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Karter Meaux is a 6’5 senior righthanded pitcher and first baseman for the Kaplan Pirates.  He is 3-2 on the mound on the season with a 3.0 ERA and 26 strikeouts. At the plate, he’s batting .415 with 17 RBI. He has a 3.8 GPA and wants to attend SLCC as a diesel mechanic.  After high school, he plans to have a career in that field.

 
Q: What led you to decide you want to be a diesel mechanic?  

 This year was the first actual class, but over the summers, I worked on the rice farms, and I was attracted to everything about them. They make good money, and I enjoyed being around them for the last couple of years.

 Q: Baseball is now the only sport you play.  What is it about baseball that captures you like no other sport does?

 It’s the atmosphere.  I like the feeling of winning in general.  Say you lose a football game; you must wait a week to play another game.  Baseball is day by day. If you lose a game, you can recover from it pretty much the next day.

  Q: In your four years at Kaplan, you have had three head baseball coaches. What has that been like for you and the seniors on this team?

 Last year was difficult, but Coach Jake (Faulk) was here during my freshman and sophomore years, so I already knew how he handled it. His coming back this year for the seniors was the best thing for us.

 Q: Do you feel y’all are a better team this year?

 We are way better.  We are smooth is fast.  That’s how we go off of, smooth is fast.  Our lineup right now is looking pretty smooth and pretty fast.

Q: What’s different about Coach Jake Faulk?

 He motivates us a lot more.   He doesn’t follow the negative.  He follows more of the positive.  It’s benefited my game a lot.  It’s my mind.  My head is clearer now.  I’m able to focus.

 Q: Do you play video games or do social media?

 No, I don’t.  I don’t get into any of that.  Facebook Marketplace is all I do.  My grandpa (Dale Meaux) taught me that stuff rots your brain.

 Q: What are you doing if you’re not on social media and not playing video games?

 I’m either helping on the crawfish dock, waiting for baseball practice to start, or watching YouTube when I’m not at school.

 Q: Did you say crawfish?

Yes, I work for Stelly’s Boiling Spot, where the fishermen bring their crawfish. We weigh them, sell them, and do everything else.

 
Q: Who do you credit with getting you into baseball?

My dad (Kelly Meaux). We started when I was young, and out of all the sports I played, he pushed me more toward baseball. That makes me enjoy it more. My mom (Renee LeMaire Meaux) keeps me in line and makes sure I’m where I need to be on time. She makes sure I have everything I need.

 
Q: Here’s your chance to tell the world once and for all:  Why, at a country-solid 6’5, don’t you play football?

 It’s exhausting, and it hurts my body to the point that I can’t be 100 percent for baseball season.

The Vermilion Catholic Eagles dropped their second District 6-A  game, falling to Ascension Episcopal 5-3 on Thursday.
VC’s two district losses are to Ascension Episcopal.
The Eagles are now 12-5 overall and 4-2 in the district, while Ascension is 18-2 and 6-0 in the district. Ascension is 18-2 overall and No. 3 in the power rankings.
VC drops to No. 6 in the Division IV Select power rankings

Ascension...5
VC.............3
After the fourth inning, Ascension led 5-1, and it stayed that way until VC scored two runs in the top of the seventh inning.
VC outhit Ascension 9-8
With each two hits were Jonathan Dartez,  Hudson Hebert,  and Ross Dartez.
Cole Albert was VC’s starting pitcher. He pitched three innings and allowed two hits and one earned run.
Alexander Marceaux pitched the final three innings and allowed eight hits and four earned runs.
Eagles with hits were Jackson Trahan, Bryce Lege,  and Will Simon

VC..................12
Wesminster.....2

Earlier in the week, VC crushed Westminster of Lafayette 12-2 on Tuesday. 
Vermilion Catholic got on the board in the bottom of the first inning after an error scored two runs, and Will Simon singled, scoring one run.
A ground out by Jackson Trahan extended the Vermilion Catholic lead to 4-0 in the bottom of the second inning.
Vermilion Catholic added to its early lead in the bottom of the third inning after Caden DeHart singled to center field, Ross Dartez hit a sacrifice fly, and Jonathan Dartez singled to right field, each scoring one run.

