Colonels’ freshman baseball class filled with local standouts

As the Nicholls State University baseball team wrapped up its latest recruiting class, head coach Chip Durham could hardly contain his excitement about the upcoming fall season. With 20 new recruits making up one of the program’s deepest classes ever, along with a pitching staff that ranked fourth in the Southland Conference in ERA in 2009 and returns its top two starters, one could hardly blame him.

“We pitched very well last season,” Durham said. “And we have a lot of those guys coming back. Now, with the new guys we’ve added, we’ve really improved our depth all over the diamond and on the mound. I’m really excited to see what these guys can do. I think we have the potential to pitch very well again this year, and our execution on offense should improve a lot as well.”

The 20-player class features six infielders, three outfielders, two catchers, four right-handed pitchers and five left-handed pitchers. However, headlining the Colonels’ newest additions are a pair of Major League draft picks.

Included in those 20 picks are eight Tri-parish athletes, who’ve opted to stay close to home and continue their baseball careers.

Left-hander Clint Dempster, a Thibodaux High School product, returns home after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. The southpaw dominated the JUCO circuits with an 8-3 record, a 2.54 ERA and 113 strikeouts – the best mark in the nation.

Dempster, a first-team all-conference, state, region and American honoree, was also a 31st round selection of the Seattle Mariners in last June’s Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft. Should he opt not to sign with the Mariners, Dempster will be relied on to form a formidable rotation along with seniors Jarret Dunnam (seventh in the SLC with a 2009 ERA of 3.80) and Tyler Minto (tied for 2009 team lead in wins), according to the coach.

“Clint has the chance to be a dominant guy right away for us,” he said. “He’s 88-92 MPH from the left side and has the potential to win 10-12 games for us. This is a guy that with Dunnam and Minto gives us three quality starters on the weekend. He could really get us over the hump. He’s been drafted, but he hasn’t signed. Hopefully we can get him in here when school starts. We’ll battle that as hard as we can all the way up until the first day of school.”

Outfielder Chase Larsson represents the Colonels’ other MLB draft choice. The Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada native transfers to Nicholls from St. Petersburg College where he hit .353 with nine home runs and 28 extra-base hits in 2009. The former Canadian National Junior Team member was an 18th-round draft pick of the Kansas City Royals in 2006.

Also expected to share the burden of rebuilding the Colonel lineup are infielders Chase Jaramillo, Sam Konnoff and Ray Eureste and outfielders Bear Comer and Mike Barba.

Jaramillo, a shortstop who is transferring from Alabama Southern Community College, hit .340 with eight homers, 22 extra-base hits and 19 steals. He has impressed the coaching staff with hard-nosed play.

Konnoff, a product of San Bernardino Valley (Calif.) Community College, will be counted on as a run-producer after driving in 41 RBIs last season and hitting .348.

Eureste, who joins the Colonels after leading Houston’s St. Pius X to a state title during his 2009 senior campaign, stole 34 bases last season en route to first team all-district and all-state honors and will be counted on as a base-stealing threat at Nicholls.

Comer, a first-team all-conference and conference defensive MVP honoree at Pensacola Junior College in 2009, could provide range in the outfield and speed on the base paths.

Barba, a South Terrebonne High School product, hit .390 with four homers, seven doubles and 19 steals as a senior and claimed first-team all-district and all-region honors and earned a spot in the Bayou Region All-Star Game. The two-sport star will also be a member of the Colonel football team.

Adding further depth to the Colonel lineup will be Tristan Rogers (Ellender High School/Pearl River Community College), Tyler Duplantis (E.D. White High School), Cody Dufrene (Thibodaux High School), Garret Raburn (Temple Junior College) and Ty Thomas (Morgan City High School).

Meanwhile, the pitching staff will be further bolstered by the additions of right handers Brian Arcenaux (Delgado CC), Jared Cavenaugh (Meridian CC), Cullen Babin (Ellender High School) and Andrew Olson (Spring Woods HS) as well as southpaws Ryan Norton (Pearl River CC), Jason Judge (Meridian CC), Brent Bonvillain (Thibodaux High School) and Cody Poche (Lutcher High School).

“We have a lot of guys that can make an immediate impact, and we have a lot of guys that have a lot of potential,” Durham said. “We can’t wait to start working with them.”

The Colonels will report to campus at the start of the fall semester (Aug. 19) with fall practice to start shortly thereafter.

Thibodaux pitcher Brent Bonvillain was one of eight local athletes to sign with Nicholls. Bonvillain will join teammate Cody Dufrene this season and is expected to bolster the Colonels’ pitching staff. * Photo by KYLE CARRIER