If there ever were any doubt that undefeated Alexandria Peabody would beat the Tioga boys basketball team, Markel Brown put those fears to rest in the first quarter when he scored 16 of the Warhorses’ 23 points.
Brown, who has committed to Oklahoma State, finished with a game-high 33 points in lifting Peabody to 28-0 overall in its District 4-4A opener.
"What can I say?" Peabody coach Charles Smith said. "When you have a thoroughbred, you let him run."
Kalvin Balque added 12 points and T’Roy Jones contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds. Tioga guard Rodney Williams scored a team-high 15 points.
"We always want to come out and make a statement, every game," Brown said. "We're getting ready for the playoffs."
Track and field: Meet records broken, tied
In qualifying for next month’s state indoor track and field meet, two athletes set or tied records at the LSU High School Indoor Qualifier.
Kaitlynn Flattman of Benton set a meet record in the girls 1,600-meter run with a winning time of 5 minutes, 5.9 seconds. Kim Francis tied the meet record in the girls 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.24.
Benton’s T.K. Fleming was the only individual double winner at the LSU Carl Maddox Field House, as he took the boys long jump at 23 feet, 10½ inches and the triple jump at 47-1¼. Baton Rouge High won the girls 4x200 relay in 1:45.12 and the 4x400 relay in 4:05.94.
Tiffany George of Zachary and Justin Breaux of Donaldsonville each won 55-meter dashes in their first meets of the season. Breaux claimed the boys crown in 6.53, while George finished first in 7.2.
"There’s so much competition," Breaux said. "I’ve been practicing hard, and I guess I really was ready."
"It was so fast and everybody (was) so close together," George said. "I had to get used to it. I’m happy with my time, but I think I can do better."
Football: Fisher coach steps down
After 11 years as Lafitte Fisher’s head football coach, Duane Foret has announced his decision to retire. Foret will remain as head baseball coach and director of student activities.
Foret cited family considerations as the primary reason. Foret is in his 15th year as head baseball coach and as a faculty member.
"I've got real mixed emotions about it, but I'm comfortable with it," Foret said. "I'm leaving on my terms. I think 11 years is a long time to be (coaching) two sports and being (school) disciplinarian."
Fisher was 4-5 in 2009 and 35-70 under Foret, who took five of his teams to the Class 2A state playoffs.
Memphis connection to BR continues
New Memphis coach Larry Porter collected two more commitments from Baton Rouge players after already having secured one from Capitol High Academy running back Frankie Jackson.
The latest to cast their lot with the former LSU assistant coach were Christian Life’s Kevin Wright and Southern Lab’s Taurean Nixon. Nixon is a 6-foot, 180-pound cornerback, while the 6-3, 215-pound Wright projects as a receiver after having played quarterback in high school.
"Coming from LSU, he knows how to relate with people in this area," Wright said of Porter.
"He’s trying to get out and get good players who are pretty much under the radar," Nixon said. "He’s trying to get us up there in a D-I program and maybe win a championship and a couple of bowl games."
Also focusing on one area was Northwestern State, which received commitments from cousins off of Haynesville’s Class 1A state championship team. Running back D.J. Lewis and defensive end Justin Evans announced their decisions to attend the school in Natchitoches next season.
Lewis ran for a touchdown in the title-game victory over South Plaquemines and finished his senior year with 1,408 yards rushing and 25 touchdowns. Lewis carries a 3.7 grade-point average, is academically qualified and plans to major in broadcast journalism. The 6-4, 225-pound Evans made a key third-down tackle for a loss against South Plaquemines. He has clocked a 40-yard dash time of 4.6 seconds. Evans is the younger brother of current San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Demetric Evans.
Cross country: Primeaux collects another award
Not only did Philip Primeaux of Baton Rouge Catholic High win his second consecutive Class 5A state title in November, but now he has a second Gatorade Louisiana Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year award to his credit.
Catholic repeated as state champion with Primeaux having won in 16:24.1. He also finished first in the St. Michael Bayou Boogie, the St. Joseph’s Invitational, the Catholic High Invitational and the Baton Rouge Metro Meet.
With a 3.7 grade-point average, Primeaux is an all-state singer in the school chorus, a member of the National Honor Society and a regular volunteer at a local homeless shelter as part of service.
"The last two years, he’s just been one of the most dominant runners we’ve ever had here," veteran Catholic coach Pete Boudreaux said. "He’s dominated all the competition with few exceptions. The bigger the competition, the better he ran.
"He’s a guy that goes out early and puts everybody away. That’s his style. For two years, it’s worked very, very well for him."
