LHSAA Unveils New Homes for Boys Basketball, Wrestling and Powerlifting Championships
by Robin Fambrough // GeauxPreps.com Contributor
Once the LHSAA announced that its boys basketball tournament is set to return to Lafayette’s Cajundome for the first time since 2011, Ben Berthelot’s cell phone exploded.
“I got so many calls and texts. The people here are very passionate about this event,” Berthelot said. “Many people who were involved with the tournament when it was here before are still around.
“They remember those days and what was done to help raise the standard for the tournament. They’re excited to have it coming back, and they want to help.”
Berthelot, the president and CEO of the Lafayette Visitors and Convention Bureau, said the Cajundome was awarded a two-year bid to host one of the LHSAA’s premier events. The tourney was previously held at Burton Coliseum in Lake Charles from 2014 through 26.
The basketball site change was one of three the LHSAA announced on social media early Tuesday afternoon. Its Sugar Bowl championship for wrestling is set for the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, while its powerlifting moves to the West Monroe Sports and Events Complex. Both bids are also for two years.
The Cajundome previously hosted the LHSAA boys basketball tourney from 1997-2011. The tourney saw substantial growth and set attendance records, including a six-day total of 69,269 fans in 1999.
Though the tourney continued to attract crowds of more than 40,000 fans throughout its run in Lafayette, it moved to Ruston in 2012 and Monroe in 2013 before settling in Lake Charles.
During a period when select/nonselect schools separated their boys and girls tourneys, the Cajundome hosted select boys’ games. The Lafayette facility has also hosted the LHSAA’s volleyball tournament since 2021.
“I think several things factored into this,” Berthelot said. “We’ve had an interest in bringing the tournament back for several years.“ But I think the fact we have the volleyball tournament here and hosted some boys basketball games was important too. It gave the LHSAA a chance to see the upgrades we’ve made to the facility and to work with us again.
“If you ask student athletes and coaches, I don’t think anyone would tell you that this is not the nicest facility in the state. I think in attendance and ticket sales, the LHSAA has a chance to do very well.”
The boys’ basketball move to the Cajundome comes as welcome news for coaches. East Ascension boys basketball coach Troy Green, the president of the Louisiana High School Basketball Coaches Association, eagerly praised the move.
“That’s really a big thing for us as coaches,” Green said. “The Cajundome is one helluva venue. And on top of that, it’s centrally located near two major (interstate) highways (I-10 and I-49).
“I think it’s a win-win for us. It’s less travel for most teams, which is so important these days, and for the fans.”
Wrestling, Powerlifting
The move to the Morial Convention Center for Wrestling comes after a four-year stint at the Bossier City’s Brookshire Grocery Arena.
Powerlifting returns to the Monroe area for the first time in several years. It was held at the Kenner Pontchartrain Center for the last two years.
The event was previously hosted by West Monroe and the University of Louisiana at Monroe. The West Monroe Sports and Events Complex is a new facility.