SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The Augustana baseball team has received letters of intent from six student-athletes in the late signing person, as announced by head coach Tim Huber on Tuesday. The 2019 Augustana baseball signing class grows to nine with the addition of the six late signees.

Matt Gruber (Glenwood, Minn.), Connor Herd (Chaska, Minn./Mercer), Seth Miller (Blaine, Minn.), Will Olson (Omaha, Neb./Nebraska-Kearney), Mitch Stroh (Elk River, Minn.) and Peyton Zabel (Pierre, S.D.) will join Ben Ihrke (Chatfield, Minn.), Cole Kraemer (Rosemount, Minn.) and Josh Olson (Omaha, Neb.) as part of the 2019 signing class for the Vikings.

The first day of the early signing period for collegiate baseball programs was Wednesday, April 11.

Matt Gruber | 6-0 | Infielder | Glenwood, Minn. | Minnewaska Area HS
High School: Will graduate in June of 2018 from Minnewaska Area HS … in 2017, he was an All-Conference and All-Section selection … first team All-Area as a junior.

Personal: Son of Brian and Kristi Gruber … born in Glenwood, Minn. on June 1, 1999 … plans to major in Elementary Education.

Huber on Gruber: "I think Matt flew under the radar a little bit being from a small school. He is an athletic kid with a great frame and the more we saw him the more we liked him. Being a coach's kid he knows the game and plays hard. We see him as a corner type guy for us. We will figure out what position fits him and our team best once we get him on campus. We feel pretty confident his bat is going to play at our level."

Connor Herd | 6-4 | LHP | Chaska, Minn. | Holy Family Catholic/Mercer University
Mercer: Has made 32 appearances and 20 starts in three years at Mercer University … has a career record of 4-5 with an ERA of 5.68 and 64 strikeouts … recorded 49.1 innings as a sophomore with a career-best 46 strikeouts and an opponent batting average of .214.

High School: 2014 graduate of Holy Family Catholic … as a senior was All-State, All-Conference, second team All-Metro and Academic All-State after tossing 50 innings with 69 strikeouts, six wins, an ERA of 1.26 and an opponent batting avg. of .182 … as a junior was All-Conference with five wins, an ERA of 0.95 and 33 strikeouts in 37 innings … as a sophomore, recorded four saves with 20 strikeouts and an ERA of 0.81 in 17.1 innings, helping his team to Class AA State Champions.

Personal: Son of Mark and Bridget Herd … born in Chaska, Minn. on July 2, 1996 … will enroll in the Sports Administration and Leadership graduate program.

Huber on Herd: "We are very excited to add Connor to our program. He will join us for his final year of eligibility after four years and three seasons at Mercer University. After throwing a combined 80 innings his freshman and sophomore years Connor had arm problems set him back his junior year. He will graduate this spring from Mercer with a mechanical engineering degree and currently has a 3.9 GPA. He graduated from Holy Family High School in Minnesota in 2014 with a 3.99 GPA and 35 ACT. We look forward to helping him advance his career both on the field and in the classroom. Connor should provide an immediate impact to our rotation for 2019."

Seth Miller | 5-10 | RHP and Infielder | Blaine, Minn. | Blaine HS
High School: Will graduate in June of 2018 from Blaine HS … went 2-1 with five saves as a junior … named NWSC All-Conference as a junior and set the school record for saves in a season … helped his team to a conference title as a junior and a section championship as a sophomore.

Personal: Son of Larry and Deanne Miller … born in Blaine, Minn. on Sept. 28, 1999 … plans to major in Journalism.

Huber on Miller: "We saw Seth pitch a few times last summer, but he really jumped up our board after seeing him in a fall league game. His fastball was better than he had shown at some showcases and he really showed the ability to pitch and get good hitters out. We look forward to working with Seth and Augie will be happy to have him as he is an outstanding student."

Will Olson | 5-11 | Catcher | Omaha, Neb. | Millard West HS/Nebraska-Kearney
Nebraska-Kearney: (as of 4/16) has appeared and started in 23 games for the Lopers in 2018 … is hitting .289 (22-for-76)with five home runs, four doubles and 21 RBI .. sports a .977 fielding percentage with 155 putouts, 18 assists and six potential baserunners caught stealing.

High School: 2017 graduate of Millard West HS … helped his team to a state championship in 2016 ... over his final two years (63 games), batted .311 with 40 RBI ... 26 assists in the field ... in May 2017, hit a three-run homer in the Collin-Orcutt All-Star game and was tabbed as team MVP and won a $500 scholarship for his efforts

Personal: Son of Craig and Cheryl Olson … born in Omaha, Neb. on Dec. 7, 1998 … undecided on major.

Huber on Olson: "Earlier this spring Nebraska-Kearney chose to eliminate their baseball program at the end of this year. Will was forced, along with his other underclassmen teammates, to not only focus on school and their baseball season, but to also find a new baseball option for 2019. Will has started 23 games so far this spring as a freshman; a hard thing to do for a first year player at the catcher position. He is an excellent receiver and a great team guy. He is a strong kid and with some continued improvement at the plate could end up adding some power to our lineup. We are happy to be able to add some college experience to a thin spot for us for next year."

Mitch Stroh | 5-11 | Catcher | Elk River, Minn. | Elk River HS
High School: Will graduate from Elk River HS in June of 2018 .. as a junior, was named the Offensive MVP and All-Conference honorable mention with a batting avg. of .396 and eight doubles … as a sophomore, earned Rookie of the Year and All-Conference honorable mention after hitting .385 with a school record 14 doubles.

Personal: Son of Jeff and Stacy Stroh … born in St. Cloud, Minn. on Aug. 31, 1999 … plans to major in Nursing.

Huber on Stroh: "With graduating two senior catchers this spring we will look to Mitch to help fill an immediate need in our program. He has outstanding leadership skills and look for him to bring that with him to Augie. As a very successful three-sport athlete we feel very confident his competitive drive will be just what we need to handle our pitching staff."

Peyton Zabel | 6-6 | RHP and Outfielder | Pierre, S.D. | T.F. Riggs HS
High School: Will graduate in May of 2018 from T.F. Riggs HS … as a junior was named All-State and All-Region after going 6-1 in 32.2 innings with an ERA of 0.21 and a batting avg. of .390 during the high school season … during legion ball he had a record of 8-1 in 60 innings pitched with an ERA of 2.33 and a batting avg. of .388 … helped his high school team to a region championship and a state semifinalist appearance as a junior … helped his legion team to a Class A State Championship as a junior.

Personal: Son of Mark and Tanna Zabel | born in Pierre, S.D. on Jan. 23, 2000 … plans to major in Pre-Optometry.

Huber on Zabel: "Payton is a special talent and Augie is lucky to have him joining us next fall as a football and baseball player. He has always excelled and been a leader in every sport he has played. With his frame and arm strength we feel he hasn't even come close to reaching his potential on the mound. The future is very bright for him. Payton has a very good chance to come in and pitch big innings right away for us in 2019."