COVINGTON • FOLSOM • LACOMBE • MADISONVILLE • MANDEVILLE • SLIDELL
ST. TAMMANY
N O L A.C O M
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W e d n e s d ay, au g u s t 21, 2024
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Slidell looking to revitalize youth sports BY KIM CHATELAIN
Contributing writer
The first step in an endeavor to revitalize youth sports facilities in Slidell was revealed on the City Council’s Aug. 13 agenda, which included the introduction of an ordinance that would authorize the public purchase of 24 acres of land from the Slidell Bantam Baseball Association.
The ordinance outlining the land purchase, which was only introduced and not discussed, will be up for a council vote at a later meeting. Mayor Greg Cromer has signed a purchase agreement with the association to acquire the property off Terrace Avenue and Rama Drive for $310,000, according to the ordinance. “We made the offer, and they (the group)
accepted it,” Cromer said the next day. The acquisition is contingent upon City Council approval. Council member Bill Borchert said the city donated 10 of the 24 acres to the group back in the 1980s. The organization later purchased an adjacent 14 acres to expand the baseball complex. In essence, the proposed land deal involves the group donating the 10 acres back to the
city and selling the 14 acres. The purchase price was arrived at after appraisals were conducted, officials said. For more than a year, Slidell officials has been working on a plan to improve and expand recreation facilities, building on what’s already in the city. The plan came about after city voters in
ä See SPORTS, page 2A
TINY WHEELS, BIG HEARTS
Racing trikes in Covington to fight pediatric cancer
PHOTOS BY BOBBY GILBOY
Riley Thigpen, center, starts the race. ä More photos. PAGE4A
Yale softball’s Ricciardone, Mull keep Slidell ties alive
Editor’s note: “Where are they now?” The St. Tammany Farmer asked that question about some of the best athletes in local sports history and then we went out and found them. Each edition this summer, we’ll reacquaint readers with one of these familiar faces. We’ll take a deep dive into the success stories that began in parish youth leagues, continued at local high schools and then colleges near and far. Many of these homegrown talents played professional sports, too, reaching the pinnacle of athletic achievement. This week, we feature Yale softball coach Laura Ricciardone and how she’s leading local talent to follow in her footsteps.
BY DARREN COOPER Contributing writer
It’s probably safe to say that Yale is the only Ivy League softball team that knows how to peel crawfish. But that’s what happens when head coach Laura Ricciardone and starting outfielder SJ Mull each hail from Slidell. In fact, grew up only a few streets apart in Eden Isles. “We played at Southern Miss my sophomore year and flew into New Orleans and we had a crawfish boil at my house,” remembered Mull, now a fifth-year senior. How did her Bulldog teammates do with the mudbugs? “They were a little scared,” Mull said laughing. Ricciardone was the pioneer, a power pitcher unlike many to ever hail from the northshore. Growing up with two older brothers, she jumped in and played every sport she could. Softball was the one that stuck. “My dad was our coach growing up and I got into pitching and I loved it,” Ricciardone said. “I loved the demand and the craft of it. I think my dad threw out his arm by the time I was 15 working with me.” By the time she was 15, Ricciardone was setting records at Pope John Paul II. She was a three-
PROVIDED PHOTO
Yale softball coach Laura Ricciardone, third from left, is surrounded by Mull family members Sarah, SJ and Curt. SJ starred for Northshore High and was recruited by Ricciardone, who prepped at Pope John Paul II High, to play for Yale. strikeouts and was the first player in school history to have a jersey retired. “It feels like it was such a long
time St. Tammany Parish Pitcher of the Year, and led the Jaguars to a state title in 2008. She still holds the school record for most career
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time ago,” Ricciardone said. “I knew I wanted to see what else was out
ä See YALE, page 2A
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