MCHS boys basketball team forced to forfeit three games

Morgan City High School’s boys basketball team has been ordered by the Louisiana High School Athletic Association to forfeit three victories due to the use of two ineligible players in
a span of seven games.
In a ruling issued Monday, the LHSAA said Morgan City must forfeit victories against South Terrebonne on Jan. 22 in Bourg, Assumption High School on Jan. 29 on the road and South Lafourche on Feb. 2 in Morgan City, games in which the student- athletes participated in.
In all, the unnamed players participated in seven games, but the other four were losses — a Jan. 11 contest against E.D. White, a Jan. 15 contest versus South Lafourche, a Jan.
19 contest against Ellender and a Jan. 26 contest versus Vandebilt Catholic, according to first-year Morgan City High School head coach Robert Lee
The LHSAA ruling comes after Morgan City self-reported a violation of the LHSAA’s scholastic requirements on Wednesday.
“It was an oversight between the grade-point average and credits that they needed, and we found the discrepancy and we turned it in right away. … Unfortunate for the other kids
on the team, but it was an honest mistake,” Morgan City High School Athletic Director Scott Tregle said.
The school was assessed a total fine of $400, placed on administrative probation for a year and the two students are ineligible to participate in high school sports at all levels at Morgan City High School until they meet the LHSAA academic requirements, according to the LHSAA ruling.
If they regain their eligibility, the students still are ineligible in boys basketball for the same number of games they participated in as ineligible students, meaning they must sit out the initial seven boys basketball regular season contests for the 2016-17 season.
The LHSAA also ordered Lee to either attend the next available LHSAA Handbook Certification class or pass the LHSAA NFHS Online Fundamentals of Coaching course.
“It was just a misunderstanding and an oversight that it was fortunate that we were able to catch it and correct it,” Lee said.
While the Tigers were 14-13 overall and 3-4 in district before the penalties were assessed, they now are 11-16 overall and 0-7 in league play.
Lee said it is “pretty much a long shot” making of making the Class 4A postseason now.
“We have three games left, so hopefully we can win all three and then see where it stands after that,” Lee said.