Latest news with #Non-selectDivisionIII
American Press
2 days ago
- Sport
- American Press
First line of attack: Area's best at run blocking, pass protection
Southwest Louisiana high school football teams had a big year offensively in 2024 with 11 teams scoring more than 30 points a game. And this season could be more of the same with several top linemen returning to push around opponents. Leading the group is 6-foot-4, 300-pound Sam Houston High School junior Albert Simien. He earned 3-5A all-district first team and American Press All-Southwest Louisiana Big School honors as a sophomore for a Broncos offense that averaged 35.1 points and 402.7 yards per game. He has bulked up since last season, gaining 25 pounds. 'He had an unbelievable offseason,' Sam Houston head coach Chad Davis said. 'He has gotten strong as an ox. He played at 275 pounds last year and is 300 now. He has gotten more technical in his run game and pass protection. His wingspan is unbelievable.' Other key offensive linemen to watch include Hadley Hardesty, Keilynn Tanner, Kohl Fulton, Myles Joseph, Tylon Jackson and Marques Brothers. Albert Simien Davis said Simien has offers from LSU, Texas A&M, Alabama, Nebraska, Florida and Michigan, as well as several other Division I schools. He is rated as a four-star prospect by 'It is his motor and physicality,' Davis said. 'He is already big and strong, but his smartness for the game is there. Once he does his job, he is looking for more jobs. That is what everyone likes about him. Once he takes care of his job as a lineman, he is looking for work down the field. 'As long as he shows up every day and sets the tone, everyone follows him. When you have the spotlight on you like that, there is no time to take off. He has done a great job.' Davis said Simien will play on both sides of the ball, but he is familiar with the defensive side. He earned second-team all-district honors as a freshman defensive lineman in 2023. Hadley Hardesty Hardesty, a 6-6, 265-pound senior, looks to protect 2,000-yard passer Brody Anderson for a third consecutive season. Westlake averaged nearly 400 yards a game in their run to the regional round last year. The Rams will be strong up front again with four returning linemen. The two-sport star helped lead the Rams to the Non-select Division III baseball semifinals in May as part of their pitching rotation. Keilynn Tanner Tanner is set to start on the line for the Gators for a fourth consecutive season and is one of 25 seniors looking to lead the team to their first playoff win since 2014. 'He is going to be a force to be reckoned with,' LaGrange head coach Idaibi Ogbanga said. 'Tanner is very serious. 'He got a lot stronger in the offseason. He is just one of those kids that you are blessed to have. He is aggressive and strong as an ox. He moves well. He moves like he is 250 pounds. He has some good footwork.' Kohl Fulton Fulton, a 6-3, 290-pound senior, will carry a heavy load as Iowa's lone returning offensive lineman and keep the program's recent success rolling. In the last three seasons, Iowa has advanced to the semifinals twice and the quarterfinals, compiling a 32-8 record. The three-year starter will be charged with protecting new starting quarterback, Lawston Broussard. Myles Joseph At 6-4, 320 pounds, Joseph can clear a big path for Lake Charles College Prep's high-powered offense that averaged more than 35 points a game last season. He has offers from Central Arkansas, Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas-San Antonio. After an anterior cruciate ligament injury in Week 1 against Westgate sidelined him for the rest of the season, Joseph looks to help anchor the line from left tackle that boasts four returning starters. 'He can play every position on the offensive line, and he is very smart,' LCCP head coach Erick Franklin Sr. said. Tylon Jackson Jackson is a two-way all-district first-team lineman at 5-11 and 265 pounds and is picking up the skills needed to handle Oakdale's move towards a spread offense quickly. The senior is one of four returning starters on the offensive line for the Warriors as they try to bounce back from a 3-8 season. 'He is just a hard-nosed kid that embraces being a lineman,' Oakdale head coach Kevin Bertrand said. 'He loves his job and is a hard worker. He is a leader.' Marques Brothers Brothers, a 6-3, 255-pound senior, will be the leader on Grand Lake's inexperienced offensive line as the lone returning full-time starter. He earned District 4-1A first-team honors last year. 'He is as talented as we have had,' Grand Lake head coach Jeff Wainwright said. 'Bryant (Williams) and Brett (King) have been my best two since I have been at Grand Lake. He has that kind of talent to take over a game, and we can run behind him.'
