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American Press
2 days ago
- Sport
- American Press
Genes give Portie her athletic prowess, but work to compete is all her
Sam Houston junior two-sport star Aubrey Portie is the American Press Female Athlete of the Year. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press) A s a daughter of Division I athletes, athleticism courses through Aubrey Portie's blood. There was added pressure for her to succeed that others didn't have. Still, she channeled their knowledge to hone her abilities to excel as a multi-sport athlete, become a state champion and this year's American Press Female Athlete of the Year. 'It's a tough area to be in sometimes because, if I'm not succeeding well, then they know like what I'm doing wrong or what I need to fix,' Portie said. 'It's just tough because they are so hard on me because they know how good I can be, but I really appreciate them. 'I'm glad that they know what they're talking about to help me grow and be better at the sport that I play.' The Sam Houston junior shortstop helped lead the Broncos to their first state championship since 2015. As a powerful 5-foot-10 outside hitter, Portie and the Broncos reached the volleyball semifinals for the first time since 2009. 'It was pretty awesome to do that in both,' Portie said. 'That was definitely a different experience for volleyball because we made it to state my sophomore year, but it was not really anything the same as this past year. 'It was just a great learning experience, and it was just something that I was really looking forward to and that we worked for all season.' Portie's mother, Sarah (Everingham) Portie, was a four-time all-Southland Conference softball infielder (1994, '95, '97, '98) and coached the Barbe High softball program for two decades. Her father, Jarrod Portie, was an all-district baseball and football player at Jennings High School and went on to pitch for McNeese State from 1998 to 2001. He helped lead Jennings to the Class 3A baseball semifinals in 1996 and 1997. 'My dad is my hitting coach,' Portie said. 'I do hit a lot on my own, but there are days that I ask them to hit with me. '(Mom) helps with my hitting, too. She has obviously played it a while and coached it, so she knows the little things. Her being the one who travels with me to all my tournaments, she gives me some pointers and helps me out through it all.' With a brother, Riggins, a year younger than her, Portie said she always had someone to compete against. When she was younger, she played on the same youth baseball team as her brother, and eventually moved to softball. In her second season as a starter on the high school level, Portie was part of one of the most feared lineups in the state. The Broncos combined for 57 home runs and scored 357 runs on their way to the Non-select Division I state championship and a 30-2 record. Portie accounted for 14 of those home runs while batting .519 with eight doubles, two triples, 48 RBIs, 55 runs and 12 stolen bases. She had a .628 on-base percentage with four strikeouts in 81 at-bats. She earned all-district first team, Class 5A all-state honorable mention and American Press All-Southwest Big School honors. 'I had a year underneath my belt,' Portie said. 'I knew what I was going into, so it wasn't anything really new to me.' In junior high, she added three sports, including volleyball. 'I just grew up in the world of softball because of my parents,' Portie said. 'My dad played baseball, so I just grew up around that sport. But volleyball was just a random thing. 'One day, going into middle school, I was like, 'I think I want to try out for volleyball.' I didn't even know how many people were on the court at a time or any of the rules, but I made the team and started playing volleyball since then.' On the volleyball court, Portie earned co-district MVP honors and played in the Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association Top 100 Player Showcase for a second consecutive season. She was ninth in the state with 466 kills in addition to 80 blocks 68 aces, 505 digs and 59 assists for the 39-7 Broncos. 'I did a lot of extra work,' Portie said. 'I did a lot of jump training with Barry Painter, and I feel like that has helped me grow as an athlete. 'My freshman year, I was not 5-10. I was definitely more like 5-5, 5-8, so just growing a couple of extra inches and learning your body. I would just say that I was more aware and just an overall better athlete.'
