The Warhawk baseball team, alumni and fans gathered at Bayou Pointe on Friday to celebrate the renaming of the baseball field in honor of former coach Lou St. Amant.

During his 18 years at NLU, St. Amant earned 414 career wins, won the 1982 Atlantic Sun Conference West Division Championship and led the Indians to their first Southland Conference title in 1983. He was vital in the construction of the baseball facility. 

St. Amant also served the university as a football color analyst for 25 years after he left the baseball program. He received a Warhawk Ambassador Award in May of 2022.

“Coach [St. Amant] is way more than a coach to me,” former player Mickey Parenton said.

St. Amant’s legacy goes much deeper than just his baseball career. He spoke life into his players and gave them a lasting home away from home here in Monroe.

“It doesn’t matter what his record was. There was something more valuable than the win part,” former player Allen Randle Sr. said. “I’m a winner today because of Lou St. Amant.”

The innovations that St. Amant made to the baseball program still have an impact to this day, and current head coach Michael Federico strives to continue his legacy. 

Toward the end of the night, Federico gave a look into some of the things he has done for the baseball program since being hired in 2017. 

In just six short years, Federico has installed a state-of-the-art weight room, added a team room, put in a locker room and laid turf onto the baseball field. 

Federico also gave an insight into the future of the program. He is hoping to add a ticket office, transform the visitors’ locker room into a suite and get new netting to improve the safety of the fans who attend games.

“Growth in the next 40 years is important,” Federico said. “We cannot continue to stay the same.” 

Lou St. Amant field will host its first game under the new name on Feb. 17 against Bradley.