HAMMOND – Southeastern Louisiana coach Jay Artigues structures his teams around patient hitting, aggressive baserunning, and solid pitching and defense. During the 2012 season, the Lions will once again rely on a strong infield to make a difference with the glove.

In the fall, Southeastern considered shifting some positions in the middle infield to get junior Brock Hebert back to his natural position, but transfer Ben Hernandez made the coaches reconsider the idea.

“We wanted to move Brock over to short in the fall, but Ben is a shortstop,” Artigues said. “He did an excellent job all fall and won the shortstop job. They'll be competing with each other, but Ben will be the shortstop.”

Hernandez's efforts in the fall locked up more than just his defensive position.

“Ben has done a good job of solidifying the infield,” Artigues said. “He's a good defensive player and a two-hole type hitter. He can move the ball around to all fields and hits behind the runner very well.”

Flexibility on the corners allows the Lion coaching staff to produce several different lineups, but senior Jonathan Pace will see most of his time at first base.

“Jonathan is a staple of our lineup, but where he plays will depend on whether there is a lefty or righty on the mound,” Artigues said. “He's a solid leader with good hands. He can play first just as well as third.”

Backing up Pace at first is sophomore Britt Gautreaux. The Dutchtown graduate also adds a left-handed bat into Lion designated hitter mix.

“Britt will play some first and some outfield,” Artigues said. “If his bat comes around, he'll definitely be in the lineup somewhere.”

The returning infield starters are key cogs in the Lion offense. Pace led the Lions with a .343 average last season, while splitting time between on the corners, and Hebert was the team's second leading hitter (.340).

While Pace could see time at third base, freshman Brett Hoffman will be Southeastern's starter at the hot corner.

“Brett is lights-out defensively,” Artigues said. “He's one of the best gloves I've ever had at third base. His bat is going to come along. He's aggressive offensively and I want him to continue to make adjustments at the plate.”

Hoffman was a high school shortstop and could see some time in the middle infield with Hebert and Hernandez who can each play second or short.

Senior Michael Rutland will backup Hoffman at third and will see time as Southeastern's designated hitter. Also vying for time on the infield will be utility player Alex Marse as well as freshmen Andro Cutura and Tanner Rainey.

Marse is competing for the starting right field job while Cutura and Rainey will see some time on the mound for the Lions.

Num.	Name	Pos.	B/T	Ht.	Wt.	Cl.	Hometown	High School	Previous School
2	Ben Hernandez	IF	R/R	5-11	180	Jr.	Baton Rouge, La.	Zachary HS	Northwest Florida State College
8	Jonathan Pace	IF	R/R	5-10	185	Sr.	Terry, Miss.	Terry HS	Meridian CC
11	Michael Rutland	IF	R/R	6-0	170	Sr.	Madison, Miss.	Madison Central HS	Holmes CC
12	Brock Hebert	IF	R/R	5-10	170	Jr.	Bourg, La.	South Terrebonne HS
22	Brett Hoffman	IF	L/R	6-1	195	Fr.	Coraopolis, Pa.	Moon Area HS
3	Andro Cutura	IF/P	R/R	6-0	180	Fr.	Pearl River, La.	Pearl River HS
31	Tanner Rainey	IF/P	R/R	6-2	210	Fr.	Folsom, La.	St. Paul's HS
21	Britt Gautreaux	OF/1B	L/L	6-0	180	So.	Geismar, La.	Dutchtown HS
4	Alex Marse	UT	R/R	5-10	165	Jr.	Paulina, La.	St. Charles Catholic HS