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• LHSAA Brackets through Thursday finals

Top seed Ursuline defeats 9th seeded Lakeshore in straight sets (by Randy Pistorius)

KENNER - This was a matchup that peaked the interest of many high school sports fans in the state of Louisiana as the top seeded Ursuline Academy Lions faced Lakeshore. The Lady Titans almost did not make it here despite winning their first playoff match against 24th seeded Evangel in the LHSAA state volleyball playoffs.

The controversy came up over the weekend during the LHSAA football pairings meeting in Baton Rouge on Sunday. Lakeshore High was informed that their football team was ruled ineligible for the playoffs due to the two-year probationary period for a new LHSAA member. A supposed oversight allowed the volleyball squad into the postseason.

A meeting of the LHSAA committee was held in Baton Rouge on Monday to determine if the Lakeshore Volleyball team was still eligible for the playoffs. The executive committee voted after receiving documentation and after further review that Lakeshore joined the LHSAA before the rule took effect.

Lakeshore had participated in numerous state championships over the past year and even had a state champion swimmer.

Tonight, Lady Luck did not shine on Lakeshore as they were defeated by Ursuline in straight sets (25-19, 25-11, 25-17).

"Our team deserved to be here. We worked hard all season. It was not easy with the events earlier in the week. We were glad the right decision was made and we were happy to be here in the quarterfinals. Lakeshore head coach Kacie Mule said.

Ursuline was led by Marci Holstein with 39 assists and two aces. Jeanette Rimmer had 22 digs and 18 kills. Lakeshore was led by Krislyn Lafitteau with 17 assists and Linden Schenck had 11 digs. Madison Grapp had 7 kills.

Jay Jay Juan, Ursuline's head coach, appreciated the quality from both teams. "Lakeshore earned their right to be here and gave Ursuline a great game. Ursuline is taking it one match at a time and hope to play well against Parkview Friday."

Ursuline (37-4) will face Parkview Baptist at 1:30 Friday. Lakeshore finishes the season 26-18.

6th seed St. Joseph's upsets 3rd seed Destrehan to advance

KENNER - The first big upset of the day went to St. Joseph's Academy. The 6th seed in Division I sent the 3rd seeded Lady Wildcats of Destrehan home in straight sets on Thursday night at the Ponchartrain Center to move into the semi-finals.

Audrey Marsh had 13 kills while Jessie Thigpen had nine kills for St. Joseph's. Morgan Miller had 18 assists while Emma Hiller had eight assists. Caitlin Carlos added 15 digs.

Robin Sill had 13 kills for the Lady Wildcats while Catherine Beck contributed with 13 assists. Michelle Haydel had a game high 19 digs. Destrehan challenged to force a fourth set but fell short in the third set 25-22 that ended the Lady Wildcats season.

St. Joseph's will now move on to the semi-finals where they will await the winner of Mount Carmel and Terrebonne. Destrehan finishes their season 39-6 overall.

2nd seed De La Salle Lady Cavs defeat 10th seed John Curtis (by Randy Pistorius)

KENNER - The De La Salle Lady Cavs took on the John Curtis Lady Patriots in a rematch game from earlier in the year in the state quarterfinals. The Lady Cavs proved tonight they were worthy of their number two seed in Division IV by defeating Curtis in straight sets (25-16, 25-19, 25-16).

De La Sale was led by their star player Brittany Deckwa with 15 kills. Jonne Porter added nine kills and three blocks. Brooke Bonura and Meghan Hunger each had four aces. Chelsea Pritchett had 32 assists while Sarah Oster had 15 digs to lead the Lady Cavs.

John Curtis was led by Chelsea Smith with seven kills. Halle Gayten had six kills and two blocks.  An 8th grader, Kelsie Oestriecher, had 10 assists, eight digs and an ace.

"We played tonight in a rematch but this time we won where it counted. This is a different atmosphere than what we have been playing in and the entire team pulled though. Tonight, we played De La Salle ball instead of the other team's ball. We have tended to play the other team's style of ball but tonight it was De La Salle ball." De La Salle head coach Jessica Helgson said.

De La Salle improves to 35-5 and will play U-High in the second semi-final game Friday at 1:30. John Curtis finishes their season at 22-17.

2nd seed Cabrini defeats 10th seed Belle Chasse (by Randy Pistorius)

In a quarterfinal meeting that used to be a district game, Cabrini's Crescents faced a familiar foe in the Belle Chase Lady Cardinals but prevailed in three close sets (25-20, 25-20, 25-21).

Cabrini was led by Ashlee Foret with 16 kills. Megan Resendez had 17 digs but the star for the Crescents tonight was Ainsley Marroccoli with 32 assists, six aces and one block.

Belle Chasse's Beth Dingler had 26 assists and Julie Vujnovich added 22 digs. Amanda Livaudais contributed with 15 blocks and Kelly Corso had 10 kills.

