PREP NOTEBOOK: LHSAA to reveal playoff pairings today
Rodrick Anderson
The coronavirus pandemic shortened high school football season is set to switch over the postseason.
The Louisiana High School Athletic Association will announce the brackets during its annual Prep Pairing Show at 11 a.m. today CST (Suddenlink, Ch. 42).
Jennings (6-0) entered the final week No. 1 in Class 3A while Lake Charles College Prep (5-0) was ranked No. 4 in the most recent LHSAA power ratings.
Other Southwest Louisiana teams that could be top-10 teams include Leesville (4-2) in Class 4A, Class 2A power Kinder (5-2) and a trio of 1A teams in Grand Lake (5-1), Oberlin (5-2) and Basile (3-2).
• STATE SWIMMING: For a second consecutive year, Jennings’ Brennon Conner set a Division III record at the LSHAA state swim meet, but this time someone else set one too, stopping the junior from adding to his state title haul.
Conner, a two-time state champion last year, was the runner-up Thursday to Episcopal’s Eugene Jiang in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle at the Shreveport YMCA.
The meet was moved from Sulphur Parks and Recreation Aquatic Center because of damage caused by Hurricanes Laura and Delta.
Conner broke his own record in the 50 with a time of 21.3 seconds, but Jiang bested him with a 20.86.
Jiang also set a record in the 100 at 45.92, knocking .68 seconds off Conner’s recordsetting mark of 46.24 in 2019. Conner touched the wall in 46.67. St. Louis Catholic’s Andrew Yang was third at 49.66.
At the Division II meet on Friday, Sam Houston’s Allison Hull placed third in the 100 butterfly (1:06.03) and missed a podium by placing fourth in the 50-freestyle (26.15 seconds).
• SIGNING: Washington-Marion senior Ashanti Carter signed a national letter of intent Friday with Division I Alcorn State to play softball.
Carter was a two-time alldistrict pitcher at Iowa before transferring to W-M last season, but the 2020 season was cut short by the coronavirus pandemic.
Carter hit .451 with 25 RBIs while striking out 83 batters in the circle for Iowa in 2019.