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No. 1 Berwick High School baseball team wins state
The Berwick High School baseball team entered the 2018 season with a new coach and plenty of holes to fill from its 2017 Class 3A state semifinal run. Despite the challenges that awaited them, the squad was up for the task and not only sur-passed the 2017 squad’s finish but won in May the school’s first baseball state championship since 1978.
Berwick (29-8) entered the postseason after winning the District 8-3A title with a 14-0 record in league play.
In the postseason, No. 4 seed Berwick defeated No. 29 Peabody 12-0 in the first round, topped No. 13 Jen-nings 10-0 and 13-1 in the regional round and defeated No. 5 Eunice 12-2 and 12-3 in the quarterfinal round. In the semifinals, Berwick defeated No. 1 Sterlington 8-6 before topping No. 3 Iota 7-1 in the finals.
Following the season, Ber-wick senior Kyle Pitre was named the District 8-3A Most Valuable Player, while Brandon Bravata was the District 8-3A Coach of the Year.
Bravata also was named Class 3A Co-Coach of the Year on the Louisiana Base-ball Coaches Association All-State baseball team and Coach of the Year on the 3A Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-State team.
Junior pitcher Mitchell Sanford was named a second-team selection on the American Family Insurance ALL-USA Loui-siana Baseball Team.
Sanford, along with Pitre — a utility selection — were named first-team Class 3A Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-State selec-tions. Senior catcher Lucas Hatch, senior outfielder Reid Wiley and junior utility player Zeph Hoffpauir were Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 3A Honorable Mention All-State selections.
The Panthers’ Sanford, Pitre, Hatch and Wiley were Louisiana Baseball Coaches Association Class 3A All-State team picks, with Wiley and Pitre earning Louisiana Baseball Coaches Association All-State Composite Team honors.
No. 2 Patterson Babe Ruth softball wins World Series
A new year produced the same result for the Patterson Babe Ruth 12U Softball Team as the squad finished the season as Babe Ruth World Series 12U Champions for the second straight year in Jensen Beach, Florida, in August.
Patterson finished its summer with a 19-1 record, including 13-0 in Babe Ruth bracket play. The team won the Louisiana and Southwest Region titles before concluding its season with a World Series crown.
In the World Series final, the local squad clinched the title in dramatic fashion as Amaya Williams drove in Hannah Domingue on a two-out single to right field for a 3-2 victory against Kentucky-based Jeffersontown All-Stars.
With the titles in consecu-tive years, Patterson became just the second team in 12U softball to win back-to-back titles, joining Pitt County, North Carolina, which achieved the feat with five straight titles from 2000-2004 and again from 2006-2007.
Laila Dugar was named Babe Ruth 12U Most Out-standing Player, while Ella Hover, Dugar and Emily Lipari were named to the 12U All-World Series Team. Dugar, Bryleigh DeHart and Rylie Chaisson were named to the 12U World Series All-Defensive Team.
Other team members were: Domingue, Kamille Lightfoot, Charlotte Callais, Kyla Samuels, Layla Richoux, Williams, Maddi St. Blanc, head coach Harris DeHart and assistant coaches Ronald Dugar, Jeremy Callais, Jonathon Lightfoot and Jeff Lipari.
No. 3 Banner game
by Josh Jones
Berwick High School senior running back Josh Jones finished his high school career with an impressive senior season, rushing for 2,153 yards and 27 touchdowns.
But one game sticks out above the others. Jones rushed for 616 yards and nine touchdowns in his final regular-season contest as Berwick defeated North Vermilion. Jones achieved the feat on 27 carries.
He had 332 yards rushing at halftime.
The nine touchdowns by Jones alone covered 468 yards. He had a touchdown run of 59 yards on Berwick’s first play from scrimmage and added touchdown runs of 55, 84 and 92 yards by halftime. In the second half, he added touchdown runs of 73, 13, 32, 16 and 44 yards.
Of the top all-time national single-game rushing totals, the 616 yards would rank No. 6 if included on the National Federation of State High School Association’s list found on its website. It also would be the organization’s highest mark among Louisiana running backs.