"Playing Belle Chasse, a former district rival, both teams knew each other. It's a shame we had to play each other and I wish both teams could have gone further to represent metro New Orleans. What my team needs to do to win Division II is to play defense and to pass the ball well." Cabrini Head Coach Greg Castillo stated.

Belle Chasse Head Coach Anne Marie Reynolds said her team battled well. "We had an amazing season. We were glad to get to the quarterfinals. Our team played hard and gave it their all tonight."

Cabrini will take on 3rd seed St. Martinville at 1:30 Friday afternoon. Belle Chase finishes 21-17 overall.

5th seed Dominican wins long battle against 4th seed St. Amant in five sets

KENNER - In one of the longest matches of the night, it was Dominican who came out on top. Dominican needed five sets (25-19, 12-25, 25-22, 12-25, 15-13) to dispatch 4th seeded St. Amant to advance to the Division I semi-finals Thursday night at the Ponchartrain Center. Emily Daigle had 19 kills and 12 digs while Janaya Hampton added 16 kills.

Mary Pursell had a solid game as well with 20 digs and 2 aces. Julia Daigle had a big game with 45 assists.

Toni Rodriquez led the way for the Lady Gators with 23 kills, 7 blocks and one ace. Maddy Reardon contributed with 19 kills, 23 digs and one ace. Kelly Young had a game high 46 assists in the loss for St. Amant.

Dominican will move on and face the winner of 8th seeded Archbishop Chapelle and top seeded Fontainbleau. St. Amant finishes their season 34-6.

Mount Carmel tops Terrebonne in straight sets to advance

KENNER - 2nd seeded Mount Carmel did not have much trouble with 7th seed Terrebonne. The Cubs easily defeated Terrebonne on Thursday night in straight sets (25-18, 25-16, 25-11) to move into the Division I semi-finals.

Jade Sorrell led the way with 14 kills while Marlee Bean added a game-high 32 assists. Angele Maumus contributed with 10 digs.

For Terrebonne, Brooke Fonesca had 12 kills and a game-high four blocks on defense. Jackie Daigle had 23 assists. Allie Domangue had 12 digs in the loss to the Cubs.

Mount Carmel will face 6th seeded St. Joseph's Academy Friday with the winner moving on to the Division I title game on Saturday. Terrebonne ends their season at 36-11.

Top seed Fontainebleau knocks out 8th seed Chapelle to advance

KENNER - It was no dramatics for top seed Fontainebleau as they defeated 8th seeded Chapelle in straight sets (25-10, 25-10, 25-9) Thursday night. The Lady Bulldogs were led by Haley Bonneval with 14 kills, 12 digs and four blocks while Sarah Ulm had 13 kills. Meghan Meyer contributed with 29 assists.

The Chipmunks had a rough time against the top seed in Division I. Lauren Levy led the way with seven kills and 12 assists while Katye Mount added 12 assists.

Fontainebleau (42-1) will take on Dominican Friday afternoon at 3:15 pm. Chapelle ends their season at 22-17.

3rd seed St. Martinville downs 6th seed St. Scholastica to advance

KENNER - St. Martinville sent St. Scholastica packing in three sets to move on to the Division II semi-finals on Friday afternoon at the Pontchartrain Center. Chanelle Gardner had 11 kills and 9 blocks while teammate Alanna Allen had 10 kills and 11 assists. Leah Phillips tied a game high in digs with 14 for St. Martinville.

Whitney Amato led the way for St. Scholastica with 11 kills. Taylor Demarest and Jenni Levine each had five blocks in the defensive effort. Mary Grace Gitz had 23 assists.

St. Martinville will take on the winner of Belle Chase and Cabrini Friday. St. Scholastica ends their season at 22-15.

4th seed Westminster defeats 5th seed Houma Christian in straight sets to advance to semi-finals

KENNER - 4th seeded Westminster Christian knocked out 5th seeded Houma Christian to move into the Division V semi-finals Friday morning at the Pontchartrain Center.

Senior Dalane Guidry led the way with 18 kills while junior Anni Panagiotis had five for Westminster. Guidry also had four blocks and Ruth Juneau had two aces. Heidi Redd had a game high 29 assists in the victory.

Kendra Turner had 14 kills for Houma Christian while Lindsey Crowdus had 12 kills and 17 digs. Anna LeJeune had 26 assists in a losing effort.

Houma Christian battled hard and gave Westminster a test but fell short.

Westminster Christian will take on the winner of Country Day and Ascension Episcopal Friday in the semi-finals. Houma Christian finishes their season with a 27-12 overall record.

3rd seed Central Catholic downs 6th seed Hannan in straight sets to move into Division V semi-finals

KENNER - Sophomore Meo Knight had 14 kills while Brieanna Hill had seven kills and three blocks as 3rd seed Central Catholic defeated 6th seeded Archbishop Hannan (25-16, 27-25, 25-20) to advance to the Division V semi-finals. Caroline Byrne had a game high 29 assists for Central Catholic.