American Press
17-06-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Best are Broncos: Hebert, Mire get top honors on LSWA Class 5A all-state team
This year's winners of the annual Cagle Award are, from left, Hamilton Christian runner Kaleb Bigwood, Barbe pole vaulter Carter Hooks, Barbe runner Kennedi Burks and Washington-Marion jumper Taylar Brown. Bigwood and Burks are two-time winners. (Photos by Rodrick Anderson / American Press, Kirk Meche / Special to the American Press, to the American Press0 Sam Houston High School ended long state title droughts in baseball and softball and claimed half of the top honors on the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 5A all-state teams. Sophomore Kailyn Mire is the 5A softball Most Outstanding Player, while head coach Chad Hebert is the baseball Coach of the Year. Mire had a remarkable first season as the Broncos' starting pitcher. She went 30-2 and led Sam Houston to its first state championship in a decade and sixth in program history. She showed her durability by pitching all but two outs this season with 110 strikeouts and 66 walks in 180 innings with a 1.63 earned run average. In the postseason, Mire was even better with a 0.78 ERA and led the Broncos to wins in three games decided by four or fewer runs. In the Non-select Division I state championship game, she pitched a three-hitter as the Broncos beat Dutchtown 3-2. Mire hit her lone home run at the right time with a two-run shot in the seventh inning to tie the Broncos' semifinal game against postseason rival St. Amant. Sam Houston won 5-3 in eight innings. After nine seasons and close calls, Hebert and the Broncos hoisted a state championship trophy for the first time since 2001. Sam Houston went 37-8 and became the lowest-seeded team to win the largest classification since Catholic-Baton Rouge won as the No. 21 seed in 2013. The No. 11 Broncos beat defending state champion West Monroe in the regional round, 12-time state champ Barbe in the semifinals and No. 1 seed Live Oak in three games in the championship series. They won 10 of 11 postseason games. Mire is joined by two teammates on the first team, sophomore catcher Layla Landry and senior third baseman and leadoff hitter Carolina Eidson. Landry (14) and Eidson (11) were part of the Broncos' powerful lineup that hit a combined 57 home runs. Landry drove in 57 runs and batted .500, while Eidson hit .495 with 42 RBIs, 58 runs scored and 27 extra-base hits. Also on the softball first team is Sulphur power-hitting, two-way player Pressy White. The senior hit 18 home runs, seven doubles and two triples while batting .520 with 47 RBIs. In the circle, she struck out 92 batters and had a 2.58 ERA. Two area players — Sam Houston's Cole Flanagan and Barbe's Jairus Miller — made the first team. Flanagan pitched a pair of two-hitters in the postseason and went 3-0, including a complete game to clinch a semifinal best-of-three series in two games at Barbe. Flanagan went 7-2 with a 2.10 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 531/3 innings. He batted .381 with seven doubles, two triples, two home runs, 30 runs scored and 30 RBIs. Miller nearly finished the season with a perfect record until a 1-0 loss to Sam Houston in the semifinals. Miller was 13-1 with nine shutouts and allowed one run in three playoff starts. He had 126 strikeouts and 24 walks in 86 innings and a 0.41 ERA.
American Press
07-06-2025
- Sport
- American Press
All-Southwest La. Big Schools: Sam Houston sweeps top awards
S am Houston High School teams carved out paths to state championships and swept the top honors on the American Press All-Southwest Louisiana Big Schools teams. Cole Flanagan and Kailyn Mire were indispensable in their respective championship runs and are the MVPs. Baseball Tommy John surgery forced him to miss his junior season, but Flanagan flourished once he returned to the diamond. Pitching and playing center field, Flanagan led Sam Houston to its first state championship since 2001. Flanagan's command of multiple pitches helped the Louisiana-Lafayette signee go 7-2 with a 2.10 earned run average in 53 1/3 innings with 61 strikeouts and 16 walks. The marquee performance of his career came in the second game of a best-of-three semifinal series. He pitched a complete game two-hitter with five strikeouts and a walk to lead the Broncos to a 1-0 win over archrival Barbe and sweep the series. 'He has been a big leader as far as positivity goes,' Sam Houston head coach Chad Hebert said. 