Woodlawn Athletics Weekly Wrap: September 5 – September 11, 2022

Woodlawn Athletics Weekly Wrap: September 5 – September 11, 2022

Sep 12, 2022

Athletics at Woodlawn High School are in full swing, as the fall sports have all begun their 2022 seasons. Each week, there will be a review of what happened in the world of Woodlawn athletics.

Cross Country

Varsity Cross Country Runners pose with Coach Spruill at the Episcopal Round Table Run on September 10, 2022.

Our Panther cross country team opened their season at the Episcopal Round Table Run held at Highland Road Park on Saturday, September 10th. The competition, which featured schools from around the state, had 55 boys teams. Four runners competed in the varsity race for our boys team, with first-time runner AJ Warner completing the fastest time for the Panther squad. Veteran runners Jaden Sylvester, Hunter Kullman, and Dylan Aucoin also turned in solid times.

“The veterans went for a morning jog and still only missed their personal records by a small amount of time,” said Head Coach Tim Spruill. “This really opened their eyes to how much fitter and faster they were than last year, and gave them their confidence back. Conditioning all summer had made a difference. Now that the first meet jitters have all been worked out, the entire team is looking forward to pushing their limits at the meet in Brusly next week.”

Next up for Cross Country: Saturday, September 17 – Brusly Invitational Cross Country Meet

Football

Our Panther football team could not overcome a slow start at Lafayette Christian Friday night. The Knights scored on their first three possessions, and the 20-0 lead that they built was too much for the Panthers. Woodlawn showed improvements on both sides of the ball as the game progressed, playing Lafayette Christian to a 12-12 tie after the first quarter.

Offensively, Louisiana commit Jay’veon Haynes was the first Panther to reach the end zone this season. Rickie Collins, who is committed to LSU, found senior wide receiver Clayton Adams for the second Woodlawn score of the night. Defensively, junior Chris Cooper forced a fumble that was recovered by Dezaray Delmore, who has pledged to play college football at Southeast Missouri.

“We came out slow. They came out, and they were hitting the gas early on us,” Head Coach Marcus Randall noted. “It looked like it took our guys a quarter and a half to get going, and by that time it was 20-0.”

Next up for Football: Wednesday, September 14 – Freshman and JV at Dutchtown; Friday, September 16 – Varsity versus Carver

Swim

The Woodlawn Swim Team opened the season at the Capital City Swim League Meet held Saturday, September 10th at Crawfish Aquatics. The day was highlighted by a tenth place finish by the 200 Yard Freestyle Relay team of Zack Lemoine, John Cador, Trey Holiday, and AJ Collins. Senior Peyton Rodgers led the Panthers in the individual races, with a 13th place finish in the 200 Yard Freestyle. His time shaved seven seconds from his previous PR.

“We had a mixture of veterans and newcomers who  did an amazing job for us today,” said Head Coach Ashley Heyer. “Peyton (Rodgers) and Kelis (Kent) each had PRs, dropping 7 and 8 seconds off of their previous best times. We are excited about our next meet!”

Next up for Swim: Saturday, September 24 – Capital City Swim League at Crawfish Aquatics

Volleyball

Woodlawn High’s Volleyball Team continued their hot play this week. After finishing the South Louisiana Invitational with two wins last Saturday, our Lady Panthers were 2-0 this week.

Our Lady Panthers picked up where they left off with a victory over Springfield Tuesday. Woodlawn won the first set by the score of 25-15 and the second set by the score of 25-9 before dropping the third set. Our Lady Panthers bounced back strong during the fourth set, coming away with the 25-13 win to secure the match three sets to one. Seniors Reagan McDowell and Marie Sierra led Woodlawn to the victory.

On Thursday, September 8th, Woodlawn hosted St. John of Plaquemine. The Lady Panthers came away with a 3-0 victory over the Eagles. The Lady Panthers started the match quickly, winning the first set by the score of 25-6. While the second (25-11) and third (25-14) sets were not as dominating, our Lady Panthers kept focused and completed the straight-set victory. Woodlawn was led by senior Karma Kasubaski and junior Kelis Conley.

Next up for Volleyball: Monday, September 12 – JV/Varsity at Capitol; Wednesday, September 14 – Freshman versus Parkview Baptist, JV/Varsity versus McKinley; Friday, September 16 and Saturday, September 17 – Varsity at Brusly Tournament

Off-Season Tryouts/Practices Continue

With new LHSAA rules allowing year-round practice, several sports are taking advantage of the additional time. Coach Alicia Dedeaux and her Lady Panther basketball team are currently practicing multiple times a week in preparation for the upcoming season.

Newly-named Head Coach Stefson Arnold held tryouts for the boys’ basketball team this past week, as he looks to begin preparing for the 2022-2023 season as well. Coach Arnold was pleased with the number of student-athletes who participated in tryouts.

The Lady Panthers Softball Team will hold tryouts for the 2023 season on September 20th and 22nd. Any interested student must have a valid physical and proof of insurance in order to tryout. Coach Bryant can be reached by email at [email protected] for additional information.

Panthers Prove Themselves in the Pool

Panthers Prove Themselves in the Pool

Dec 18, 2020

The Woodlawn High Boys Swim Team placed higher than it has every placed at the LHSAA Division II State Swim Meet.

The Panthers swam in the 4×50 Free Relay, the 4×100 Free Relay, and the 4×50 Medley Relay. All three finishes were records for Woodlawn High swimmers. Head Coach Ashley Heyer commented on the season.