His unimaginable perfor-mance topped an impressive performance roughly a month earlier as he had rushed for 417 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries in a 38-24 upset of Ascension Episcopal.
Following the season, Jones was named Co-Offensive MVP on the All-District 8-3A squad and an Honorable Mention Class 3A All-State selection by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association.
He also participated in the Louisiana Gridiron Football Bowl at Louisiana College last month.
No. 4 Berwick Track and Field success
The Berwick High School boys’ track and field team had the best year in program history in 2018, finishing as state runner-up in both indoor and outdoor competition.
In February, Berwick fin-ished as state runner up in Division II (Classes 3A and below) at the Allstate Sugar Bowl/Louisiana High School Athletic Association Indoor Track and Field State Meet at LSU.
Berwick finished with 50 points, trailing only Class 2A powerhouse Episcopal, who won the event with 86 points.
Berwick was led by senior standout Kenan Jones, who won the long jump, high jump and triple jump titles. Jones had a leap of 22 feet, 4 inches to win the long jump, while he won the high jump with leap of 6 feet, 5 inches. He took the triple jump with a leap of 46 feet, 3 inches.
Berwick’s Josh Carver fin-ished second in the high jump with a leap of 6 feet, 5 inches.
Berwick also reached the podium in the 4x200 meter relay as the team finished third with a time of 1:33.66. The team consisted of Alvin Jones, Barrett Hover, Kenan Jones and Josh Jones.
The indoor success trans-lated to a successful outdoor season as Berwick’s boys’ team won the District 8-3A title for just its second dis-trict crown in school history. Berwick also won its first regional meet in school history, taking the Region 2-3A crown.
At state, Berwick finished as 3A runner-up with 56 points. It was the highest total in points and placement in school history.
Kenan Jones, once again, led Berwick as he won the state title in the long jump and high jump and finished second in the triple jump. He was named the Class 3A boys’ Outstanding Athlete. Jones jumped 23 feet, 7.5 inches in the long jump, 6-feet, 8 inches in the high jump and 47 feet, 2.75 inches in the triple jump.
Carver finished as state runner-up in the high jump with a leap of 6-feet, 8-inches, but Jones won the title because he cleared 6-8 on his second attempt. Carver was successful on his third attempt.
Berwick’s Ian Valdez won the state title in the 3,200-meter run with a time of 10:17, while Berwick also finished as state runner-up in the 4x400-meter relay with a time of 3:28.90. Team members were Alvin Jones, Keyon Singleton, Hover and Josh Jones.
Following the season, Ke-nan Jones and Carver earned Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-State Track and Field team honors.
Jones was recognized in the long jump, triple jump and high jump on the list, which combines marks of all classes, Jones had the top mark in the long jump, third-best mark in the triple jump and tied for first in the high jump. One of those he tied with in the high jump was Carver.
No. 5 MC 10s finish as state runner-up
The Morgan City 10-year-old All-Star baseball team finished its season as Louisi-ana Dixie Youth Minors State Runner-up this season. It was the highest finish for a Morgan City 10-year-old All-Star team since the 2001 season when it also finished as state runner-up.
In July, Morgan City won the District 3 AAA crown in Morgan City with a 3-0 mark and topped powerhouse Ville Platte for the Louisiana Dixie Youth Minors South Regional Title in Vidalia to advance to the best-of-three state cham-pionship series in Alexandria. At regionals, Morgan City finished with a 4-1 mark.
In the state championship series, Morgan City fell to Ruston, the Louisiana Dixie Youth Minors North Region champion, in the first two games by scores of 16-5 and 10-6.
Morgan City finished its season with an 11-4 mark, including a 7-3 record in Dixie Youth Tournaments.
Team members were Franco Saleme, Noah Guarisco, Conner Daigle, Bryan Cordero, Lucas Pickens, Landyn Ramagos, JaKavior Kemp, Chaz’ Pickens, Tate Fontenot, Kollin Nelson, Jade Oliney, Jamyre Bias, head coach Chase Pickens and assistant coaches Bryson Barbier and Mike Nelson.