'He has been a big part of the lineup and showed a ton of composure throwing the way he did. He was able to limit the damage (in the postseason). 'At Barbe, he gave up two hits and no runs. Every time he had to make a pitch, he did and we made some plays around them.' Flanagan batted .381 with 30 runs, seven doubles, two triples, a pair of home runs and 30 RBIs. In the deciding third game of the Non-select Division I championship series, Flanagan went 3-for-4 and scored the tying run as the Broncos clinched the title with a 4-2 win. Softball While a sophomore, Mire showed poise all season and rarely left the circle, pitching all but two outs for the state champion Broncos. The right-hander tossed 180 innings with 110 strikeouts and 66 walks. She went 30-2 with a 1.63 ERA. She went 4-0 in the postseason and allowed three earned runs in 27 innings. '(Mire) has been phenomenal this entire season,' Domingue said. 'I think she gets overlooked a lot because she's not the strikeout pitcher. She's not throwing 65 miles an hour, but she has literally put this team on her shoulders and carried us. 'She changes speeds and forces weak contact. She might not strike you out every time, but she trusts the defense to make the plays.' Mire kept opponents baffled with a wide range of pitches and speeds. She pitched 10 shutouts and three no-hitters along with two one-hitters and six two-hitters. Mire showed her durability with 15 outings lasting seven or more innings. Not known for power hitting, Mire (.325 avg.) came up clutch in the semifinals when she hit a two-run home run, her first of the season, to send the game into extra innings. Coaches Sam Houston's Chad Hebert and Beth Domingue are the Big School Coaches of the Year. Domingue led Sam Houston to a 30-2 record, including a 28-game win streak to end the season, and the program's first state championship since 2015. The softball team owns six state championships, and Domingue has been a part of all of them as either a player (2000) or head coach (2011, '12, '13, '15, '25). Hebert had long sought to lead the Broncos to a state championship. In his nine seasons at the helm, the Broncos reached the state tournament seven times, losing in extra innings twice in the semifinals, plus a loss to Barbe in the finals in 2019. He guided the Broncos to a 37-8 record. As the No. 11 seed, they twice rallied to sweep defending state champion West Monroe on the road in the regional round and took out 12-time state champ Barbe in the semifinals in two pitchers' duels, 2-1 and 1-0. And they still had enough magic left over for the finals to beat No. 1 Live Oak in three games decided by two or fewer runs. Big Schools Baseball Pos. Player, School Cl. Statistics P Owen Galley, Sam Houston So. 8-2, 1.25 ERA, 51 Ks P Cole Flanagan, Sam Houston Sr. 7-2, 2.10 ERA, 61 Ks P Lawton Littleton, Barbe So. 10-2, 0.76 ERA, 111 Ks P Jairus Miller, Barbe Sr. 13-1, 0.41 ERA, 126 Ks C Hayden Lebleu, Iowa Sr. .341 avg., 6 HR, 40 RBIs INF Lucas Alexander, Iowa Sr. .390 avg., 5 HR, 29 RBIs INF Christian Wold, S. Beauregard Sr. .358 avg.,/6-1, 1.20 ERA INF Noah Fontenot, S. Beauregard Sr. .293 avg./9-2, 2.87 ERA INF Kash Martin, Westlake Sr. .381 avg., 2 HR, 23 RBIs OF Justin Lartigue, LC College Prep Sr. .394 avg., 2HR, 37 RBIs OF Tyler Dartez, Iowa Sr. 5-4, 44Ks, 1.91 ERA/.340 avg. OF Brody Anderson, Westlake So. .493 avg., 37 RBIs/ 6-2, 2.01 ERA UT Slade Shove-Knox, Sulphur Sr. 582/3 IP, 3-4, 44Ks, 29bb, 3.37 ERA UT Presley Courville, Barbe Sr. .492 avg., 3 doubles, 13 RBIs UT Bryce Cunningham, Leesville Sr. .375 avg., 21 RBIs/392/3 IP, 42 Ks UT Trace Moreaux, St. Louis Catholic Jr. 5-3, 2.18 ERA, 54 Ks UT Konnor Boudreaux, St. Louis Catholic Jr. .350 avg., 22 RBIs/261/3 IP, 2 Svs MVP — Cole Flanagan, Sam Houston COACH OF THE YEAR — Chad Hebert, Sam Houston Softball Pos. Player, School Cl. Statistics P Alya Stollsteimer, Iowa Sr. 19-9, 3.81 ERA P Kailyn Mire, Sam Houston So. 30-2, 1.63 ERA, 110 Ks P Mattie Fullington, St. Louis Catholic Fr. 8-1, 1.83 ERA, 139 Ks P Claire Mellard, Sulphur Sr. 7-7, 3.72 ERA, 91 Ks P Laila Roberson, DeRidder So. 12-8, 5.44 ERA, 142 Ks C Layla Landry, Sam Houston So. .500 avg., 14 HR, 57 RBIs INF Emma Venable, Jennings Sr. .522 avg., 8 HR, 34 RBIs INF Pressy White, Sulphur Sr. .520 avg.,18 HR, 47 RBIs/2.58 ERA, 92 Ks INF Carolina Eidson, Sam Houston Sr. .495 avg., 11 HR, 42 RBIs INF Elaina Newman, Westlake Jr. .580 avg., 42 RBIs, 54 runs OF Alivia Singletary, Iowa Jr. .426 avg., 5 HR, 30 RBIs OF Morgan Henry, Iowa Fr. .352 avg., 3 HR, 35 RBIs OF Camryn Jackson, S. Beauregard So. .365 avg., 6 HR, 32 RBIs UT Addi Daigle, S. Beauregard Fr. .506 avg., 5 HR, 33 RBIs UT Aubrey Portie, Sam Houston Jr. .494 avg., 14 HR, 49 RBIs UT Kylie Price, Jennings Sr. .433 avg., 32 RBIs, 34 runs UT Charlie Kyle, Sulphur So. .450 avg., 5 HR, 25 RBIs UT Ella Kay, Barbe So. .518 avg., 25 RBIs, 34 runs MVP — Kailyn Mire, Sam Houston COACH OF THE YEAR — Beth Domingue, Sam Houston
