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, Geauxpreps.com/Special 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.

Baseball

Pos. Player, School Cl. Stats

P Will Andrade, Holy Cross Sr. 14-2

P Bradyn Cupit, West Monroe Jr. 5-3

P Drew Ferguson, West Monroe Sr. 9-2

P Jarius Miller, Barbe Sr. 13-1

C Andrew Clapinski, Catholic-Baton Rouge Sr. .409

INF Ryan Darrah, Brother Martin Sr. .382

INF Casey McCoy, Dutchtown Sr. .383

INF Dom Pellegrin, Holy Cross Jr. .402

INF Jack Ruckert, Catholic-Baton Rouge Sr. .369

OF Jackson Lee, Ruston Jr. .413

OF Cole Snell, Benton Jr. .468

OF Christian Turner, Haughton Sr. .405

UT Brayden Calamari, Slidell Sr. .413

UT Cole Flanagan, Sam Houston Sr. .381

UT Cole Navarro, Brother Martin Sr. 11-2

UT Sawyer Pruitt, Live Oak Sr. 9-2

UT Cooper Smith, Live Oak Sr. 383

OUTSTANDING PLAYER — Sawyer Pruitt, Live Oak

COACH OF THE YEAR — Chad Hebert, Sam Houston

HONORABLE MENTION: Nate Alario, John Curtis Christian;

Thomas Allen, Benton; Lytton Arledge, West Monroe; Lenny

Cline, Archbishop Rummel; Tanner Conley, Fontainebleau;

Presley Courville, Barbe; Trey Davis, Higgins; Tristan Dehart,

Terrebonne; Connor Donnelly, Jesuit; Davis Emonet, Catholic;

Parker Franks, Neville; Troy Green, Slidell; Owen Galley, Sam

Houston; Kanyon Griffin, Acadiana; Hunter Guillot, Thibodaux;

Mason Hickman, Mandeville; David Griep, Ruston; Brock Laird,

Natchitoches Central; Lucas Lawrence, Catholic; Noah Lewis,

Catholic; Lawton Littleton, Barbe; Carson Malasovich, North-

shore; Chase Marcotte, Destrehan; J.P. Moak, Ruston; Wes Oats,

Pineville; Gavin Panks, Covington; Brayden Rachal, Alexandria;

Tyler Roark, West Monroe; Tyler Roach, Ruston; Logan Rogers,

H.L. Bourgeois; Koa Romero, Hahnville; Aidan Ryan, Covington;

Andrew Sharp, Captain Shreve; Slade Shove-Knox, Sulphur;

Connor Smith, Northshore; Austyn Taylor, Pineville; Abel

Thetford, Parkway; Brody Trosclair, Thibodaux; Bryce Wilson,

Chalmette; Zach Wilburn, Byrd.

Softball

Pos. Player, School Cl. Stats

P Makayla Escude, John Curtis Christian So. 21-5

P Abby Froelich, Dutchtown Sr. 24-9

P Kailyn Mire, Sam Houston So. 30-2

P Baleigh Moniz, Benton Fr. 23-5

C Layla Landry, Sam Houston So. .500

INF Ava Burkett, Destrehan Sr. .604

INF Madelyn Halle, Pineville Sr. .430

INF Chloe Krey, Mount Carmel Sr. .376

INF Cayden Tullier, East Ascension Jr. .500

OF Jadin Basco, Pineville So. .394

OF Da’Miaya Dunn, Live Oak Jr. .474

OF Miley Percle, John Curtis Christrian Sr. .491

UT Abby Dagro, Ponchatoula Sr. .538

UT Kinsley McInnis, John Curtis Christrian So. .422

UT Pressy White, Sulphur Sr. .520

UT Amiyah Wilson, Alexandria So. .494

UT Carolina Eidson, Sam Houston Sr. .495

OUTSTANDING PLAYER — Kailyn Mire, Sam Houston

COACH OF THE YEAR — Kelsey Baker, Benton

HONORABLE MENTION: Brianna Benecke, Haughton; Add-

alyn Burch, Pineville; Sarah Grace Buckels, Alexandria; Caroline

Butscher, Fontainebleau; Briley Byrnes, Pineville; Lilly Cooper,

Sr., Evangel Christian; Braylee Decoteau, St. Amant; McKenzie

Creel, East Ascension; Dylan Defee, Benton; Emersyn Disotell,

Benton; Kate Degruise, Central Lafourche; Addison Dickerson,

Thibodaux; Anna Doll, Northshore; Mallory Edwards; Lanie Es-

chette, Central Lafourche; Mia Graefenstein, Mandeville; Dakota

Howard, Parkway; Mia Impastato, Chapelle; Brazzi Jacob, Hahn-

ville; Jolie Lozano, Destrehan; Ella Kay, Barbe; Ella Hendrick,

Captain Shreve; Charlie Kyle, Sulphur; Briley Lovell, Southside;

Bailey Mackles, Slidell; Rheagan Montgomery, Ouachita; Addi-

son Martinez, Thibodaux; Aubrey Portie, Sam Houston; Charlee

Prothro, Haughton; Ashley Promes, Benton; Brooke Rabalais, St.

Amant; Morgan Robinson, Natchitoches Central; Ella Sanchez,

Northshore; Caroline Sciro, West Monroe; Addy Stein, Chapelle;

Kyla Stout, West Monroe; Emily Thibodeaux, Acadiana; Hayden

Traub, Mount Carmel; Megan Wicker, Covington; Harlee Ursy,

Walker; Catelyn Yeager, Covington.