William Sheffield
September 1, 2017
SLMA September – Childhood obesity
September 1, 2017
This past week was a good one for Nicholls State University athletics.
The Colonels got three local commitments – two in baseball and one on the basketball hardwood.
All three players – South Lafourche outfielder Austin Cantrelle, South Terrebonne pitcher/inflelder Connor Brunet and H.L. Bourgeois point guard A.J. Rainey – are local and are among the best in their positions at the prep level.
The players are all seniors with one season of prep eligibility left in their respective sports.
The trio will enroll in the 2018-19 academic years and will begin their eligibility next fall.
COLONELS SCORE BIG BASEBALL COMMITMENTS
In Cantrelle and Brunet, the Colonels are getting two of the best local seniors in the Class of 2018.
Cantrelle was an All-District outfielder in 2017 as a junior for a South Lafourche team which made the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade.
The athletic outfielder was a middle of the order threat for South Lafourche last season, enjoying one of the best seasons of anyone locally.
Cantrelle recorded 37 hits in 96 at-bats as a junior – enough for a .385 batting average. He also had a team-high 24 RBI.
More impressive than Cantrelle’s raw offensive numbers is the fact that he performed best when the games mattered the most for South Lafourche.
Cantrelle hit .442 in district play with an unheard of .586 on-base percentage. His eye in the batter’s box was second-to-none in league play, drawing eight walks, compared to just two strikeouts.
The rising senior announced his commitment on Twitter, touting his excitement to join the Colonels program.
Cantrelle said he made his decision early so that he could turn his full attention on the Tarpons’ 2018 squad – a group with a lot of promise.
South Lafourche made the playoffs last year while also returning almost all of its top players from last year, including Cantrelle, pitcher Blake Ougel, slugger Kasey Guidry and catcher Jacob Danos.
“My goals for next year are to be a huge leader on this team and to try and help us go as far as we can,” Cantrelle said earlier in the offseason. “We experienced some success last year, but we want more. I want our guys to leave everything on the field in every, single game that we play.”
In Brunet, the Colonels will be getting a scrappy, hard-nosed player who is often a thorn in the side of opponents.
Brunet is a top of the batting order threat for the Gators, who also made the Class 4A State Playoffs last season out of District 7-4 A.
Brunet is a gritty player offensively – often working deep into counts to help his lineup. When on base, he’s a threat to steal both second and third base.
Defensively, Brunet is a sure-handed infielder with capability to play second base, short-stop or even third base.
When not on the infield, Brunet is on the mound for the Gators – one of the team’s top pitchers.
Like Cantrelle, Brunet also announced his commitment on Twitter.
Posed in a photo with Colonels baseball coach Seth Thibodeaux, Brunet said he is eager to continue has athletic and academic career with Nicholls.
Both players chose the Colonels after fielding interest from several other regional programs from around the state.
RAINEY COMMITS TO RILEY, COLONELS BASKETBALL
On the basketball hardwood, the Colonels got a victory, as well, adding one of the area’s top seniors in the Class of 2018.
H.L. Bourgeois senior guard Anthony “A. J.” Rainey announced on Twitter that he’d given a verbal pledge to Nicholls basketball – a growing trend for the Colonels’ basketball team, which continues to go local.
Rainey, a standout combo guard, was one of the leaders on a Braves team that advanced to the second round of the Class 5A State Playoffs last season.
Rainey shined last season as a junior, enjoying a breakout campaign. He posted several games with 20 or more points and made several clutch shots in close games for the Braves.
H.L. Bourgeois coach Andrew Caillouet said over the summer that Rainey is due for another big season as a senior.
The coach added that Rainey’s commitment this past offseason has been inspiring to the team.
“He get a lot of credit for his offense, but I don’t think people realize that he’s one of our best defenders, too,” Caillouet said. “We talked about it. I know he has goals to be First-Team All-District or the Most Outstanding Player in the district. I challenged him. I told him, A. J., focus your energy and your effort on being the best defensive player in this district.’ If he can do that, I think he’s going to be a force and more importantly for our team, our guys feed off of that.”
Rainey is the third local player to commit to Nicholls coach Richie Riley, joining 2017 signee Kevin Johnson and recent walk-on Rafe Blades – both E.D. White graduates.
Nicholls baseball coach Seth Thibodeaux (right) poses with South Terrebonne baseball player and new Nicholls commit Connor Brunet.
H.L. Bourgeois guard A.J. Rainey dribbles up the floor during a summer league game. Brunei, Rainey and South Lafourche outfielder Austin Cantrelle all committed to Nicholls this past week.
