2026 CENLA Baseball Season Previews
by Marshall Loeffler
ALEXANDRIA – The Hicks Pirates, with veteran players and an unmistakeable standard, are reset and reloaded for another shot at Sulpur, leaning on a senior-heavy roster, steady pitching and defense, and their decades-old emphasis on process and pride. Gary Williams, who’s entering his 20th year at the helm of one of Louisiana’s premier small-school programs, has guided the Pirates to multiple state championships and consistent playoff success. This year, he’s optimistic heading into 2026, with a team that returns nearly its entire core after graduating just two seniors.
“Pitching and defense is going to be there for us; we just need to hit the ball,” Williams said plainly. “Our pitching and our defense is definitely our strongest part and we just got to get the hitting to match.” The Pirates boast eight seniors—a “luxury” in Williams’ view. “All them guys pretty much have started with me since sixth grade… It’s like having another group of coaches on the field,” he explained. “They understand what we’re doing real quick.” Out of a total roster of 20 players, nine of them double as basketball players, so the team navigates those demands and embraces them as part of Hicks’ tradition. “Baseball and basketball are traditions at Hicks,” Williams noted. “They’re chomping at the bit to start baseball when it’s their time.”
Offense is the primary offseason focus; Williams felt last year’s hitting fell short. He said that he preaches consistent, quality at-bats: adjusting pitch by pitch, hitting behind runners, moving them over, and putting them in scoring position. “That’s the key to scoring for teams like us,” he stressed. Early non-district games against bigger schools with big arms will help sharpen that area, even if it means some early setbacks. Of course, pitching and defense remain the bedrock for Hicks, returning strong production in the infield, behind the plate, and on the mound.
Coach Williams and his staff avoid overcomplicating things—they stick to fundamentals, small-ball execution, and doing what they know works best for their roster. Baseball fans in Louisiana know that Pirate tradition runs deep: players in that program compete not just for each other but “for our community, for our families, for our school.” Fathers, uncles, and brothers wore the uniform on past championship, runner-up, and district dominant squads, fueling the understanding of what success resembles. Williams is strict on work ethic—”you put the work in or you don’t get to be on the field”—and builds success from that process.
The schedule is built to experience toughness, with no easy outs. District play for Hicks is what Williams calls “probably the toughest class B district there is in the state”, featuring stalwarts like Pitkin (who eliminated them last year and went on to win state), Anacoco, Elizabeth, and Fairview, creating “playoff-like atmospheres” from day one. Opening day will come with the Pirates ready to balance basketball playoffs and still hit the ground running on the diamond. “We’re going to give it our best and give it our all and I guarantee we will work hard,” Williams concluded.
