HAMMOND, La. – Nine student-athletes will continue their academic and athletic endeavors as members of the Southeastern Louisiana University softball program beginning in the 2023 season, SLU head coach Rick Fremin announced on the opening day of the 2022-23 signing period on Wednesday.
 
The newest group of Lady Lions include a pair of junior college standouts in pitcher Cera Blanchard (Metairie, Louisiana | Copiah-Lincoln CC | De La Salle HS) and outfielder Maddie Leal (Spring, Texas | LSU Eunice | Spring HS).
 
Of the seven high school additions, six hail from the state of Louisiana. The group includes pitcher Lainee Bailey (Walker, Louisiana | Walker HS), utility player Britt Bourgoyne (Port Allen, Louisiana | Brusly HS), infielder Maria Detillier (Gramercy, Louisiana | Lutcher HS), catcher Mckayla Ferguson (Plaquemine, Louisiana | Plaquemine HS), outfielder Jillian Gutierrez (Pearland, Texas | Shadow Creek HS), infielder Madison Hebert (Luling, Louisiana | St. Charles Catholic HS) and infielder Colleen Kulivan (Covington, Louisiana | Covington HS).
 
"We're excited about the 2023 class," Fremin commented. "We feel like this is a balanced group that solidifies the middle of the field for us, as well as our pitching staff. The majority of our additions have been committed to us for a while, so we're adding players that are very engaged with and excited to join our program."
 
The new Lady Lions' future teammates will open the 2022 season on Feb. 11, hosting Southeast Missouri at 5 p.m. in North Oak Park.
 
2023 Southeastern Softball Additions
Lainee Bailey | P | Walker, La. | Walker HS
Cera Blanchard | P | Metairie, La. | Copiah-Lincoln CC/De La Salle HS
Britt Bourgoyne | UT | Port Allen, La. | Brusly HS
Maria Detillier | IF | Gramercy, La. | Lutcher HS
Mckayla Ferguson | C | Plaquemine, La. | Plaquemine HS
Jillian Gutierrez | OF | Pearland, Texas | Shadow Creek HS
Madison Hebert | IF | Luling, La. | St. Charles Catholic HS
Colleen Kulivan | IF | Covington, La. | Covington HS
Maddie Leal | OF | Spring, Texas | LSU Eunice/Spring HS
 
2023 Southeastern Softball Addition Capsules
Lainee Bailey | P | Walker, La. | Walker HS
All-State performer as a junior at Walker High School … Baton Rouge Metro and Livingston Parish MVP … Finished 2021 with a 22-2 record and 1.37 ERA for the Wildcats, striking out 187 … Batted .522 for the season with 20 home runs and 43 RBI … Coached by former Lady Lion catcher Hali Westmoreland Fletcher … Plays for the Louisiana Blazers.
Southeastern head coach Rick Fremin on Bailey: "Lainey is one of the most talented players in our local area. She's a hard thrower who swings it well."

Cera Blanchard | P | Metairie, La. | Copiah-Lincoln CC/De La Salle HS
NJCAA All-American as a freshman at Copiah-Lincoln CC … Third nationally with a 1.55 earned run average … Posted a 15-4 record, striking out 138 in 140.1 innings pitched … Hit .367 with three home runs, eight doubles and a .470 on-base percentage … Earned MACCC All-Conference, NFCA All-Region and NJCAA All-Region honors … All-State, All-Metro and All-District performer at De La Salle High School … Struck out 381 batters in her prep career.
Fremin on Blanchard: "Cera had a phenomenal fall against top-level competition and can be an immediate impact performer for us. We think she can be a replacement for (2021 All-Southland ace and 2022 senior) Heather Zumo. When she's not in the circle, she also can be an added bat in our lineup and play first base for us."
 
Britt Bourgoyne | UT | Port Allen, La. | Brusly HS
All-State performer at Brusly High School … Hit .415 with 31 RBI as a junior … Also played libero on BHS volleyball team … Plays travel ball for the Louisiana Blazers … Former high school teammate of current Lady Lion pitcher MC Comeaux.
Fremin on Bourgoyne: "Britt can help us both in the infield and outfield. She reminds me a lot of (former Lady Lion All-Southland outfielder) Maddie Edmonston, except she swings it from the left side. She's a great competitor and teammate who will really strengthen our program."
 
Maria Detillier | IF | Gramercy, La. | Lutcher HS
All-District 9-3A performer at Lutcher High School, earning Golden Glove honors as a junior … Versatile athlete was the District Co-Offensive MVP on the soccer pitch as a junior and a standout on the LHS swim team … Earned all-district honors in volleyball as a freshman … Plays travel ball for the Sluggers.
Fremin on Detillier: "Maria is extremely athletic and turns base hits to outs with her range and athleticism. She runs the bases well and we expect her to enhance our program in a variety of ways."

Mckayla Ferguson | C | Plaquemine, La. | Plaquemine HS
All-District catcher at Plaquemine High School … Also a standout on the track, winning a state championship in the javelin … Plays travel ball for the Louisiana Blazers.
Fremin on Ferguson: "Mckayla is a gritty, hard-nosed player who can help us at multiple positions. What stands out about Mckayla is her arm strength. She has one of the strongest arms of anyone I've recruited."

Jillian Gutierrez | OF | Pearland, Texas | Shadow Creek HS
All-State and All District 24-5A outfielder at Shadow Creek High School … Plays travel ball for the Texas Blaze United.
Fremin on Gutierrez: "Jillian has the ability to play all three outfield positions and swings a good bat from the right side. She has a great attitude and will be a phenomenal addition to our program."
 
Madison Hebert | IF | Luling, La. | St. Charles Catholic HS
Standout multi-sport athlete at St. Charles Catholic High School … Excels on the softball diamond and the volleyball court for the Comets … Travel ball team is the Marucci Patriots.
Fremin on Hebert: "Madison is a tall, rangy player who is excellent defender. We expect her to hit for power and be a nice fit in the middle of our lineup."
 
Colleen Kulivan | IF | Covington, La. | Covington HS
Member of the Extra Elite 100 as one of the top 2022 high school seniors in the nation by ExtraInningSoftball.com … All-Metro performer at Covington High School ... Plays for the D1Vision travel ball team.
Fremin on Kulivan: "Colleen is another extremely talented player from our immediate area. She's a speedy outfielder and adding her left-handed bat to our lineup will be a benefit to our program."

Maddie Leal | OF | Spring, Texas | LSU Eunice/Spring HS
Leal hit .423 as a freshman at LSU Eunice, recording a team-high 77 hits and scoring 51 runs for the Lady Bengals … Coached at LSU-E by former SLU assistant coach Meghan Collins … Standout performer during prep career at Spring High School.
Fremin on Leal: "Maddie is an excellent fit for our system. She runs the bases well and has a high softball IQ."
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Softball, follow @LionUpSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
 
HOME RUN CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the softball program are encouraged to join the Home Run Club. Lady Lion softball 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 Home Run Club and S Club (softball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern softball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events (softball, baseball, football and basketball), effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.