The 2019 baseball season is underway for Teche Area high school teams following this weekend’s jamborees, with the regular season starting up Monday for most local squads.

Here are five things to look for in the 2019 prep baseball season in the Teche Area.

1. How will Loreauville High School follow up its 2018 Class 2A state championship?

The Tigers made a remarkable run through the postseason, opening with a 17-0, five-inning run-rule win over Beekman Charter before handling both Lake Arthur and fourth-seeded DeQuincy in two-game sweeps of a best-of-three format.

The latter win sent No. 5 seed LHS to the state semifinals for the first time in school history, where the Tigers jumped out to an 11-2 lead over top-seeded Kinder and went on to win 12-9 after the Yellowjackets had cut the score to 11-8.

In the finals against No. 3 Welsh, Loreauville fell behind 5-0 but scored 11 runs over two innings to take the 12-5 win for the first state championship in any team sport in school history.

A mix of returning veterans and newcomers are on hand for head coach Robert Segura’s team this spring.

2. How will the Westgate Tigers follow up a run to the Class 4A semifinals under first-year head coach Matthew Plitt?

Plitt replaces David Angeron, who left to become an associate scout with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The cupboard won’t be empty for Plitt, with pitcher/first baseman Darian Charles expected to return to baseball after sparking the Tigers’ playoff run in 2018. Charles suffered an injury during the 2018 football season that ended his gridiron career but was told by doctors he could play baseball if he wears protection for his back.

The Tigers, seeded 31st, upset No. 2 seed Tioga in the first round, won two of three against 18th-seeded Warren Easton, then swept No. 23 Rayne to reach the semifinals before falling to No. 3 DeRidder 3-0.

Several other returners, including outfielder Makholven Sonn, are expected to contribute this season as well.

3. How will New Iberia Senior High fare under first-year head coach Chad Menard?

Menard led the DeRidder Dragons to the Class 4A finals in 2018 (see related story) before taking the NISH job.

New Iberia has a strong baseball history with four state championship and one state runner-up finish but has had limited postseason success in recent years.

The Yellow Jackets were eliminated in the first round in 2018 in 10 innings. NISH will be looking to get into the second round for only the second time in more than a decade. The last time the Jackets reached the second round was in 2017.

4. How will Catholic High fare in its quest for another state championship?

The Panthers were one of three Teche Area teams advancing to the Allstate Sugar Bowl/LHSAA Baseball State Tournament in Sulphur in 2018, reaching the Division III semifinals before bowing out to No. 2 seed and eventual state champion (and school nemesis) Notre Dame.

Head coach David Jordan, who led the Panthers to a state title in 2000, guided third-seeded CHS to 2-0 sweeps of Patrick Taylor Science and Technology Academy and Riverside Academy to reach the semifinals.

The Panthers have been a fixture in the postseason under Jordan, who coached the team for 20 seasons before spending six seasons at Erath, and coach Tim Comeaux, who led the team to the state finals in 2014. Jordan returned to the school in 2015,

CHS hasn’t been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs since 2007, when the Panthers were playing in Class 3A.

5. Will the Erath Bobcats advance to the Class 3A quarterfinals for a fourth straight season?

Coach Jeremy Picard has led the ’Cats to the quarterfinals every season since 2016, one season after he took over the reins from Jordan, who’d led EHS to the playoffs for six straight years before returning to CHS.

Erath had not made the playoffs in nine seasons before that, but now is a regular threat each postseason. In 2018 the ninth-seeded Bobcats beat Kaplan in the opening round and beat No. 8 West Feliciana two of three games before being swept by top-seeded Sterlington, which lost in the next round to eventual state champion Berwick.