5 by the SBC office.

The Warhawks finished with 34 points, sitting behind 12th-place Marshall at 46 points and ahead of Arkansas State at 24 points. Southern Miss earned five first-place votes and was picked to win the league with 179 points. Troy was predicted to finish second with 178 points and four first place votes while the Ragin' Cajuns were slotted third with 174 points and a trio of first place votes. Coastal Carolina earned two first place votes and was picked fourth.

Six Sun Belt baseball programs—including each of its four NCAA Baseball Regional representatives from 2024—were noted in at least one of the five major national preseason polls. The Sun Belt Conference is one of four conferences with four-or-more teams represented in the NCAA baseball field last season. 

Coastal Carolina, which has appeared in five of the last six NCAA tournaments, earned the conference's highest ranking at No. 23 in the Perfect Game Preseason Top 25, while also receiving votes in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason Poll and the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll. 

After narrowly missing the NCAA baseball field a year ago, Troy was the lone Sun Belt program to be ranked in 3-of-5 national preseason polls. The Trojans earned the No. 25 position in the D1Baseball Preseason Top 25 and the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll and the No. 28 spot in the NCBWA Preseason Poll.

Southern Miss—the two-time defending Sun Belt tournament champion that has qualified for eight-straight NCAA tournaments—was ranked No. 27 by the NCBWA and No. 37 by Perfect Game, while also receiving votes in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll. 

James Madison, reigning Sun Belt regular-season champion Louisiana and South Alabama also earned mention from the NCBWA. 

Coastal Carolina, James Madison, Louisiana and Southern Miss earned NCAA Baseball Regional berths in 2024—with each advancing to their respective regional final. Five additional Sun Belt programs—Troy (2023), Georgia Southern (2022), Texas State (2022), Old Dominion (2021) and South Alabama (2021)—have advanced to the postseason over the past four campaigns. 

The Sun Belt boasted the No. 5 conference RPI in the nation in 2024—trailing only the SEC, ACC, Big 12 and Big Ten. Four Sun Belt programs were listed among the Top 50 in the final RPI in 2024—No. 27 Southern Miss, No. 34 Coastal Carolina, No. 41 Louisiana and No. 46 James Madison. 

No. 56 Georgia Southern, No. 59 Troy, No. 70 South Alabama, No. 72 App State and No. 75 Old Dominion gave the Sun Belt nine teams among the Top 100 for the third-straight season. 

The Sun Belt has been a multi-bid conference in 29-of-35 seasons since 1989 and has earned four regional berths on six occasions since 2000, including each of the past three seasons. 

GONZALEZ TO START ON OPENING DAY

ULM head coach Michael Federico will turn to sophomore right-handed pitcher Daniel Gonzalez for ULM's first game of the season. In his freshman season, Gonzalez made 12 appearances and eight starts for ULM and struck out 24 hitters in 21.2 innings pitched with an 8.31 ERA. He tossed four shutout innings and allowed just two hits to go along with a strikeout at Southern Miss on April 21 in the ULM victory over the Golden Eagles. Gonzalez punched out six hitters in two separate games last season, doing so against Troy and Alabama A&M.

GRIGG GETS GAME TWO

Crowder College transfer pitcher Landon Grigg will make his Warhawk debut and is expected to start Friday's game two. Grigg was voted First Team NJCAA All-Academic Team in 2023. In his seven starts his final season, Grigg was 7-0 and struck out 48 batters in 51.2 innings pitched, including a 10 strikeout game versus Metropolitan Community College. He started in three games as a freshman and finished 4-0 with a 5.05 ERA and 37 strikeouts. A standout pitcher at Bentonville West High School in Arkansas, Grigg was a 2021 Arkansas All-State Pitcher and named first team all-conference his senior season in 2022.

SUNDAY CIRELLI

Senior right-handed pitcher Joey Cirelli will be the opening week game three starter. After transferring from the College of San Mateo, Cirelli appeared in 15 games and started five for the Warhawks, posting a 5.40 ERA in 36.2 innings pitched. He tossed a career-high five innings at South Alabama on May 11 and also recorded a save in the Warhawks' win over No. 19 Coastal Carolina on March 28.
 

UP NEXT

The Warhawks' homestand continues Tuesday night versus Grambling and continues Wednesday versus Northwestern State.