American Press
15-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Rebuilt Bronco, Flanagan unflappable since return, Broncos face Live Oak in championship series
Sam Houston senior Cole Flanagan has won three games on the mound in the playoffs this year. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press) Cole Flanagan had to watch from the dugout last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. But now he is back on the front lines as the Broncos look to win the program's first state championship since 2001. 'It was tough, but you have to stay in there and support your guys and do the thing in the dugout and keep the energy up,' Flanagan said. 'It is nice to be back out there for myself, but having these guys to play with has been awesome. 'I have had great teams and great leadership for four years, so I am trying to go about how the people before me led and try to do that with this team. It has been going pretty well.' The No. 11 Broncos, who have won 14 of their last 15 games, open a best-of-three series against No. 1 Live Oak for the Non-select Division I state championship at the state baseball tournament in Sulphur at 5:30 p.m. today. Game 2 will be at the same time Friday. If a third game is necessary, it will be played on at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. 'We can't take it for granted,' Flanagan said. 'We have to live in the moment and enjoy every minute of it.' The Louisiana-Lafayette signee had a stellar sophomore year, going 6-2, including a win over Live Oak in the quarterfinals, and batted over .300. After limited pitch counts early in the season, Flanagan said he feels back to his old self. He is 7-2 with a 2.10 earned run average and batting .375 with 30 RBIs. He has improved his control, increasing his strike-to-ball ratio from 2.79 to 3.81- to-1. He has 61 strikeouts in 53 1/3 innings. He pitched a complete game two-hit shutout on Saturday to complete the Broncos' (35-7) sweep of Barbe (34-6) in the semifinals. 'I feel great,' Flanagan said. 'I feel like I was a little bit better maybe. 'The surgery went well, so that is a good thing. I had to go to five months of physical therapy, a lot of rangeof- motion stuff and get my elbow back in shape and get my shoulder back in shape to be able to throw.' With the new series format in all rounds of the playoffs for Divisions I, II and III, pitching has become exponentially more important. The Broncos have a deep pitching staff led by Flanagan and sophomore Owen Galley (8-1, 722/3 IP, 1.25 ERA). Six Broncos have won three or more games on the mound, and the staff has a 1.85 ERA. Flanagan and Galley have each won three postseason games. The Broncos' playoff run hasn't been easy. They had to win on the road at defending champion West Monroe and 12-time state champion Barbe. But Flanagan said the Broncos are well prepared to take on the Eagles. 'I feel like we have had a tough playoff run,' Flanagan said. 'The arms and teams that we have played have all led up to this point for preparation. We just have to come out here and do the same thing we do every day and play with everything we have. I expect another close one and get in there and go win a dogfight. Outcompeting them is our goal. 'Throwing the fastball and letting the guys behind me make the plays has been my mind-set out there. I have a good defense working behind me this year.' Knowing that the Eagles (32-6) have a strong pitching staff, Flanagan said the Broncos will have to scratch out every hit and run they can get. ULL signee Sawyer Pruitt shut out Benton in the semifinals with 11 strikeouts, and left-handed pitcher Zant Gurney has allowed one earned run in two postseason starts. Five of Sam Houston's eight postseason wins have been by one or two runs. 'Coach has been preaching to us that every time we get in the box to get in there and compete, no matter the outcome, and we will ultimately get what we want,' Flanagan said.
