The Hahnville Lady Tigers are headed back to Sulphur.
HHS will make its first trip to the state softball tournament since 2013—that became official Thursday (April 20), when the 8th seeded Tigers rolled past No. 9 Fontainebleau, 14-3 in five innings in a Class 5A regional round game.
Hahnville (29-6) advances to the quarterfinals, where it will face the winner of the second round game between No. 1 seed Alexandria and No. 17 Dutchtown. Hahnville will play the winner at 5 p.m. next Friday (April 28) at Frasch Park in Sulphur.
“It’s pretty overwhelming, because you grow up, go out there and watch all the older girls play at state,” said Hahnville senior Pryscilla Prince. “Our senior class has been deprived of that the past four years. It’s definitely a team effort and everyone came out here and played for the seniors.”
The Tigers offense was locked in all day long. Hahnville scored six runs in the first inning and eight runs in the second to land an early knockout punch. The Tigers launched nine extra base hits during their two inning rampage, including a home run by Catherine Friloux and triples by Allison Plaisance and Bayleigh Baudouin. Hahnville batted around in each of the first two innings.
Friloux’s second inning home run, a towering two-run shot over Hahnville’s center field wall and banner, pushed the Tigers ahead 8-0 and ignited a run of eight straight Tigers reaching base.
“I knew I had a job to do. I had runners on and I had to do my job in that situation,” Friloux said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Winning pitcher Karly Taranto said seeing all those runs go up on the board gave her some extra charge on the mound.
“It’s just an awesome feeling knowing your teammates will back you up,” she said. “I feel like everyone knows we’re at the end of the season and we’re all pushing really hard.”
Hahnville coach Jerry Nugent said his team has the “toughness and grit” to perform at Sulphur.
“You can’t do it as individuals,” Nugent said. “You have to do it as a team, and that’s what these girls do. They’re playing their best ball at the right time. We seem to be hitting our stride offensively, playing within ourselves, but taking advantage of situations when they arise.”
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