No. 6 MCHS softball team is state runner up
The Morgan City High School softball team built on its banner 2017 season with Class 4A state runner-up finish in 2018.
The Lady Tigers (25-5), who won the District 7-4A title with a 6-0 record, en-tered the postseason as the No. 1 seed. Morgan City defeated No. 15 Edna Karr 15-0 in the bi-district round, topped No. 16 Franklinton 8-0 in the regional round, eliminated No. 8 Grant 3-1 in the quarterfinals and bested No. 4 West Ouachita 10-1 in the semifinals. In the finals, Morgan City fell to No. 3 DeRidder 5-1.
Following the season, sen-ior pitcher Kennedy Hebert earned second-team Max-Preps Small Schools Softball All-American honors. She also earned All-District 7-4A Offensive and Defensive Most Valuable Player awards, Gatorade Louisiana Softball Player of the Year and was a first-team Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 4A All-State selection and a Louisiana Softball Coaches Association All-State selec-tion.
Teammate, senior Allie Vincent, was a first-team Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 4A All-State pick as a utility player and also made the Louisiana Softball Coaches Association All-State team in the same capacity.
Freshman shortstop Haylie Crappell and junior third baseman Gracie Verrett were Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 4A Honorable Mention All-State selections.
Then-Morgan City High School Coach Tamara Keller was named the District 7-4A Coach of the Year.
No. 7 CCHS volleyball advances to state semis
Central Catholic High School recorded another solid season on the volleyball court with 30-plus wins and a trip to the Pontchartrain Center.
While the squad had a successful season, finishing as a Division V semifinalist with a 36-9 record, it fell short of its goal of a state championship.
Central Catholic, which won District 6-V with a 3-0 mark and entered the post-season as the No. 3 seed, certainly didn’t go down easy in its final game of the season, dropping a marathon match to No. 2 seed Ascension Episcopal in five sets (16-25, 25-14, 23-25, 25-23, 11-15).
The Lady Eagles began their postseason run with a 3-0 (25-6, 25-6, 25-12) win against No. 30 Christ Episcopal School before defeating No. 19 St. Katharine Drexel 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-9) in the second round. In the quarterfinals at the Pontchartrain Center, Central Catholic topped No. 6 Episcopal School of Acadiana 3-0 (25-23, 25-10, 25-22).
Following the season, Central Catholic swept the individual honors on the All-District 6-V Volleyball Team as junior Terre’yann “Yani” Johnson was named the district’s Offensive Most Valuable Player, while senior Brooke Lipari was the district’s Defensive MVP. Central Catholic’s Latashia Wise was the league’s Coach of the Year.
Johnson was named to the Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association All-State Team in Division V, while Lipari was chosen to play in the Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Asso-ciation East-West All-Star Game as a member of the West team. Wise was the West team’s coordinator.
No. 8 Patterson youth baseball success
It was a fantastic year for youth baseball programs in the Patterson area this year as teams won Cal Ripken state championships in 8U and 12U divisions and clinched a state crown in Babe Ruth in the 13-to-15-year-old age group.
Patterson’s 8U team participated in the Cal Ripken Invitational World Series in Jensen Beach, Florida, in August, too.
Patterson’s 8U All-Stars finished their summer in Cal Ripken play with an 11-9 mark, suffering most of their losses at the World Series.
Patterson started the postseason with a 3-1 finish to win the district title and followed it up with a 4-0 mark at the state tournament to capture the Louisiana crown.
At the Southwest Regional Tournament in Alabama, Patterson finished with a 3-2 mark, while at the World Series, Patterson recorded a 1-6 record.
Team members were Glenn “Trey” Rochel III, Kohen Bonin, Zack Sons, Brody Swisher, Tate Mouton, Jayden Hillebrandt, Kane Chassion, Luke Domingue, Brilyn Johnson, Carlon “Deuce” Butler, Traye Richardson-Dinger, Hayden Walker, head coach Mike Dinger and assistant coaches Locky Bonin, Glenn Rochel and Benji Sons.
In 12U action, Patterson finished undefeated in dis-trict play, won the state title with a 5-0 mark and finished its season with a 1-3 record at the Southwest Regional Tournament in Florence, Alabama.
