Davis adds 20 to his inaugural class
BEAUMONT – When head coach Will Davis was hired, he knew he had a “daunting task to replace a huge senior class, but he, along with assistant coach Scott Hatten, added several immediate impact players with a huge class of 20 players, the Lamar University baseball program announced Thursday.
“It was a daunting task, but it was a fun to have the ability and the flexibility to go out and sign guys. The talent level at the junior college in Texas is so high that it wasn’t like we were settling for players,” said Davis, who opens his first season as a head coach in February. “We are adding a bunch of good players that could make an immediate impact.
“Even though we have most of the lineup coming back on offense, we were able to figure out where our needs were and supplement what we needed as well as get a bunch of arms that we think can make an impact right away,” he said. “We feel like we’ve upgraded our team and overall it’s a good class.”
Of those added, 10 enter the year listed as position players (four infielders, three outfielders and three catchers), seven are as pitchers (five right-handers and two left-handers) and three are possible dual players. Fourteen incoming players are transfers and six are freshman.
“I was surprised with the amount of great junior college players that were still available at the spring of their sophomore year in Texas,” said Davis.
Six players will come to LU from Beaumont-area high schools, including Ryan Johnson (Hamshire-Fannette), Payton Robertson (West Orange-Stark), Tod McDowell (Bridge City), Zack Friesz (Nederland), Lance LeDoux (Port Neches-Groves) and Cole Girouard (Port Neches-Groves)
One of the biggest areas of focus was on the hill for the Cardinals, who lost most of its starting staff and some crucial relievers.
“We lost Will (Hibbs), Billy (Love), Jayson (McKinley), Enrique (Oquendo) and Travis (Moore). Really out of the eight guys on our team that threw 30 or more innings, we lost five of them. We wanted guys who could come in right away and make an impact on the mound,” said Davis. “We picked up a bunch of junior college aces, guys who were the number one pitchers on the respective teams. Texas junior college baseball is a very high level of baseball, and the fact we could add the best pitcher off of these teams gives us a lot of options to fill those rolls.”
Carson Lance, a right-hander from Katy, comes in as the Region 14 East Pitcher of the Year and first team all-conference after a 4-2 record and a dominating 61 strikeouts in 48 innings of work on the hill for Angelina College. He ranked sixth in wins in his region, third in strikeouts and topped it in strikeouts per nine innings.
Tanner Driskill started 11 games in 13 appearances and recorded a 6-5 record for Weatherford College; he struck out 59 batters in 58.2 innings of work. The right-hander pitched a complete game at Temple College in seven innings with three runs allowed and seven strikeouts on March 16. He was also chosen as an academic all-conference player with a 3.6 grade point average.
LeDoux is a local product from PNG that was a major part of Panola’s 23-game improvement in 2016. He finished his career with 64 strikeouts in 71.1 frames. At PNG, the southpaw was an all-conference player as an outfielder and pitcher, and helped the Indians to a No. 14 state ranking his sophomore season.
Johnson, another local player, from Hamshire-Fannette, worked a 6-3 record on the mound in 54.1 innings of work at Eastern Oklahoma State College. The lefty helped the Mountaineers to a league championship and struck out 41 batters.
Jace Campbell was the closer for Tyler Junior College, which won its third-straight National Championship during the 2016 season. The right-hander went 2-2 with five saves in 24 innings pitched, and finished with a 3.75 earned run average and 24 strikeouts.
Blaine Suehs comes in after a season at Blinn College, before that he was at Louisiana-Lafayette for the 2015 season. At Blinn, the right-handed pitcher earned most valuable player honors after a 4-4 record and 3.58 earned run average. He was named to the Sunbelt Commissioner’s List in 2015 while at ULL.
Tod McDowell comes in as an incoming freshman on the mound after a standout year at Bridge City that earned him District 24-4A District MVP, Orange Leader MVP and a member of the Beaumont Enterprise Super Gold Team. He led his team to a No. 14 state ranking with an 8-3 record and 2.04 ERA on the mound as well as a .342 average at the plate his senior season.
