More than one girl in south Louisiana has felt a tie to the Louisiana Ragin' Cajun softball program.
The Cajuns have been the model for success at the highest level of the college game for years, and young players have grown up wanting to emulate their skills.
But Teurlings Catholic's Monique Prejean has an even closer bond, one that will be solidified today when she signs a letter of intent with UL.
Prejean's older sister Lacy is an assistant coach with the Cajuns, and it's a natural fit to bring her talented younger sibling into the fold.
"I look forward to it," Monique Prejean said. "Lacy is a great coach, and I know she's going to push me to the next level. She knows my limits, what I can do.
"On the field, she's not my sister, she's a coach."
Lacy Prejean starred at Carencro High before helping Alabama to the Women's College World Series as a senior catcher in 2003, the same year UL last reached that stage.
Cajun co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief aim to get the Cajuns back to Oklahoma City again this season, and that kind of focus is what the younger Prejean likes about it.
"It's an awesome program," Prejean said. "They practice to win a national championship. That's the goal. Every year UL is in the Top 25 or Top 10. I'd like to help them come together as a team to win a national championship."
When Prejean was a freshman, Teurlings carried an unbeaten record into the state championship game, only to suffer a 1-0 defeat.
"We were so close, it gives you a taste," Prejean said. "That was the highest I had ever gotten, and we weren't able to return there my sophomore and junior years.
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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com