THIBODAUX, La. - Nicholls State University baseball head coach Seth Thibodeaux has officially announced his 10-member recruiting class for the early signing period. Of the 10 signees, eight are from Louisiana and are within a two-hour radius of Nicholls.

"This is one of the best recruiting classes we have had here in terms of not only athleticism and ability, but academically as well," Coach Thibodeaux said. "We have some first class young men that chose to be Colonels in this group and I am proud of the work that Walt Jones and Zach Butler put in to this class. There are many in our admissions office who I can't thank enough for their hard work.  Our goal was to sign tough, hard-nosed south Louisiana kids in this class and that is exactly what we did.  All of these young men come from great high school programs.  They will be ready academically as well. In addition, I asked each one of them to come in and make an impact on our campus and the city of Thibodaux.  They will help make Nicholls even more special than it already is."

Below is a list of all 10 signees, with comments from Coach Thibodeaux.

Xane Washington - 6'2 180 INF/OF Terrebonne High School, Houma, Louisiana
We are fortunate to have an athlete like Xane in our backyard. Xane will be able to come in an play some infield and outfield.  He comes from a great family and is an intelligent young man.  I feel like he has some leadership skills and some toughness to him that will make him an impact player in his career here.  

Will Ethridge - 5'10 175 INF/OF Catholic High School of Baton Rouge
Will is tough as nails and plays as hard as anyone I've recruited here in a while.  He hits from the left side and understands his game offensively.  We are proud to add another Catholic High Bear.  They seem to come here prepared and ready.  It's a tribute to the entire school and their head baseball coach Brad Bass.  Will is versatile and will compete for us early in his career.  His makeup is what we look for in a Colonel.  

Kade Sonnier - 5'11 175 C/OF Teurlings Catholic, Lafayette, Louisiana
Kade is another hard-nosed kid who will come in prepared for this level because of the program he plays in.  I know his high school coach pretty well and he thinks very highly of Kade as a competitor and a leader.  Kade doesn't shy away from contact and is relentless on a field.  I fell in love with him watching him play football against St. Thomas More last year.  His athleticism and ability to play multiple positions is exciting.  He led Teurlings Catholic to another State Championship last spring. 

Nathan Tribble - 6'2 180 INF Ponchatoula High School, Ponchatoula, Louisiana
Nathan has a chance to be a great player here at Nicholls.  His frame and ability are exciting but I enjoy his toughness and competitiveness.  He will be a left-handed hitting infielder that has a chance to play this game for a while.  His footwork and attitude may get him on the field early in his career.  I really like his potential. 

Cyle Clayton - 6'1 200 RHP/3B Holy Cross High School, New Orleans, Louisiana
Cyle will have an immediate impact on the mound.  Another hard-nosed ballplayer from New Orleans.  He is coming from a great program at Holy Cross and I have the upmost respect for his high school coach Cass Hargis, who I was fortunate to coach in college. Cyle has some FB command and a feel for his secondary stuff.  I expect him to come in ready to go when he gets here.  I really like his makeup.

Ivan Prejean - 6'2 200 INF/OF St. Amant High School, Gonzales, Louisiana
Ivan was one of our first commitments.  I really enjoyed following him last summer and liked his athleticism right away.  Ivan is a good football player as well, which in the long run makes him a better baseball player.  Two-sport guys are important.  Ivan's coaches speak very highly of his character, work ethic, and leadership.  He plays for Coach Templet at St. Amant, and his assistant is former Colonel Marshall Crooks. 

Waylon LeBlanc - 5'10 170 INF Hahnville High School
I wanted to offer Waylon his Freshman year after watching him play in American Legion Tournament in New Orleans.  He can pick it on the infield.  I love his character and toughness.  I have been watching him play for four years and am excited to finally get him here.  He has really good feet.  He's another two-sport player who we are excited about.  He plays for David Baudry at Hahnville, and his assistant is former Colonel Jay Hodges.  

Brandon Andrews - 6'2 180 RHP Cedar Ridge HS, North Carolina
Brandon is an outstanding young man. He's got a really good arm.  His ability to throw strikes with multiple pitches is exciting for us.  He comes from a great family, with family ties in south Louisiana.  He is a great leader, has outstanding work ethic, and will have an impact on our program.  We are excited about him.

Dane Simon - 5'11 180 OF Destrehan High School
Dane is my kind of player.  He is what a Colonel is supposed to be.  He plays extremely hard, can cover some ground in the outfield and knows his swing.  He understands what type of player he is and he is a leader and a competitor.  He will have an immediate impact for us.  I have a lot of respect for his high school coach Chris Mire.  He will be ready when he gets here. 

Trevor McKinley - 6'3 200 LHP LBW, Dadeville, Alabama
Trevor is a hard throwing lefty with some strike zone command.  He can pitch on both sides of the plate and sinks it from left side.  His offspeed stuff will allow him to come in a compete to be a weekend starter for us.  We will be losing some keys pieces on the mound and are depending on him to come in and pick us up.  He's another tough kid from Alabama who will fit in great here.