Three players enter the year as possible dual players, Chad Fleischman, Austin Johnson and Nathan Gabryszwski, all were infielders and are right-handers on the hill.
Fleischman was 2-2 with seven saves in 17 appearances at Ranger College, and worked 28.2 innings in 2016. At the plate, he hit a team-leading .414 in 32 games with two home runs and 11 RBI. He recorded 29 hits in 70 at-bats with 16 runs scored.
Johnson hit .311 at Coastal Bend College with 14 RBI and 16 runs scored, and on the mound he was 0-1 with 11 strikeouts in 10 innings of work. The Cuero, Texas native will come in as a sophomore-transfer.
Gabryszwski, an incoming freshman from Crosby, was a 2016 All-Region Most Valuable Player in 2016. He racked up five wins with a 2.42 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 60.2 innings of work. He totaled 19 wins and a 1.74 ERA in 192.2 innings of work in his four years on the varsity squad. At the plate, he hit .390 with 34 RBI and 27 runs scored in 35 games of 2016.
“Having six of the nine starters back on offense allowed us to be selective to what are needs were. Losing Stijn (van der Meer) was a huge loss, but we were able to fill that void with a couple guys,” said Davis. “We tried to upgrade positions where we could. Even in places where guys are coming back we tried to make sure there was someone ready behind them.”
On the infield, Lamar is bringing in five new players, Grant DeVore, Philip Ingram, Roberton, and Friesz.
DeVore was voted to the NTJCAC All-Conference second team after a .403 batting average and three long balls with 36 RBI and 58 runs scored for Grayson College. The Dallas native led the Vikings to a 42-15 season. He graduated cum laude with a 3.82 grade point average.
Ingram was voted second-team all-conference on his way to helping Hill College to a third place finish at the conference tournament. He hit .333 for the season and pushed across 49 while scoring 66 runs. The Allen native showed power with 12 doubles, three triples and six bombs.
Robertson hit .374 his senior, best of average of three-straight years with a mark above .300 at WOS. He had 35 runs scored and 11 RBI in 30 games his final season, all while working to be an honor graduate with a 3.6 GPA. The Orange native hit .324 for his career with 55 RBI and 99 runs.
Friesz was a three-time all-district honoree at three different positions, shortstop, third base and designated hitter at Nederland. He earned first-team all-district shortstop honors his senior season, and second-honors his junior season at third base and sophomore season at designated hitter.
A trio of outfielders joined with Big Red, Mike Leal, Vincent Dellocono and Girouard.
Leal hit .284 with 29 RBI and 45 runs scored in 58 games at Galveston College in 2016, and for his career he notched 48 RBI and 75 runs over 80 contests. The Corpus Christi native graduated with a 3.2 grade point average.
Dellocono is a graduate-transfer from Louisiana-Monroe, where he saw action in 42 games with seven starts. He was key man off the bench in 2016 before he was injured early in the season. The Baton Rouge, La. native earned the highest male GPA in 2016.
Girouard is a two-time first-team all-district member in baseball and was picked as second-team Great Houston Area his junior year. Two-sport star was added to the second-team of the Beaumont Enterprise Super Gold team for his senior season along with first-team academic all-state.
From Huffman-Hargrave, Jake Bumgarner, who is listed as a catcher coming in, is a three-time first-team honoree at two positions, catcher and second baseman. He led the Falcons to four district and three bi-district championships. He left with a 4.3 grade point average and the USMC Distinguished Scholar Athlete Award Winner.
Mitch Andrews comes in as a junior-transfer catcher from Angelina, where he led the Roadrunners with eight home runs. He finished with a .301 batting average, seven doubles, 30 RBI, a .415 on-base percentage and a .575 slugging percentage in 2016.
Chad McKinney, a catcher from Panola, is a second-team all-conference honoree after he hit .318 on the season with eight long balls, 38 RBI and 37 runs scored. He also excelled in the classroom with a 3.3 GPA that landed him on the Dean’s List.