“We are proud to have done so well with such a small team that includes only two year round swimmers and a two sport athlete.”

Senior Harrison Breland-Triche led the Panthers in and out of the pool.

The Panthers were led both in the pool and in the classroom by Senior Captain Harrison Breland-Triche.

“Harrison capped off 4 successful years being named to the LSHAA Division II All-Academic team and the CCSL All-Academic team,” noted Heyer. “Harrison was also a finalist for East Baton Rouge Parish Student of the Year. The team’s first semester GPA was 4.45, with every student taking at least one AP class.”

Harrison, along with Juniors Mason Watson and Isaiah John and Freshman Zack Lemoine, posted a time of 1:48.14 in the 4×50 Free Relay. The time was good enough for a fifth place finish at the State Swim Meet.

The Panthers placed 9th in the 4×100 Free Relay with a time of 4:12.47. Harrison, Isaiah, and Zack teamed up with Sophomore Peyton Rodgers for the race. Finally, Woodlawn placed 15th in the 4×50 Medley Relay. Isaiah, Mason, Peyton, and Zack finished the race in 2:16.96, despite Zack learning the breast stroke one week before the State Meet!

Harrison also qualified for state in the 200 Free and the 100 Backstroke, placing in the top 15 in each event at the Capital City Swim League Championship.
Woodlawn’s boys team placed 11th at both the CCSL Championships and the District II State Swim Meet.

Heyer wanted to say thanks to our Panther parents, who she said made all of the difference in making this season a success.

“We would like to thank all of our parents, especially Cathleen and Leonard Breland-Triche, for all of their support for the team over the past four. We also want to thank Bobby Watson and K-Watt Electric for donating the awesome towels for the state meet. These kept the boys warm enough to stay safe outside during the meet.”

Coach Heyer is already looking forward to the 2021 season.

“Next season, we will be practicing again at Crawfish Aquatics and are working on an evening practice time for students who want to be two sport athletes. We welcome any new swimmers as we rebuild the girls’ team with returning junior Kelis Kent and grow our boys’ team with all but one athlete returning. You do not have to know competitive swimming to join the WHS team! As long as you can swim, we will teach you the strokes and push you to success.”

Fall Sports Begin

Fall Sports Begin

Aug 11, 2018

With the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year comes the beginning of 2018 Fall Sports. Cross Country, Football, Swimming and Volleyball seasons begin in August. Practices for all four sports are currently underway, with the first official contest for each of the sports taking place in the final week of August.

Students interested in participating in any of these fall sports are invited to contact the prospective head coaches. While some sports have limitations on students returning to Woodlawn High School, all freshmen and new students are invited to participate.

Students interested in running Cross Country should contact Coach Rogers ([email protected]). Coach Rogers can be found in the library throughout the school day.

Coach Luquet ([email protected]) is the Head Football Coach. Coach Luquet invites all new students and all freshmen who are interested in playing football to speak to him in the courtyard before school or during either lunch shift.

Ms. Heyer ([email protected]) invites all students, new or returning, who are interested in swimming to see her in room 1208 during their lunch shift.

All new students interested in playing volleyball should see either Coach Malpica ([email protected]) or Coach Gonzalez ([email protected]). Coach Malpica can be found in room 1211, while Coach Gonzalez can be found in the gym.

In addition to the four sports beginning now, several other sports will begin practice and contests during the fall semester. Wrestling, led by Coach Guidry ([email protected]) can begin practice on October 1st. The boys and girls basketball teams can begin practice on October 8th. Students interested in basketball should contact Coach Fernandez ([email protected]).

Boys and girls soccer will be the next sports to begin practicing, with the first official practice date set on October 22nd. Female students interested in playing soccer this year are asked to see Coach Hampton ([email protected]) in room 206 as soon as possible. Male students should listen for upcoming announcements from Coach Barnes ([email protected]).

Powerlifting will begin in November. Athletes interested in powerlifting should speak to Coach Baronich ([email protected]).

While bowling, golf, and tennis will not begin until the spring semester, interested students are invited to contact their coaches now. Prospective bowlers should contact Coach Gonzalez. Coach Malpica should be contacted by any interested golfers. Any students interested in joining the tennis team should contact Coach Broussard ([email protected]).

With the multitude of fall sports going on at Woodlawn, the hope is that every student is able to find something to interest them!

A New Current

A New Current

Jul 6, 2016

By Sierra Johnson

Many Woodlawn students have wondered about the new sports team that, seemingly, arrived out of nowhere. This year’s first Swim Team will be coached by Ms. Macaluso. Her passion for swimming arose in early childhood; she started competitive swimming at the age of 4 and continued until she was 19. Her desire is to provide an extracurricular activity for students to get together and have an unforgettable time. A few swim team details include:

  • Practice is at Crawfish Aquatics every Tuesday and Thursday from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
    • Any and every skill level is accepted
    • There’s no limit on how many people can join
    • Uniforms
    • Worn during swim meets
      • Boys: form fitting trousers
      • (solid black with purple stripe down the side)
      • Girls: form fitting one piece
      • (multiple shades of purple)

Competitions will be held on Saturdays and Sundays; two teams will race against the clock for the fastest time, side by side in the same pool. Teams will compete based off speed; hence fast teams will be paired with fast teams and slower teams with slower teams. No tryouts are held this year, so please feel free to join!