HAMMOND -- Southeastern Louisiana baseball coach Dan Canevari wrapped up the Lions' impressive fall recruiting effort on Wednesday when he received three more letters intent, brining the final total of signees during the eight-day period to 11.
Signing to don the green and gold in 2005 outfielder Griffin Horridge of Archbishop Rummel High in Metairie, right-handed pitcher Matt Walker of Central High School in Baton Rouge, and right-handed pitcher Andrew Parrish of Northshore High School in Slidell.
The second-year Lions coach, along with new recruiting coordinator Stephen Labbe, signed nine players from Louisiana, with seven of them hailing along the Interstate 12 corridor that runs from Baton Rouge to Slidell, with Hammond roughly in the middle of the 85-mile highway.
Eight of the 11 signees are high school seniors this coming season, while three others will be sophomores in junior college.
"I'm real pleased about this year's class, and we feel we did a fine job recruiting the quality of athlete we're looking to take us to the next level," Canevari said. "These recruits, added to last year's class, we feel we've made significant strides to bring the program to the level we desire in the future."
The Lions 2002-03 recruiting class, which brought 25 new players to the 2004 roster, was named as one of the "Best of the Rest" by Collegiate Baseball in the newspaper's recruiting survey that was published in September. Southeastern, along with Lamar and Texas-Arlington, were the only Southland Conference schools to garner that distinction, which was the first for the Lions baseball program.
Horridge was one of the first recruits to come on board, committing verbally to the Lions in late September. The left-handed hitter is a three-year letterman for one of Louisiana's most successful high school baseball programs, helping Rummel win two district championships and make two appearances in the Class 5A state tournament.
Horridge is the second signee this fall who hails from New Orleans' prestigious Catholic League. The other is outfielder Jimmy Cesario of Jesuit.
Walker is a two-sport standout at Central, and earned first team District 4-5A and honorable mention all-state honors as a junior. Walker was also a two-year starter as the quarterback on the Wildcats' football team, throwing for 1,375 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior, including a 307-yard, 4-touchdown effort in the season opener vs. Plaquemine.
Walker's former teammate, Tanna McClure, is a junior right-handed pitcher on this year's Southeastern club.
Parrish was a two-time first team all-District 5-5A selection at Northshore, and is one of four fall signees who played in the Northshore league, along with Chad Catalano (St. Paul's), Keaton Kraft (Ponchatoula) and David Pitfield (Fontainebleau).
After taking a break for final exams, the 2004 Lions return to the practice field on Tuesday, January 13 at Alumni Field to begin preparations for the season. The season opening series is set for February 20-22 at home vs. Indiana.
Here is a complete list of the Lions' signees during the fall period:
2003-04 SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA BASEBALL FALL SIGNEES
Name Pos. Class* Hometown (previous schools)
Brandon Carlton LHP Jr. Panama City, Fla. (Florida Gulf Coast CC/Bay HS)
Chad Catalano RHP Jr. Covington (Meridian CC/Pearl River CC/St. Paul's HS)
Jimmy Cesario OF Fr. Metairie (Jesuit HS)
Steve Clevenger SS Fr. Glen Burnie, Md. (Mount St. Joseph's HS)
Gary Duhe Jr. OF Jr. Baton Rouge (Delgado CC/St. Amant HS)
Griffin Horridge OF Fr. Metairie (Archbishop Rummel HS)
Keaton Kraft LHP Fr. Ponchatoula (Ponchatoula HS)
Andrew Parrish RHP Fr. Slidell (Northshore HS)
David Pitfield IF Fr. Mandeville (Fontainebleau HS)
Rob Territo C Fr. Watson (Live Oak HS)
Matt Walker RHP Fr. Baton Rouge (Central HS)
NOTE: Home state is Louisiana unless listed.
*--Class upon enrollment at SLU
