T

he 2017-18 school year started with a championship and ended with a championship for the Teche Area’s high school athletics programs.

It was an exciting year with Catholic High School winning the Division III state football championship to start the athletic year off and Loreauville High School winning the Class 2A baseball championship to end the year.

Both were historic wins. Catholic High hadn’t won a football championship since 1962, the only time the school had captured one previously.

Loreauville had never won a state title — the Tigers hadn’t even been to the semifinals in the baseball playoffs until this year’s squad got there.

From the start of the year there was plenty of excitement in prep sports in the area.

Five Teche Area teams made the volleyball playoffs.

Seven other Teche Area teams joined Catholic High in the football playoffs this year, and the Panthers beating nemeses Newman and Notre Dame in the semifinals and finals to win the title.

All six Teche Area boys’ teams made the soccer playoffs, with St. Martinville and Catholic High reaching the quarterfinals in their respective classifications and ESA winning the state title after a semifinal win over Newman, which had beaten the Falcons in the championship game the year before.

Four area girls’ teams also made the soccer playoffs, including Division IV state runner-up ESA.

Five Teche Area girls’ teams made basketball playoff appearances with Hanson reaching the quarterfinals.

State semifinalists Westgate and ESA and quarterfinalists New Iberia and St. Martinville led a group of 11 Teche Area boys’ teams into the basketball playoffs.

It was a special run for the Tigers, who were seeded No. 1 overall in Class 4A, and Falcons.

Tennis, golf, indoor and outdoor track seasons also saw successful runs for individuals and teams, memorably the CHS tennis team sending eight competitors to the state tournament and individual champions in track, paced by Reagann LeLeux of Catholic High with wins in the pole vault (her 10th combined indoor and outdoor title) and the 100- and 200-meter dashes at the state outdoor meet at LSU’s Bernie Moore Track Stadium.

Then came softball and baseball to finish off the school year.

Seven area teams earned playoff bids with five getting home games in the opening round. Catholic High reached the state tournament before falling in the quarterfinals.

In baseball, nine area teams reached the postseason, headed by No. 3 seed Catholic High in Division III. Of those nine squads, three reached the state tournament in Sulphur with No. 31 seed Westgate making an amazing run to the semifinals in Class 4A, CHS reaching the Division III semis and Loreauville winning it all. It capped an amazing year.

 

CHRIS LANDRY  is the sports editor of The Daily Iberian.