“This class was a tall task, but it’s nice to have several guys to be players that this staff recruited, which is rare in college baseball during a coaching change,” said Davis. “I love the guys that are coming back, and they are as important as the recruits are, if not more important, but it will be good to have almost half the team be new to help us move forward and push into the next era.”
Lance, McDowell, Robertson and Gabryszwski were all players or pitchers of the year in their respective leagues or districts.
“It’s nice to know that in an entire district or area in Texas, you are getting the best player, said Davis. “The freshman class is small, but we are very excited about it. We have a lot of all-conference junior college guys as well.”
Carson Lance | RHP | Jr.-TR | Katy, Texas (Angelina College/Katy HS)
Prior to Lamar
• Region 14 East Pitcher of the Year.
• First-team all-conference pitcher.
• Finished with a 4-2 record and 4.50 ERA.
• Ranked sixth in the East in wins and was third in strikeouts (61).
• Pitched 48 innings.
High School:
• Was a state and national champion in football his junior year.
• First-team all-district that led his team to a district championship his senior year.
• Second-team all-district honoree his junior year.
• Graduated with a 3.4 grade point average.
• Threw a no-hitter with two runs allowed.
Personal:
• Daughter of Jennifer and Craig Lance, both are teachers and coaches.
• Born on May 3, 1995.
• Two sisters, Rachel Kaelyn.
• Rachel was a volleyball player at Texas A&M-Commerce.
• Majoring in business marketing.
Tanner Driskell | RHP | Jr.-TR | Round Rock, Texas (Weatherford College/Round Rock HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Named academic all-conference.
• Graduated with a 3.6 grade point average.
• Had 11 starts in 13 games for a 6-5 record with 59 strikeouts in 58.2 innings.
High School:
• Three-time district champion and bi-district champion and two-time area champs.
• First-team all-district and third-team all-state his senior season as well as academic all-district.
• Second-team all-district his sophomore season.
• Two-time academic all-district.
• Graduated with a 3.7 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Jan. 18, 1996.
• Son of Natalie and Travis Driskill.
• Father is a radio personality for the Round Rock Express and former MLB player and minor league coach for the Houston Astros.
• One brother, Tyler.
• Majoring in history.
• Wants to be a teacher and coach.
Lance LeDoux | LHP | Jr.-TR | Port Neches, Texas (Panola College/Port Neches-Groves HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Helped Panola to rebound from a 16-31 record in 2015 for a 39-18 record in 2016.
• Had 29 strikeouts in 30.2 innings in 2016 and 64 punch outs in 71.1 frames.
• Had a 6-8 record while in JUCO.
High School:
• Finished by helping the Indians to a 35-8 district record in three seasons as a letterman.
• Helped PNG to a state ranking No. 14 his sophomore season.
• First-team all-district outfielder his senior year and second-team pitcher his junior year.
Personal:
• Son of Laurie and Kevin LeDoux.
• Two sisters, Lacey and Lindsey.
• Born on July 5, 1995
• Major is undecided.
Ryan Johnson | LHP | Jr.-TR | Beaumont, Texas (Eastern Okla. State/ Hamshire-Fannett HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Worked a 6-3 record on the mound in 54.1 innings with 41 strikeouts.
• Led his team to a conference championship.
• Graduated with a 3.6 grade point average and was a member of the Dean's List.
High School:
• Four-year letterman in baseball, three years in basketball and two years in football.
• Advanced to the playoffs in baseball his freshman and senior seasons, basketball playoffs his sophomore season.
• Was 9-3 on the mound his senior year with a 2.40 earned run average in 83.2 innings of work, also hit .437.
• Earned a 1.93 ERA with 70 strikeouts in 51.6 innings his junior season, hit a career-best .468.
• Graduated with a 3.6 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Ryan Michael Johnson on Oct. 19, 1995.
• Son of Lois and Mike Johnson.
• Two sisters, Christine and Danielle.
• Grandfather was a baseball draftee and both sisters played college volleyball.
• Majoring In construction management.