American Press
14-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Bonding over baseball: Cassard, Hebert final meeting
Nearly two decades ago, Sam Houston head coach Chad Hebert and Live Oak head coach Jesse Cassard's friendship began on Glenn Cecchini's staff at Barbe High School. In 2006 they helped the Bucs win the Class 5A state title. Each have become successful head coaches, and along the way they shared tips and insights, checking on each other's family and played some intense games over the years. Cassard announced his retirement two weeks ago, so this week will be the final time the two coach against each other. And the setting will be perfect. The No. 1 Eagles (32-6) and No. 11 Broncos (35-7) will face off in the first game of a three-game series at 5:30 p.m. Thursday for the Non-select Division I baseball championship at the state tournament in Sulphur. 'We're really good friends,' Cassard said. 'Just following Griff, his son, and I know he loves Cal, and he's always checking on Cal, my son. We've been friends since we coached together, and we've always stayed in contact. 'At this point, both of us are going to get our kids ready to play, and whoever plays best is going to win. It'll be a good, clean series. We both have really good teams, and we both have experience at this point in the playoffs, so it'll be fun.' Even after Hebert and the Broncos swept Live Oak in the quarterfinals for a second year in a row last season, they still talk strategy. 'Honestly, before the season, I had asked him, I said, 'Hey, what's some of the things you do for practice that we can change some things up?'' Cassard said. 'And he's sending me 15 videos at a time. Like, 'Hey, why don't you try this?' So we bounce things off of each other a lot.' Head-to-head, Hebert is 7-3 against Cassard. 'We're both super competitive,' Hebert said. 'He and I are close enough personal friends to where we realize it's just a game and we're going to compete hard against each other and words are going to fly and things are going to be done and said. 'At the end of the day, it's a baseball game. It's not going to dictate our friendship or our love that we have for each other.' Hebert said many of the things he learned from Cassard at Barbe and two seasons as his assistant at Zachary in 2010 and 2011 have stuck with him throughout his career. 'I don't feel like Jesse as a competitor was ever scared of anybody,' Hebert said. 'When we were at Zachary, he was always overly aggressive and trying to put pressure on people to get them to fold under the pressure and make them beat themselves at times, and we kind of stuck with that model. '(I) picked up a lot of good things in the run game from him, just things throughout the years, and he and I bounce things off each other yearly.' After a five-year stint at Barbe as an assistant, Cassard took over the Zachary program and led the Broncos to three consecutive Class 4A state championships from 2007 to 2009. He coached Sulphur to the quarterfinals in 2017, and since 2019, Cassard has led Live Oak to a 182-59 record and has them in the final for the first time since 2014, when the Eagles lost 7-1 to Barbe. It is the sixth and final time Cassard will take a team into the state tournament. He is retiring after 18 seasons as a head coach with a 476-120 record. 'My son, he's a senior, and he's going on to play college baseball,' said Cassard, who played two seasons at McNeese State. 'I want to go and watch him play and just be a dad and not have to feel bad about missing my games to go watch his games and stuff like that. I've loved coaching. It's been great.' Under Hebert, the Broncos have played at the state tournament seven times since 2017. They lost a round shy in the quarterfinals in 2022, and the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the tournament in 2020. Hebert is 270-53 in seven seasons. 'I think he's a player's coach,' Cassard said. 'He gives them some leeway to play their own way and play their own style. 'He kind of sets out a plan for them, and they really get behind him. I've never heard him throw a kid under the bus. He's always got his kids back. That's why they play like they do because they're on their coach's side. I think that's the biggest thing. He's always been a student of the game. He's always wanted to learn more. He gets his guys playing well at the right time, and they play a really consistent brand of baseball.'