Team members were: Brylon Jennings, Landon Bernadou, Dylan Verrett, Billy Jack Caldwell, Tre Hebert, Jason Matthews, Braden Mouton, Roy Jones, Austin Perkins, Bryce Solar, Austin Davis, Drew Dinger, head coach Mike Francis and assistant coaches Willis Dore’ and Casey Solar.
In 13-to-15-year-old age group, Patterson won the district and state champion-ships and also participated in the Southwest Regional in Andalusia, Alabama.
Patterson finished its summer with a 7-3 mark, winning district with a 3-0 record, taking the state title with a 3-1 mark and closing its season with a 1-2 perfor-mance at the Babe Ruth Southwest Region Tourna-ment.
Team members were: Grant Hebert, Kaden Samu-els, Blaz Mayon, Hayden Bailey, Dylan Fabre, Drake Dinger, Reid Perkins, Robbie Connor, Johnathan Picou, Don Diaz, Joseph Larson, Trevor Wiggins, Amarea Christopher, head coach Brett Dore’ and assistant coaches Joe Larson and Nate Samuels.
No. 9 MCHS volleyball makes state tournament
Morgan City High School’s volleyball team had a solid season this year as the squad advanced to the state tournament for the first time in 10 years.
Prior to this season, Mor-gan City last played in the state quarterfinals in 2008, falling to Sam Houston.
Since that trip, Morgan City had been plagued by a regional-round road block before breaking through this season.
Morgan City (29-14) fin-ished third in District 8-III action and was the No. 6 seed in this year’s postseason.
In the first round of the playoffs, Morgan City defeat-ed No. 27 Livonia 3-0 (25-8, 25-14, 25-11) before taking down No. 11 Brusly 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-16) in the re-gional round. In the quarterfinals, Morgan City fell to No. 3 E.D. White 3-0 (25-13, 25-17, 25-11). E.D. White finished the season as Division III state runner up.
Following the season, Morgan City senior Sh’Diamond Holly was selected to participate in the Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association East-West All-Star Volleyball Game. Holly also was select-ed as a Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association All-State pick in Division III.
No. 10 MCHS boys’
basketball success
Morgan City High School continued its basketball program’s run of success with an outstanding season in which the Tigers defeated some stiff competition.
Morgan City (25-7) had a nondistrict schedule that featured Dunham, Lafayette Christian, Madison Prep and White Castle. Dunham ended the season as the Division III state champs, while Lafayette Christian won the Division IV state title. Madison Prep won the Class 3A state title. Morgan City defeated Dunham, Madison Prep and White Castle and fell to Lafayette Christian.
After winning a share of the District 7-4A title with a 5-1 mark, Morgan City en-tered the postseason as the No. 9 seed.
In the playoffs, Morgan City defeated No. 24 Livonia 59-56 in the first round and fell to No 8 Edna Karr 64-47 in the second round.
Following the season, then-coach Terence McCutcheon was named District 7-4A Coach of the Year, while senior guard Tywaun Walker and senior forward Taaj Daniels were selected as Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 4A Honorable Mention All-State picks.

BATON ROUGE (AP) — Attorney General Jeff Landry is arguing that Louisiana’s public records law doesn’t apply to out-of-staters, so he can’t be penalized for his slow response to turn documents over to a researcher who sued him while living in Indiana.
The Republican attorney general wants a state district judge to dismiss the lawsuit filed in Baton Rouge by Scarlett Martin, who sought records about Landry’s dealings with the oil industry as well as financial penalties for his delays in producing them.
Landry’s office said that because Martin lives in Indianapolis, she doesn’t have the right to sue under Louisiana public records law.
“Non-citizens do not enjoy the same rights as Louisiana citizens in that regard, and the attorney general cannot be compelled to bear the burden and cost of producing records requested by those non-citizens,” Landry’s assistant attorney general Carey T. Jones wrote in a Dec. 26 court filing.
Martin’s lawyer responded in court Wednesday, saying nothing in the state’s public records law limits its application to Louisiana citizens.
