RESERVE — The Riverside Academy baseball team sent two players off to the college ranks at a signing day event held last week.

T.J. St. Pierre and Brandon Hymel signed offers to play college baseball Friday. 

Riverside Academy head baseball coach Frank Cazeaux said St. Pierre and Hymel are the types of players who make coaching a worthwhile job.

“This is my first year at Riverside as baseball coach and when I met these two young men, I knew they were winners,” Cazeaux said. “I wish I had more time with those guys. I wish I would have had them for two or three years. They are great kids in addition to being excellent baseball players.”

Cazeaux said sending players to college is a big goal of his.

“That is the joy of being a high school coach,” Cazeaux said. “Having a kid go on and continue and further his education, have them understand baseball doesn’t last forever, that they have to fall back on their education and that is the main reason they are going to college.”

St. Pierre will play for the Delgado Community College Dolphins, who are coming off two straight years finishing as runners-up in the NJCAA Division I World Series.

“I played two years myself at Delgado,” Cazeaux said. “I told them when you get a Riverside kid you get a really good baseball player. Hopefully they’ll look some more at us and send more of our kids that way. I am excited about T.J. getting the opportunity to go play at Delgado.”

A three–year starter at Riverside, St. Pierre played outfield and was noted to have been one of the better batters on the team. St. Pierre said he started playing baseball in a tee-ball league at 6 years old and early on was encouraged to play at a high level.

“Around middle school one of my coaches sat down and talked to me and said if I take it seriously and work hard enough, I can go play college baseball somewhere,” St. Pierre said. “I worked hard and I am going to play college baseball.”

St. Pierre said he enjoyed his time at Riverside and feels he is ready to excel at the next level.

“It was good,” St. Pierre said. “I got everybody behind me and I enjoyed it. We made it to Sulphur and went to state two out of the four years I was here. We could never get one through, but it was a good experience.”

In addition to Delgado, St. Pierre received interest from Centenary College, Southern University and Bishop State Community College.

Hymel, a three-year starter at Riverside, signed with Belhaven University in Jackson, Miss.

Hymel was described by Cazeaux as the team’s “silent leader” who could be counted on in clutch situations.

“He was the guy we went to when things got tough,” Cazeaux said. “He had some big hits for us.”

Cazeaux said Hymel was also a player who did what was best for the team.

“When I came in, Brandon was a third baseman and pitcher,” Cazeaux said. “We felt it was best to move Brandon to second. We were not sure if it was going to be fair to him or not, but he accepted the challenge and wanted to play second and he did a great job for us.”

At Belhaven Hymel will change positions yet again.

“They are going to move me to shortstop, because that is where the hole is at Belhaven,” Hymel said.

Hymel will also get a chance to play under Blazers head baseball coach and Mississippi Baseball Hall of Famer Hill Denson.

Also a three-year starter for Riverside’s football team, Hymel said he was offered the opportunity to play football at Belhaven as well, but decided against the hectic life of a two-sport athlete.

“The [football] coach asked me to come out and play with them,” Hymel said. “I talked to the baseball coach, who told me it would really be tough to play both football and baseball and to focus on my degree. So I chose to stick with my one true love with baseball.”

Hymel said although he had dreams of playing baseball at the college level when he first started playing tee-ball at 5 years old, it was not until high school that he realized he could make it happen.

“I worked hard and people just kind of followed my work ethic and made me a leader,” Hymel said. “I am OK with that. As long as people work hard through this program, they will succeed.”

While Hymel harbors desires to go as far as he can with baseball, he understands academics take precedence.

“I would love to compete at the next level and be at the further level, but I am just going to focus on getting my degree and whatever happens after that happens,” Hymel said.

Of all of his prep baseball career experience, Hymel said delivering a big hit in his sophomore season against Springfield in the first round the playoffs is one he will not forget.

“There was a runner on second and they walked the three-hole batter thinking he was the big guy,” Hymel said. “I felt disrespected and when I got up there I got the walk-off hit to send us to the next round of the playoffs. That was a big deal. I’ll remember that forever.”