New Orleans High School Golf Gaining Louisiana’s Respect

The Jesuit Blue Jays under Coach Chad Laborde and his assistant Owen Seiler won the 2010 Louisiana High School Athletic Association Championship by a commanding 14 strokes.

The team was led by individual medalist junior Myles Lewis with a three under score of 141 with scores of 69-72 for his third consecutive individual title.  The tournament was held over the challenging Atchafalaya Golf Course in Patterson. 

This win marks first state crown since 1999 for the Blue Jays who are looking good to repeat in 2011.  In fact, Laborde was a member of the 1998 team that also won state.

Keying the win was a strong third place individual finish by sophomore Taylor Billings with scores of 71-72 for a one under 143.  Peyton Vitter had a solid 73 in the last round for a total of 150.  Lewis and Billings were named to the 1st team All-State, and Vitter was named to 2nd team All-State.  Rounding out the team were Dennis Occhipinti and Sean Flynn.  Other members of the team are Austin Schillaci and Owen Seiler. 

“The team had their ups and downs, but we really grew as a team,” noted Laborde. “We had a really good chemistry.”

The Blue Jays gained momentum by winning regionals at Lakewood and carried it all the way to state.  This is a really good golf team and make New Orleans proud.

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Mount Carmel under Coach Jay Ellerbusch came very close to making it a sweep for both the boys and girls in winning state titles.  The Cubs finished one stroke behind St. Thomas More.  The team was led by junior Pair Noibanchong whose second day even par 73 was the low round of the day.  She finished the tournament tied for third.

Mandeville’s sophomore Elise Bradley won the individual title for the second straight year with scores of 70 and 79 earning a win by two strokes over Allison Kippers of Zachary and three over Noibanchong. Jennifer Nguyen of Slidell’s Salmen Spartans came in with scores of 79-76 for a seventh place finish.  The championship was held at Alexandria Golf and Country Club.

The future looks really good for both Jesuit and Mount Carmel as they will be bringing back many of the same players for next season.  Go Blue Jays and Cubs! We look forward to 2011 and New Orleans being the best in high school golf in Louisiana!