“Landry does not bother to provide any statute or jurisprudence that supports the contention that only citizens of Louisiana — to the exclusion of all others — are entitled to the transparent production of public records from duly elected custodians,” attorney Christopher Whittington wrote.
A trial in the case is set for Jan. 10.
In September and October 2016, Martin sought copies of correspondence between Landry, his staff and representatives of companies or trade associations “involved in the exploration for and production of hydrocarbons,” as well as records involving Landry’s travel to conferences and public appearances, vehicle purchases and contracts to hire outside law firms.
Martin said she paid $250 for the requested copies but didn’t get them 175 days after filing the records requests, despite repeated assertions from the attorney general’s office that the documents were forthcoming. She then sued Landry in March 2017, accusing the attorney general of violating Louisiana’s public records law. She asked the judge to require Landry to pay her lawyer’s fees and to fine him. Under Louisiana law, a judge can levy civil penalties up to $100 per day for public records violations.
Landry’s office said it has now handed over 10,000 documents, providing all the information Martin sought. The attorney general’s office acknowledges “the machinery of production was not perfect and could have been more efficient,” but said it objects to paying penalties or Martin’s attorney fees.
Landry’s office said Louisiana public records law, like its open meetings law, is aimed at letting Louisiana citizens directly participate in and monitor the actions of their government agencies.
“The state, however, does not extend the compact with its citizens to non-citizens and residents of other states and countries,” Jones writes.
It’s unclear why Martin wanted the records. The court files don’t say, her lawyer said it doesn’t matter and Martin didn’t immediately respond Thursday to messages from The Associated Press.
“She’s a researcher,” Whittington said. “The reason why they want something is not relevant under the law.”

Catherine Schennette Rhine, 65, a native of Weeks Island and resident of Jeanerette, died Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2018, at her residence.
Visitation will be Saturday from 10 a.m. until services at 1 p.m. at Jones Funeral Home Chapel in Jeanerette. Burial will follow in Heavenly Rest Cemetery in Jeanerette.
She is survived by a son, Vontae Schennette of Jeanerette; a daughter, Melissa Rhine-Ash of New Iberia; a life-long companion; a brother, Raymond Chenet of Jeanerette; three sisters, Doris Wiltz of New Iberia, Julia Clay of Morgan City and Ann Chenet of Franklin; nine grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.
She was preceded in death by a son, her parents, four sisters and a brother.
Jones Funeral Home of is in charge of arrangements.

John Schneider Studios — the Livingston Parish filmmaking hub of “Dukes of Hazzard” star and country singer John Schneider — will be up for sale this month after he defaulted on his mortgage to the tune of more than $240,000.
Court records show the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office seized the 57-acre tract of land at 16050 Florida Boulevard in Holden in November as the result of a civil lawsuit between the actor and First Guaranty Bank.
The bank filed the lawsuit in October claiming that Schneider had not made his monthly payments on the property since July 28, leaving an outstanding balance at the time of filing of $242,803 in principal, interest and late fees.
Court documents do not reflect that Schneider filed a response in the case, and in November a judge ordered the sheriff to seize the land. Schneider’s public relations manager, Brian Mayes, said Thursday Schneider declined to comment on the sale.
The land sale is schedule for Jan. 16 at 10 a.m. at the Livingston Parish Courthouse, according to the sheriff’s sale public notice. The proceeds from the sale will go to the bank in an attempt to repay the debt.
A. Bradley Berner, the attorney on file for First Guaranty Bank, could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Schneider was hosting events at the studio as recently as December, when “Bo’s Christmas Bozaar” took place at the property. Tickets for the two-day event ranged from $50 to $150, and included rides, a Santa appearance, autograph signing, and a concert performance by Schneider, according to a press release sent in November.
He also held the Hazzard County Christmas Lights Show each Thursday-Sunday in December, an event where drivers could pay $20 to view a lights display, see Christmas and “Dukes of Hazzard” themed character displays, and listen to music.
The studio property houses sound stages, a lake, editing suites, a baseball field, two houses and five acres of southeast Asia-like giant bamboo, according to the studio’s website.
Advocate staff writer Caroline Grueskin contributed to this report.