Tom Dodge
Basketball fans looking for games to watch during the holiday break, St. Edmund will hold the a basketball tournament next week with 10 boys teams and five girls teams.
The Brad Fontenot Memorial Holiday Shootout at St. Edmund is a new adventure for the basketball programs.
“We want to build a tournament and bring teams to St. Ed’s,” Blue Jay head boys coach Nick Trosclair said. “I think this will be an exciting tournament.
“I think we have a great line-up of teams,” Trosclair said. “We will have local teams with Eunice High, Mamou and Iota along with other teams from the area – Westminster, Notre Dame and Northside Christian.”
Hackberry, South Cameron and Vermilion Catholic will also compete in the 10-team boys bracket.
“I think the games will be very competitive and entertaining to watch,” the coach said.
Trosclair said even with the COVID-19 protocols, he thinks the teams will still know their fans are in the stands.
“A bracket tournament with teams battling for a trophy and a championship always makes for a good tournament,” Trosclair said. “We still have a three-game guarantee because of the consolation bracket.”
The tournament will tip off at 10 a.m. Monday with the Eunice Bobcats taking on the Iota Bulldogs.
Westminster Christian Academy will face Northside Christian at 11:30 p.m.
The winners of the first two games will battle at 10:30 a.m. in game 7 on Tuesday.
The losers will take on each other at 9 a.m. Tuesday.
Mamou and South Cameron will tip off at 2:30 p.m.
The boys’ first round will continues at 4 p.m. Monday when Vermilion Catholic faces Notre Dame.
The Mamou/South Cameron winner will face the VC/Notre Dame winner at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
The host Blue Jays will take on Hackberry at 5:30 p.m. Monday.
The winners will play again at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
The losers will play at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.
The losers of games 3 and 5 will take on each other at 12 p.m. Tuesday.
Opponents in the losers’ bracket games could be switched to avoid a repeat match-up.
Kinder will play a game at 5 p.m. Wednesday with an opponent yet to be determined.
The loser’s bracket final will tip off at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
The boys championship game will tip off at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
The girls will compete in a five-team round robin format.
The St. Edmund Lady Jays will take South Cameron at 1 p.m. Monday.
The Opelousas Catholic Lady Vikings will take on Notre Dame at 3 p.m. Tuesday.
The round robin will conclude with two games on Wednesday, beginning with South Cameron against Opelousas Catholic at 10:30 a.m.
St. Edmund will face Notre Dame at 3 p.m.
Trosclair said the tournament is named after a former team mate Bradley Allen Fontenot.
Fontenot, a 1996 SEH graduate, passed away on June 20 at the age of 42.
“He graduated the year after me,” Trosclair said. “We grew up together playing little league ball and he was a great athlete for St. Ed’s.”
Fontenot was a four year multisport athlete and three year letterman. He received honors for both baseball and football by being named to the LA Allstate Team.
He went on to earn a baseball scholarship to Northwestern State University, where he played for 3 years and transferred to LSU graduating in May 2001.
Fontenot is survived by his parents, Peggy and Kendall Fontenot of Eunice.
“We wanted to honor Brad for what he meant to St. Ed’s sports and the school,” Trosclair said. “Mr. Kendall – one of the local State Farm agents – wanted to sponsor the tournament in memory of his son.”