The Southern Miss Golden Eagles have had consistent play at the two corner outfield positions all season. Redshirt sophomore Gabe Montenegro has locked down left field the last two seasons and junior Matt Wallner slid over to right field this year to make room for one of a few center fielder options.
However, there’s been a revolving door in center with at least three players seeing playing time, but freshman Hunter LeBlanc has shown a little consistency in the field and at the plate the last couple of weeks to hold down the starting position now.
“You’ve seen several (center fielders) because there hasn’t been that consistency that we need,” Southern Miss coach Scotty Berry said.
While improving his batting averaging significantly, LeBlanc started 10 of the last 11 games for the Golden Eagles. So Berry is riding the hot hand and he’s hoping it can carry through the end of the season and into the conference tournament.
“He’s just a competitor,” Berry said. “Good thing about a freshman is they’ve never been told they can’t do it. We knew he was a good player. He’s got a lot of abilities and a lot of tools he brings to us.”
With Wednesday’s RBI single in the fourth inning, LeBlanc extended his hitting streak five games, and he’s gone 9-for-18 in the last five games as well. He later scored the go-ahead run in the seventh after leading off the inning with a single to right field.
“He’s so fun to watch,” LeBlanc’s outfield teammate Matt Wallner said. “He’s just night and day from the beginning of the year, from not only his swings, but his mentality.”
The Luling, Louisiana, native started the season with only three hits through his first 21 at-bats (.143). That dry spell lasted all the way until the third weekend of conference play, too.
He’ll admit he was really frustrated with his play the first half of the season. LeBlanc appeared in eight of the first 16 ballgames this season with only four starts and 18 at-bats. Since, he’s appeared in 18 with 12 starts in the last 29 games.
“I’m not going to lie, I was pretty down whenever I wasn’t playing,” LeBlanc said. “I just told myself one day, ‘Who cares?’ Whenever I get an opportunity, capitalize on it and I’ll get more opportunities. I started capitalizing on all of the opportunities and I’ve earned the starting spot.
“Eventually I broke through like I knew I would. Like I knew I could play baseball.”
As LeBlanc said, it took time but things started to look up. His batting average dropped to as low as .143 before he turned things around, but he improved his average 119 points in 21 at-bats to get to a .262 mark by the time he began consistently appearing in the starting lineup.
Another 30 at-bats later – and 12 hits – LeBlanc is up to a .319 average on the season, which is the third best on the team. Against UTSA, he recorded his first multi-hit game as a Golden Eagle, and now he’s had hits in 11 of 14 games when he’s had an at-bat. During that 14-game stretch, LeBlanc is hitting 20-for-51 (.392) from the dish.
LeBlanc started seeing consistent action against Florida International in mid-April, and now he’s become the everyday center fielder. The consistency of playing every day is helping the freshman out, too.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I’m a big rhythm guy. It’s kind of difficult for somebody to come in, in the seventh inning having not seen any pitching the whole game and try to get a pinch-hit base hit. I just capitalized on the first opportunity and I’ve never come out of the lineup.
LeBlanc was an all-state baseball player at Hahnville High School and it was almost like the game was too slow for him. The statistics prove there was an adjustment period for him once he got to Southern Miss, but he’s caught up to the Division I speed and proving he can contribute.
“In high school, I played the game fast, and it was almost like it was too slow for me,” LeBlanc said. “I came here and it’s perfect for me. I love it. It’s the perfect speed for me.”
Catch LeBlanc and the Golden Eagles at home this weekend against Florida Atlantic. Game 1 between FAU and Southern Miss is set for 6 p.m. Friday while Game 2 is 2 p.m. Saturday. The final game of the series is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday.