Jace Campbell | RHP | Jr.-TR | Alvin, Texas (Tyler JC/Alvin HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Was a teammate with current Cardinal Reid Russell at Tyler JC.
• Aided Tyler to national championships in both 2015 and 2016.
• Two-year letterman at Tyler.
High School:
• Three-year letterman in baseball.
• Second-team all-district.
Personal:
• Born Jace Elliott Campbell on July 22, 1996.
• Son of Kathy and John Campbell.
• One brother, Jacob – who played at Houston from 2013-16.
• Majoring in criminal justice.
• Wants a career as a game warden.
Blaine Suehs | RHP | Jr.-TR | Caldwell, Texas (Blinn College/Caldwell College)
Prior to Lamar:
• Transferred to Blinn after a season of Louisiana-Lafayette.
• Earned Blinn's most valuable player award for the 2016 season.
• Had a 4-4 record and a 3.58 earned run average.
• Was named to the Sunbelt Conference Commissioner's List in 2015 at ULL.
• Finished with a 3.9 grade point average.
High School:
• Three-time first-team all-district honoree, and was the district defensive MVP for pitching.
• Was 9-1 with 100 strikeouts his junior season.
• Second-team all-district freshman season.
• Back-to-back district championships sophomore and junior year.
• Made it to the second round of the playoffs junior year, and regional semifinals his senior year.
• Four-year letterman in baseball.
• Member of the FFA.
• Graduated with a 4.36 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Blaine Alan Suehs on July 25, 1995.
• Son of Terri Duane Suehs, both teachers.
• Majoring in general studies.
• Wants to pursue a professional medical career or coach baseball at the division I level.
Tod McDowell | RHP | Fr.-HS | Bridge City, Texas (Bridge City HS)
High School:
• Three-year letterman in baseball.
• Led his team to a No. 14 state ranking with a 8-3 record and 2.04 earned run average on the mound as well as a .342 batting average his senior season.
• Picked to the Beaumont Enterprise Super Gold Baseball First-Team, District 24-4A All-District MVP and Orange Leader MVP.
• Was the Bridge City offensive MVP in 2016 and Camron Yoe All-Tournament Team honoree.
• Held BCHS to a 69-34-2 record as a letterman, including three district championships and a regional semifinal appearance his senior year.
• Worked a 2-2 record and a 1.75 ERA his junior year, named Orange Leader Honorable Mention.
• Member of the Ping Pong and STUCO clubs.
• Graduated with a 3.3 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Tod Alan McDowell II on June 17, 1998.
• Son of Jeanie and Tod McDowell.
• Two brothers, Brooks and Blake Tally
• One sister, Hailey James.
• Majoring in business.
• Has plans to be a physician's assistant.
Chad Fleischman | RHP/INF | Jr.-TR | St. Paul, Min. (Ranger College/ Cretin-Derham HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Hit .414 in 32 games at Ranger, had two long balls with 11 RBI.
• Finished with a 3.2 grade point average.
High School:
• Graduated with a 3.0 grade point average.
Personal:
• Son of Kathleen and Kirk Fleischamn.
• Born on June 15, 1996.
• One sister, Chelsea.
• Majoring in business marketing and communication.
• Wants to work in advertising.
Grant DeVore | INF | Jr.-TR | Dallas, Texas (Grayson College/ Justin Wakeland HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Led his team to a 42-15 season in his sophomore year.
• Voted NTJCAC Second-team All-Conference with a .410 batting average.
• Graduated Cum Laude with a 3.82 grade point average.
• Was also chosen NTJCAC Academic All-American.
High School:
• District 9-4A Offensive Player of the Year and all-state shortstop after a .415 average, led his team to a 22-14 record his junior season.
• Was a regional finalist and was the top-ranked team in the state his sophomore season, and a regional quarterfinalist and ranked 10th in the state his junior year.
• Led JWHS to a 72-37 while he was on the varsity team.
• Three-time all-district shortstop.
•.385 batting average his senior season.
• Graduated with a 3.7 GPA.
• Three-year letterman in baseball.
Personal:
• Majoring in business management.
