THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University Department of Athletics announced Saturday its 2022 Hall of Fame Class – KK Babin (women's basketball, 2010-14), Jess Coates (women's soccer, 2012-16), Anita Greichgauer (women's volleyball, 1994-97), Phyllis Guedry (softball 1990-1993) and Spencer Valdespino (women's soccer, 2012-15).
 
The '22 honorees are the first all-female class in the history of Nicholls Athletics. The class is also the first for the hall of fame since 2019. 
 
The athletic department also revealed the two newest members of the Hall of Distinction – Bobby April, Jr. and The Landrys – Donald and Lorraine. 
 
The Hall of Fame class will be inducted on October 15, prior to the Colonel football contest against Incarnate Word. The ceremony will take place in the Danos Theater in Talbot Hall at 10 a.m. The group will also be recognized during the football game.
 
Babin was a standout for the Colonel women's basketball team and was a key player in the elevation of the program under DoBee Plaisance. Babin was a three-time All-Southland selection, a two-time Louisiana Sports Writers Association (LSWA) All-Louisiana honoree and received freshman of the year honors from both organizations. She left Nicholls as the third leading scorer in program history with 1,489 career points (12.3 ppg) along with currently ranking second in assists (488/4.0) and sixth in steals (238/2.0). Babin, a two-time Southland All-Academic selection, made a school record 256 3-pointers which ranks fourth all-time in Southland Conference history. 
 
Babin and the Colonels made three consecutive appearances in the Southland Conference Tournament and captured two victories. As the No. 8 seed in 2012, Nicholls upset top seeded Central Arkansas with a dominating 79-59 victory for the program's first postseason win. The Colonels then won another first-round game over Oral Roberts in the '14 tournament. 
 
Coates was also a part of the most successful era in a program's history as a member of the Colonel women's soccer team. She graduated from Nicholls third all-time in goals scored with 21 and her 19 career assists is still the best mark in school history. In both 2014 and '16 seasons, Coates received All-Southland First Team and Southland All-Academic First Team. She was also an All-Louisiana First Team selection in her senior campaign. 
 
A three-time team captain, Coates helped the Colonels to two Southland Tournament appearances which included the school's only postseason victory – a 1-0 win against McNeese in '14. Nicholls had the most wins in team history in '13 with a 12-6-2 final record.
 
Greichgauer was a four-year letterwinner for the Colonel volleyball program but also lettered in indoor and outdoor track for two seasons. On the court, Greichgauer was an outstanding all-around player as she led the team in kills and digs, earning All-Southland First Team in the 1996 and '97 seasons. She totaled 486 kills in 1996 and led the Southland in digs with 578. She followed up in the '97 season with 499 kills and finished with 586 digs. Her single-season kills marks rank third and fourth all-time and she still is the program's all-time leader in digs with 1,885. 
 
Greichgauer was an All-Southland Tournament Team selection in '97 as the No. 4-seeded Colonels reached the championship match. Nicholls finished with one of its best seasons in school history, going 24-11 overall with a 12-6 record in the Southland. 
 
Guedry was another two-sport athlete for the Colonels, lettering four years in softball and two in volleyball. On the diamond, she was named LSWA Freshman of the Year in 1990 playing a catcher and first base, then was an All-Southland First Team selection in '93. She was a member of the 1992 championship team before serving as an assistant for the '94 and '95 title teams.
 
Guedry then moved into the head coach position of the Colonel softball program from 2002-04. Her best season came in '03 when Nicholls posted a 29-27 overall record and earned runner-up in the Southland Conference Tournament after winning three games in the postseason.
 
Valdespino was a teammate of Coates for the Colonel soccer team, playing from 2012-15. She shattered every scoring record as she racked up 45 goals scored which ranks sixth in Southland Conference history. Valdespino is the only Colonel in program history to earn Southland Player of the Year (2013) and she is in select company, being one of only 23 players in league history to garner All-Southland First Team at least three times. She was also recognized as one of the all-time greats in Louisiana, earning All-Louisiana First Team all four years. 
 
In her POY campaign, Valdespino scored a team-record 16 goals including three in a win over McNeese. She also had a four-goal showing in the '14 matchup at Southeastern, leading the Colonels to their first ever win over the Lady Lions. In the Colonels' tournament win over McNeese, Valdespino scored the lone goal on a highlight kick in the opening round victory. The goal was one of her record 16 career game-winners. 
 
For the Hall of Distinction, April played football for the Colonels in the 1970s including for the '75 championship team and went on to be one of the National Football League's top special teams coordinators. April coached at the college level for over a decade before joining the NFL ranks where he coached for nine different franchises from 1991-2016. He was named Special Teams Coach of the Year twice in 2004 and '08.
 
Despite his heavy workload, April always found time to return to his alma mater to help out the Colonel Football coaching staff. He would visit the football program on a regular basis over the past three decades, providing coaching strategies and tips to all of the staff members. 
 
The Landrys are being recognized for being the most consistent and dedicated fans in Nicholls history. The couple has essentially been to every home football and basketball game since Day 1, being front and center at over 1,000 Colonel sporting events. Many fans may know Miss Lorraine as the department's volunteer critique of the officials and referees.   
 
The purpose of the Nicholls Athletics Hall of Fame is to strengthen and perpetuate athletic tradition at Nicholls State University. Members in the Athletics Hall of Fame shall consist only of those outstanding persons whose dedication and performance merit the great honors that the University can bestow.

The Nicholls Athletics Hall of Distinction's purpose is to recognize those individuals or groups who have made significant contributions at Nicholls State University Athletics.