VC scored five runs on two hits in the bottom of the fifth inning. Dartez drew a walk, scoring one run; Dartez singled, scoring one run; Trahan was struck by a pitch, driving in a run; and Bryce Lege hit a sacrifice fly, scoring one run.
Pitcher Aidan Bertrand earned the win for VC.
 The hurler gave up two hits and two runs over five innings, striking out four and walking six. 
DeHart, Ross Dartez, and Hudson Hebert each collected two hits for VC.

In the next couple of years, Abbeville is expected to see the opening of a historic-looking hotel and a spacious 10,000-square-foot indoor venue connected to the hotel that can be used for weddings and concerts.
At Wednesday’s Abbeville Rotary Club meeting, Brad Colgin, owner of The Colgin Companies LLC in Lafayette, informed Rotarians on the gameplan for the old Riviana Rice Mill in Abbeville.
In December of 2023, Earl “Boo” Landry of Erath purchased the rice mill from Riviana and named it “Rice Quarter LLC.”
Since then, Landry has hired contractors to remove the asbestos from the rice mill along First Street. Other than that, there has been little movement at the closed rice mill.
At the Wednesday Rotary meeting, Colgin said that is about to change.
Colgin’s company purchases old mills throughout the United States, tears them down, and sells the metal, lumber and other equipment it can salvage.
He was introduced to Landry, and the two began working together to determine the best way to utilize the rice mill buildings and 16 acres of land on which they sit.

Colgin told the Rotary Club that work would soon begin on redoing the roof of the old packing plant building, which is located on the west side next to the Vermilion River.
The back section of the packing plant is a four-story building that was once a rice mill that opened around 1900.
By 2027, the four-story building will be converted into a hotel with balconies overlooking the Vermilion River. The front of the hotel will have a 10,000-square-foot, two-story venue that could be used for weddings and indoor concerts.
Each hotel floor will have rooms around 500 square feet in size with 13-foot high ceilings.
“They are big rooms,” Colgin said.
Clogin mentioned plans to develop a New Orleans-style outdoor space around the two oak trees. The courtyard will be spacious enough to accommodate 500 chairs and can be rented for weddings, parties, or concerts.
He said the historic-looking hotel and the large indoor and outdoor venues will be one of a kind.
“This will be like no place in Acadiana and Louisiana like this,” said Colgin.

Next to the hotel is a 30,000-square-foot blue metallic building that will remain intact. The plan is to use that building as a covered parking area for the hotel, with First Street as an entrance into the parking area.
Colgin closed the meeting by answering a question that many Rotarians may have been thinking about — how will Abbeville support the hotel and the indoor/outdoor venues?
“We are not counting on Abbeville to support a venture like this,” he said. “This is a destination location. This is also not just an Acadiana deal or a state deal. We are going to hire a marketing team to drive traffic. The venues in this place are going to be spectacular.”
While contractors are developing the hotel and indoor and outdoor venues, other contractors will be removing all of the tanks, storage bins and the old electrical plant next to the Vermilion River.
When all of that is removed, it will create parking for guests staying in the hotel.
Colgin did not touch on the future plans for the closed Riviana Rice Mill on the east side. He said the goal is first to get the hotel and venues up and running before they begin tackling the east side of the rice mill.

Visitors must press a doorbell to enter Abbeville City Hall since the doors are locked. Abbeville Mayor Roslyn White explained the reason for the new system implementation.
Starting this month, when visitors arrive at city hall, they will have to ring a doorbell and then explain what their business is.
A person in city hall is able to see and speak to the person at the front door using the newly installed Ring Doorbell Camera.
Mayor White said, “Like many other entities, we are looking at ways to enhance safety for our employees. We looked at a variety of safety measures. Given the design of the building, the new lock is the most effective way to increase safety for those working in the lobby area and beyond. 
“It  is similar to the system used in schools and the sheriff’s office.”
For the last two years, one must ring a doorbell to enter the Sheriff’s Annex Building downtown. Similarly, no one can enter a public or private school in Vermilion Parish without ringing a doorbell.
The Mayor said no recent incident called for locking the doors. She said it was all about the safety of the city employees.