• Son of Sheryl and Steve DeVore.
• One sister, Lexie.
• Lexie plays soccer at East Central University.
• Has aspirations of a career in business and finance.
• Born Jan. 8, 1996.
Philip Ingram | INF | Jr.-TR | Allen, Texas (Hill College/Allen HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Helped his team to a third place finish in the conference tournament.
• Voted second-team all-conference.
• Won the Exemplary Academic Achievement Award.
• Finished with a 3.7 grade point average.
High School:
• Was his district's defensive MVP and led his team to the third round of the playoffs his senior season.
• Helped Allen to the third round of the playoffs his junior season and was second-team all-district.
• Graduated with a 3.7 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Philip Dwayne Ingram on Nov. 11, 1995.
• Son of Nancy and Jason Ingram, dad is a mechanical engineer and mother is a teacher.
• Has three siblings.
• Majoring in construction management.
• Wants to become a project manager in the wind energy industry.
Payton Robertson | INF | Fr.-HS | Orange, Texas (West Orange-Stark HS)
High School:
• Member of the National Honor Society and Student Council.
• Was an honor graduate with a 3.6 grade point average.
Personal:
• Son of Brandy and Roderick Robertson.
• Two brothers, Nathan and Nic.
• Four sistsers, Brittany, Ashley, Candice and Gracie.
• Father played professional baseball.
• Majoring in management.
Zack Friesz | INF | Fr.-HS | Nederland, Texas (Nederland HS)
High School:
• Earned all-district three times in three seasons at three different positions.
• Was a first-team all-district shortstop his senior season.
• Second-team all-district third baseman (junior season) and second-team designated hitter (sophomore).
• Lettered in both football and baseball.
• Helped the Bulldogs to the first round of the playoffs his sophomore and junior seasons.
• Member of the A-B Honor Roll.
• Graduated with a 3.68 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Zachary Hudson Friesz on April 3, 1998.
• Son of Shelley and Gordon Friesz.
• One sister, Reagan.
• Majoring in Industrial Management.
• Wants to stay work a career close to home.
Michael Leal | OF | Jr.-TR | Corpus Christi, Texas (Galveston College/Calallen HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Graduated with a 3.2 grade point average.
High School:
• Second-team all-state his junior year with a .480 batting average, and followed that with first-team honors his senior year (.450).
• Hit .333 his sophomore season.
• Graduated with a 3.4 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Nov. 20, 1995.
• Son of Belinda and Armando Leal.
• Two brothers, Mando and Jesse.
• Majoring in business and marketing.
Vincent Dellocono | OF | Jr.-TR | Baton Rouge, La. (Louisiana-Monroe/Episcopal HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Earned the highest male grade point average in 2016.
• Sun Belt Commissioner's List in 2014.
• Graduated from ULM with cum laude honors.
• Suffered an injury early in the 2016 season.
• Saw action in 42 games with the Warhawks with seven starts.
High School:
• Four-year letterman in baseball, basketball and football.
• Was named first-team all-state his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.
• Batted .408 with two homers as a senior.
• Did not strikeout once his entire junior season and hit .476 with three homers.
• Had a plus-.400 average every year he was picked all-district.
• Led the Knights to a 2011 district championship.
• Nominated as BR Metro Athlete of the year for his senior and junior campaigns.
Personal:
• Born Oct. 4, 1993.
• Son of Michael and Melissa Dellocono.
• Has two sisters, Stephanie and Holly.
• Father was a football players at Louisiana Tech.
• Uncle, Neal, played football at UCLA and for the Dallas Cowboys and Houston Oilers.
• Sister Stephanie played tennis at Southern Mississippi.
• Graduated from ULM in finance, and is a grad student pursuing his MBA with concentration in Healthcare Administration.
Cole Girouard | OF | Fr.-HS | Groves, Texas (Port Neches-Groves HS)
High School:
• Two year letterman in football and baseball, advanced to the playoffs in each sport both seasons.
• Two-time first-team all-district member in the baseball and was tabbed as second-team Greater Houston Area his junior year.
