Lady Jays begin playoffs Monday

All four District 5-1A teams earned playoffs berths, which came as no surprise to St. Edmund head softball coach Thomas David.
St. Edmund (12-7. 1-4) will host No. 23 Northwood-Lena (11-14, 5-4) at 4 p.m. on Monday at Lady Jay Field.
“We knew our district would help prepare us for the playoffs,” David said. “Our district is a very competitive district that plays great softball.
“We wanted to play better than what we did,” the coach commented. “But hopefully facing quality pitching and good hitters will help us be ready for the playoffs.”
Top-seed Catholic High of Pointe Coupee (19-4. 6-0) will entertain No. 32 Haynesville (5-10, 5-2) at 3:30 p.m. on Monday.
No. 7 Sacred Heart of Ville Platte (13-8, 3-3) will entertain Highland Baptist (8-16, 2-8) at 4:30 p.m. while No. 13 False River (8-11, 1-4) will host No. 20 Lafayette Christian (11-10, 5-7) at 4:30 p.m.
In Class 3-A, the No. 6 Iota Lady Bulldogs (19-5, 10-0) will host No. 27 De La Salle (7-9, 3-2) at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.
No. 28 Church Point (9-13, 5-5) will travel to No. 5 North Vermilion (22-4, 8-2) at 4 p.m. on Monday.
In Class 2-A, No. 20 Mamou (12-9, 8-2) will visit District 4-2A rival No. 13 Kinder (17-6, 8-2).
The two teams shared wins in district earlier this season.
David said his team has been working to improve and get back to the way they played earlier in the season.
The Lady Jays opened the season with a 10-2 run before dropping four of five district games.
“We are hoping to get back to playing fundamentally sound softball,” he said. “If we don’t commit errors and throw strikes, we give ourselves a chance in every game.”
St. Edmund defeated South Cameron 10-2 last season in the playoff opener before falling to No. 4 Mangham, 5-2.
In 2013, the Lady Jays dropped a 2-1 bi-district decision to No. 4 Central Catholic of Morgan City.
The Lady Jays did not make the playoffs in 2012.
With a win over Northwood-Lena, St. Edmund will face the Sacred Heart - Highland Baptist winner in the regionals.
“We need to stay focus on the first opportunity,” the coach said. “Hopefully we can move to the next round.”