Meanwhile, sophomore Hannah Naquin led the way for Hannan with 11 kills and six blocks while Ashley Cabeceiras had 10 kills. Brooke Laigast tied a game high 13 digs while Kassidy Monica had 25 assists.

Archbishop Hannan ends their season with 24-14 overall record. Central Catholic will take on 2nd seed Episcopal of Acadiana Friday.

3rd seed University High beats 6th seed St. Thomas Aquinas to advance to semis

KENNER - Lindsey Flory had a big game with 8 kills, 3 blocks, 9 assists and 6 digs as U-High ousts 6th seed St. Thomas Aquinas in straight sets (25-20, 25-14, 25-16) to head into the Division IV semi-finals. Briana Oglesby had a game high five blocks while Shelby White had 18 assists.

St. Thomas Aquinas was led by Brooke Balser with 14 kills while Jesse Willis had three kills. Julie Gaudin had 13 assists in the loss.

St. Thomas Aquinas finishes their season with a 29-11 overall record. University High will take on the winner of 10th seeded John Curtis and 2nd seeded De La Salle.

Top-seeded Notre Dame handles 9th seed Northlake Christian in straight sets

KENNER - Notre Dame had no issues with Northlake Christian as they cruised into the Division IV semi-finals in straight sets (25-17, 25-15, 25-15) Friday afternoon at the Pontchartrain Center. Alaina Savoy had 17 kills while Alison Leonards had nine in win over Northlake.

Mallory Chiasson had a huge game in the digs department with a game high 35. Alex Miller led the way in assists with 23 while teammate Marie Ledet had 16.

It was a rough afternoon for Northlake Christian against the top seed in Division IV. Molly Boyer had eight kills with Mary Wilson added four and 16 assists. Allie McLain had 16 digs while Sydney Bazzeu had 11.

Northlake Christian ends their season with a 26-10 overall record. Notre Dame will resume action Friday in the semi-finals battling the winner of 4th seed Newman and 5th seed Catholic of New Iberia.

Newman beats Catholic New Iberia in four sets to advance

KENNER - Newman fell behind early losing the first set but the Lady Greenies fought back and denied Catholic New Iberia. The Lady Greenies beat Catholic New Iberia in four sets to move on and advance to the Division IV semi-finals Thursday night. Jamie Hawkins led the way with 19 kills while Jada Hawkins had seven kills.

Kiley Ezzell had a game high 39 assists for the Lady Greenies as Tyler Edell had 36 digs. Caroline Lane and Avery Rowan each came away with two aces in the victory.

Taylor Lahasky had nine kills and 21 digs while Katelyn Freyou had seven kills. Sydney Lahasky had 30 assists in the loss to Newman.

The Lady Greenies will seek an upset bid against top seed Notre Dame in the semi-finals Friday. Catholic New Iberia finishes the season 24-10.

Vandebilt Catholic downs Ben Franklin in straight sets for a trip to semis

KENNER - Ben Franklin gave Vandebilt Catholic a decent game but in the end the Lady Terriers could not be stopped. Vandebilt Catholic won in straight sets (25-10, 25-21, 25-19) to advance to the Division III semi-finals on Friday night at the Ponchartrain Center.

The Lady Terriers dominated the first set 25-10 but Ben Franklin bounced back with a better effort in the last two sets but still could not gain ground.

Kirsten Kurtz led the way with 12 kills while Sydney Lebouef had 11 kills. Ally Beyer had 17 assists while Maggie Hamilton had 20 assists for the Lady Terriers.

Vandebilt Catholic will now face 3rd seeded St. Louis Friday for a chance to move into the Division III title game. Ben Franklin finishes the season 25-16 overall.

Country Day moves one step closer to title defense (by Randy Pistorius)

KENNER - The number one seed in Division V, Country Day's Lady Cajuns, faced a relatively new school in the quarterfinals Thursday night. The Ascension Episcopal Blue Gators, seeded 8th, were no match for the division's defendign state champs in straight sets (25-10, 25-16, 25-13).

The Lady Cajuns were led by Katherine Broussard with nine kills and two blocks. Three Country Day performers had two aces each: Rebecca Lapeyre, Nicole Weinmann and Scout Beron.

Lapeyre also added 30 assists and 10 digs along and Victoria Waguespack had 10 digs as well.

The Blue Gators were led by Shenelle Charlot with eight kills, one ace and eight digs. Danni Duck had 12 assists and Nicole Pilgrim added 10 digs.

Lady Cajuns Head Coach Julie Stempel-Ibieta likes her team's chances of defending the state title. "The Lady Cajuns are feeling good to repeat. There is always pressure as the number one seed. We played very good tonight and at a good pace. We set a good tone for the weekend tonight."

Country Day improves to 33-8 and will face 4th seeded Westminster Christian at 10 a.m. Friday. Ascension Episcopal finishes 18-19 overall.