• Named second-team Beaumont Super Gold his senior year along with first-team academic all-state.
• First-team all-district in football his senior season.
• Member of the National Honor Society.
• Graduated with a 4.275 grade point average and was the in the Top 10% of his class.
Personal:
• Born Cole Jacob Girouard on January 1, 1998.
• Son of Tonya Laughlin and Brady Girouard.
• One brother, Wyatt.
• Majoring in mechanical engineering.
Jake Bumgarner | C | Fr.-HS | Humble, Texas (Hargrave, Texas)
High School:
• First-team all-district for two different positions, catcher and second baseman.
• Three-time first-team all-district and school defensive MVP his senior season.
• Four-time district champion and three-time bi-district champion.
• Member of Christian Student Union and the student council.
• Graduated eighth in his class with a 4.3 grade point average.
• Was a USMC Distinguished Scholar Athlete Award.
Personal:
• Born on January 22, 1998.
• Son of Dena and John Bumgarner.
• Three brothers, Zakary, Caleb and Alexis.
• Is a premed major and wants to go into the medical field.
Mitch Andrews | C | Jr.-TR | Flower Mound, Texas (Angelina College/Flower Mound HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Led Angelina with eight homers.
• Hit .301 with seven doubles, 30 RBI, .415 on-base percentage, and a .575 slugging percentage.
• Left with a 3.89 earned run average.
• Member of the Dean's and President's List.
High School:
• Led his team to an 86-21-2 record and two district championships in his three seasons as a letterman.
• Was a Texas 5A State Champion and ranked as the top team in the country by Max Preps.
• Hit .361 with two homers, 12 doubles, one triple and 28 RBI his senior year, the homers and RBI led the team.
• He was picked as an all-district catcher, team captain and UIL State Tournament Team.
• Batted .301 with 10 doubles and 21 RBI in his junior season.
• Graduated with a 4.47 grade point average.
• Member of the National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta and Younglife.
Personal:
• Born Mitchell William Andrews on March 26, 1996.
• Son of Vaida and Steve Andrews.
• One brother, Stephen.
• Majoring in exercise science, and has plans to be a chiropractor.
Chad McKinney | C | Jr.-TR | Hughes Springs, Texas (Panola JC/Hughes Springs)
Prior to Lamar:
• Second-team all-conference.
• Member of the Dean's List with a 3.3 grade point average.
High School:
• Three-time district defensive MVP and two-time first team all-state.
• Named newcomer of the year his freshman season.
• Led his team to a 112-25 record as a four-year letterman, and was the state runner up his junior season.
• Won 30 or more games twice, freshman and junior seasons.
• Regional quarterfinalist sophomore season, semi-finalist senior year and regional finalist his freshman season.
• All-state member in both baseball and football.
• Graduated with a 3.4 grade point average.
Personal:
• Born Chad Allan McKinney on August 8, 1995.
• Son of Mary and Greg McKinney.
• Two brothers, Jarrod and Ryan.
• Jarrod is a baseball player at Arkansas.
• Majoring in criminal justice.
• Wants to have a career as a police officer.
Austin Johnson | INF/RHP | So.-TR | Cuero, Texas (Coastal Bend College/Cuero HS)
Prior to Lamar:
• Hit .311 with 14 RBI and 16 runs scored in 2016.
• On the mound, he worked 10 innings with 11 strikeouts and a 0-1 record.
High School:
• Two-year letterman at Cuero, and had a career .392 batting average and .496 batting average.
• Had 45 runs his senior season and 39 his junior year.
• Cranked one career homer and one triple with six doubles.
Nathan Gabryszwski | INF/RHP | Fr.-HS | Crosby, Texas (Crosby HS)
High School:
• All-District Most Valuable Player in 2016, his senior season.
• He racked up five wins with a 2.42 earned run average and recorded 59 strikeouts in 60.2 innings of work.
• Tallied 19 career wins with a 1.74 ERA in 192.2 frames.
• Also hit .390 with 34 RBI in 27 runs scored in 2016.
