HAMMOND, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana baseball squad begins its preseason workouts Friday at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field in preparation for the 2020 season.
 
Intrasquad games for the first weekend are scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday. All practices leading up to the Feb. 14 season opener at UL Lafayette are open to the public.
 
The Lions return 11 lettermen, including starters Preston Faulkner, Trey Harrington, Connor Manola and Nick Ray off last season's 33-27 squad. Key pitchers back for another season include Trey Shaffer, Justin Simanek, Grant Upton and Will Warren. Joining them are 23 newcomers, 11 of which are transfers.
 
Southeastern will play more than 50 percent of its games at home in 2020. The schedule includes 30 Southland Conference contests, 20 games against in-state competition, 16 against teams that finished in the RPI Top-100 last season, 11 against Sun Belt or Conference USA foes and eight against NCAA postseason participants.
 
Head coach Matt Riser enters his seventh season with a 227-134 (125-55 Southland) career record. He sits in fourth place on Southeastern's all-time coaching victories list, just three back of the legendary Pat Kenelly.
 
In two weeks, the Lions host the annual First Pitch Banquet and alumni game. First pitch for the alumni game is slated for Saturday, Feb. 8, at 11 a.m. Admission to the scrimmage, which features Southeastern baseball alumni squaring off against the 2020 team at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field, is free.
 
Baseball alumni wishing to participate in the game are asked to RSVP through Jake Riser, director of baseball operations & player development, at jriser7@gmail.com or (601) 347-9024.
 
FIRST PITCH BANQUET
Scheduled for Friday, Feb. 7, at 7 p.m., the banquet is at Le Fleur De Lis Reception Hall (111 N. Sixth St.) in Ponchatoula, Louisiana. The event includes dinner, a cash bar, silent auction, raffle and a cash drawdown.
 
Individual seats are $100 and include a raffle book and one drawdown ticket. Reserved tables (eight seats per table) are available for $1000 and includes a raffle book, eight drawdown tickets and banquet recognition.

Banquet tickets are available online at www.LionSports.net/FirstPitchBanquet. For further information, contact the Lion Athletics Association at (985) 549-5091 or email laa@southeastern.edu. All proceeds from the event benefit the Southeastern baseball program.
 
SEASON TICKETS
Pricing for baseball season tickets includes $175 for reserved seats and $130 for general admission. A family plan that includes two adult and two youth (ages 3-12) general admission tickets is available for $250.
 
A 30-game home slate at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field includes nonconference games against stalwarts Mississippi State, Southern Miss, Louisiana Tech, UL Lafayette, South Alabama and Tulane.
  
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics enforces a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. The policy mirrors safety precautions taken upon entrance to professional and collegiate sporting venues throughout the country.
 
In addition to Southeastern baseball games at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field and softball games at North Oak Park, the policy is enforced at men's and women's basketball games in the University Center, and football games in Strawberry Stadium. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.
 
DIAMOND CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the baseball program are encouraged to join the Diamond Club. Lion baseball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diamond Club and S Club (baseball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern baseball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lions Baseball, follow @LionUpBaseball or @MattRiser17 on Twitter, @LionUpBaseball on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.