American Press
06-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Broncos, Bucs cross paths again, district rivals meet in semis
FILE PHOTO: Barbe left-handed pitcher Lawton Littleton throws a pitch during a District 3-5A game agaisnt Sulphur on Friday, April 12. Littleton struck out on Friday, April 26 to lead the Bucs to a 3-0 win over Sulphur to sweep and advance to the quarterfinals. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press) A pair of quarterfinal sweeps laid the path for what could be the biggest playoff series in the state this week. Rivals No. 2 Barbe and No. 11 Sam Houston will for a best-of-three series starting on Thursday for a spot in the Non-select Division I baseball championship series next week at McMurry Park in Sulphur. Barbe swept the regular-season series for the first time since 2016. The Bucs will host the semifinal series starting with Game 1 at 6 p.m. Thursday. The last time the teams met in the postseason was an 11-inning thriller in the 2021 semifinals. Barbe won 1-0. The Bucs also beat the Broncos 8-2 in the 2019 final. Barbe (34-4) once again relied on the arms of Jairus Miller and Lawton Little to sweep No. 10 Dutchtown (27-14) on Saturday, 2-0 and 4-0. The duo have combined to pitch four shutouts in the postseason and allowed seven hits while striking out 35 batters. In the first game, Littleton (10-1) scattered four hits while striking out 12 batters and walking two. In the series finale, Miller (13-0) pitched a two-hitter with 10 strikeouts and two walks. J.D. Alexander went 4-for-7 in the series with the Griffins with two RBIs, three runs and a home run. Sam Houston swept No. 11 Slidell 4-0 and 4-2 on Saturday. Starting pitchers Owen Galley and Cole Flanagan went the distance for the Broncos. Galley held the Tigers to four hits in the first game with three strikeouts and no walks, while Flanagan struck out eight and pitched a two-hitter in the second game. More SW La. matchups The Bucs and Broncos won't be the lone all-Southwest Louisiana pairing this week. In the Non-select Division IV quarterfinals, No. 3 DeQuincy will host No. 6 Vinton in a single-elimination game at 6 p.m. Thursday, while No. 2 Welsh will host No. 7 Grand Lake at 6 p.m. Wednesday. DeQuincy (23-11) and Vinton (17-11), District 4-2A rivals, met twice in the regular season. The Tigers won 6-0 on March 20, while the Lions took the second game 3-2 on April 8 for their first win against DeQuincy since 2018. Grand Lake (22-7) is looking to return to the state tournament for the first time since 2022, while Welsh (21-10) seeks its first trip to Sulphur since it was a semifinalist in 2019. Long time coming After nearly 30 years, the Westlake Rams are back in the semifinals. Westlake finished off No. 5 Kaplan with a 5-1 win on Saturday to sweep the Non-select Division III quarterfinal series. Bradyn Spears held the Pirates to one run on two hits with six strikeouts and three walks. The last time the Rams played this deep into the playoffs they won the 1996 Class 3A state championship. Westlake (26-10) will get a chance at redemption when they travel to No. 1 Sterlington (33-7) this week. The Panthers knocked the Rams out in the quarterfinals last year. Cinderella run ends After knocking off the No. 13 and No. 4 seeds in the first two rounds of the Non-select Division I playoffs, No. 20 Sulphur lost to No. 5 Benton in three games last week. The Tors (21-20) took the first game 10-4, then lost the second in a 4-3 battle. In the deciding Game 3, the Tors' Kayden Kochell hit a single with one out in the seventh inning, but the Tigers (35-4) turned a double play to win 1-0. Champs still alive Defending Non-select Division III champion No. 3 South Beauregard (24-9) beat No. 6 Berwick twice, 2-0 and 14-2, on Saturday to set up a semifinals series at No. 2 Erath (23-11) that will start Friday. Christian Wold hit a home run and pitched six scoreless innings in the first game, and drove in three runs in the second.
American Press
02-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
May 1 Southwest Louisiana quarterfinal baseball scores, stats - Tors one win away from semifinals
FILE PHOTO: Westlake Hadley Hardesty struck out 11 batters on Thursday, May 2, 2025, in the Rams' 9-2 win over Kaplan in the first game of a best-of-three Non-select Division III quarterfinal series. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press) Thursday Baseball Quarterfinals Best-of-3 series Non-select Division I No. 20 Sulphur 10 No. 5 Benton 4 SHS 301 006 0 – 10-9-1 BHS 000 040 0 – 4-4-4 PITCHING: W – Carter Wilson. TOP HITTERS: Sulphur – Kayden Kochell 2-4 (2 runs, RBI), Brodie Depriest 2-4 (3 RBI). NOTES: Tors lead the series 1-0. Sulphur broke up a 4-4 tie with a huge 6th inning. Braydon Stacy scored the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice. Then the Tors scored five runs on four consecutive hits on singles, including a two-RBI hit by Depriest. Wilson earned his second relief win of the postseason. He allowed two runs on two hits in two and two-thirds innings. RECORDS: Sulphur – 21-18. Benton – 33-4. Division III No. 4 Westlake 9 No. 5 Kaplan 2 KHS 000 000 2 – 2-1-1 WHS 400 104 x – 9-11-1 PITCHING: W – Hadley Hardesty. TOP HITTERS: Westlake – Kash Martin 3-4 (2 runs), Hadley Hardesty 3-4 (run, 3 RBI, double, HR), Cooper Cryer 2-4 (2 RBI, double). NOTES: Hardesty struck out 11 and walked four batters while allowing two runs on one hit in 6 1/3 innings. Westlake leads the series 1-0. RECORDS: Kaplan – 21-13. Westlake – 25-10. Select Division III No. 5 St. Louis 10 No. 4 Catholic-NI 3 SLC 220 040 2 – 10-5-0 CNI 010 020 0 – 3-5-3 PITCHING: W – T Moreau. TOP HITTERS: St. Louis Catholic – K Boudreaux 3-4 (5 RBI, double). NOTE: St. Louis leads the series 1-0. RECORDS: St. Louis Catholic – 17-18. Catholic-New Iberia – 20-10. Regional playoffs Single elimination Class C No. 12 Simpson 6 No. 5 Hackberry 5 SHS 031 101 0 – 6-5-4 HHS 200 101 1 – 5-8-4 PITCHING: L – D Murphy. TOP HITTERS: Hackberry – D Murphy 2-4 (run, RBI, double, triple), K Moore 2-4 (run), J Tilotta 2-4 (2 runs). RECORDS: Simpson – 8-11. Hackberry – 10-11. No. 2 Harrisonburg 14 No. 15 Reeves 1, 5 inns. RHS 001 00 – 1-5-7 HHS 383 0x – 14-3-0 PITCHING: L – H Broussard. TOP HITTERS: Reeves – B Phillips 2-2, Donovan Romero 2-2 (run). RECORDS: Reeves – 11-16. Harrisonburg – 16-2.
