The Acadiana Advocate 05-30-2026

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2026 LEGISLATURE

LANDRY SIGNS NEW CONGRESSIONAL MAP

Tuesday hearing weighs school’s future Comeaux High’s closure again up for discussion

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Gov. Jeff Landry speaks Tuesday during a news conference at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Landry signed into law Louisiana’s new congressional map that eliminates one of the state’s two majority-Black voting districts on Friday.

After a month of fierce debates, it eliminates one majority-Black district

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

Gov. Jeff Landry signed into law Louisiana’s new congressional map that eliminates one of the state’s two majority-Black voting districts, hours after the Louisiana Legislature passed it Friday and following a month of passionate debate and marathon public hearings.

But before the map can be used in November’s midterm elections, it must survive court challenges, potentially from groups at both ends of the political spectrum.

The sprint to draw a new map effectively began one month ago, when the U.S. Supreme Court released a watershed decision weakening a key provision of the federal Voting Rights Act, which for de-

cades had driven states with a history of racial discrimination to draw majority-Black voting districts.

The justices invalidated Louisiana’s previous map with two majority-Black districts. And they all but banned map-drawers from using race as a factor to draw the lines of voting districts, saying that doing so is typically unconstitutional.

That decision sparked redistricting in Louisiana and a number of other Southern states that are now allowed to dismantle African American congressional districts.

The unusual cascade of mid-decade redistricting was also prompted in significant part by President Donald Trump’s calls to Republicanled states to draw new voting maps

Legislature passes budget bills package

Pay raises not included for teachers; reserve fund tapped

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

The Louisiana Legislature passed a package of budget bills Friday that will give pay raises to firefighters, judges and corrections officers, and draw over $800 million from a reserve fund to pay for infrastructure improvements, economic development initiatives, local projects and other programs.

ä See MAP, page 3A

ä See BUDGET, page 3A

There will be a public hearing Tuesday regarding the closure of Comeaux High School, according to an agenda published Friday by the Lafayette Parish School Board.

The hearing is scheduled for 3 p.m. Tuesday at the school district office, 202 Rue Iberville.

The Lafayette Parish School Board almost closed the school in 2024. Then, on March 12, the board brought the closure up again, with only a few days’ warning, and voted to close it at the end of the current school year.

Students would be sent to either Acadiana High, Lafayette High or Southside High and the campus would be repurposed for a career center.

The board rescinded the vote in April during a lawsuit filed by parents of Comeaux High students alleging the board violated its own rules for shuttering schools.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal ruled May 5 that the School Board gave the plaintiffs in a lawsuit most of what they sought when the board rescinded the vote.

By voting to undo its March 12 vote to close the school, the appeals court wrote, “the School Board acknowledged its error and gave the plaintiffs most of the very things sought in this suit.”

The school system’s communications director, Tracy Wirtz, in response to a request for comment after the appeals court ruling, wrote, “The School Board will advise the superintendent on the appropriate next steps regarding Comeaux High School.

Any future actions, including potential hearings or agenda items, will be determined through that process and communicated publicly once finalized.”

ä See SCHOOL, page 3A

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BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

U.S. adult cigarette smoking rate hits low

NEW YORK — The cigarette smoking rate among U.S. adults dropped to another all-time low last year, with 1 in 11 adults saying they were current smokers, according to government survey data released this week.

Cigarette smoking is a risk factor for lung cancer, heart disease and stroke, and it’s long been considered the leading cause of preventable death.

The preliminary findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were based on survey responses from more than 24,200 adults. In the survey, CDC officials defined current cigarette smoking as smoking at least 100 cigarettes in a lifetime and now smoking every day or some days.

In the mid-1960s, 42% of U.S. adults were smokers. The rate has been gradually dropping for decades, due to cigarette taxes, tobacco product price hikes, smoking bans, public education campaigns and changes in the social acceptability of lighting up in public. Last year, it was 9%, according to the new survey.

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Kennedy Center changes blocked Judge rules Trump’s name was illegally added, stops closure

BY MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and STEVEN SLOAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON — A federal judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center and blocked the administration from closing the cultural and arts venue for major renovations — the latest legal setback for Trump’s efforts to leave his personal mark on the landscape of the nation’s capital.

Trump said in response that he’s backing away from his proposed renovation and returning control of the arts institution to Congress.

“Unless I am free to do what I do better than anyone else, bring this Institution back, physically, financially, and artistically, I have no interest in continuing what could only be a hopeless journey into

‘NEVER NEVER LAND,’” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in Washington, D.C., ruled that the Kennedy Center board’s March 16 vote to close the facility was “ill-informed and seemingly preordained” with no regard for its legal obligations.

The administration had announced the work would begin in July and last approximately two years, but Cooper’s ruling halts those plans for now.

“The trustees might have assessed the propriety of closure in a number of prudent ways. This was not one,” he wrote.

Cooper also concluded that the board “overstepped its statutory bounds” by unilaterally adding Trump’s name to the center. Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it, he said.

The judge, who was nominated to the bench by Democratic President Barack Obama, ordered the defendants to remove Trump’s name from the institution’s façade

and any “official materials,” such as digital or physical signs, within two weeks.

“May the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts be renamed absent Congressional authorization? The answer, plain from the face of the statute, is no.

Nor can any other individual be memorialized on the front portico of the building,” Cooper wrote.

Trump said the judge “should be ashamed of himself” in a social media post hours after the decision was issued.

Roma Daravi, the Kennedy Center’s vice president of public relations, said Friday the institution is “confident that on appeal the court will uphold the Board’s will to recognize President Trump’s historic contributions to our nation’s cultural center.” She said the decision would be reviewed “carefully.”

“Though the reality remains — the Center requires an urgent and significant restoration — a truth that even the plaintiff acknowledges,” Daravi said.

Cooper held hearings in late

Kenya court halts U.S. plan for Ebola quarantine facility

Ghana criminalizes the promotion of LGBTQ acts ACCRA, Ghana — Ghana’s parliament passed a bill Friday that would impose prison terms of up to 10 years for people who promote LGBTQ activities, legislation that has long been pushed by religious groups in the West African country but condemned by human rights advocates.

The bill, which is expected to be signed into law by President John Dramani Mahama, also would impose prison terms of three years for people who engage in LGBTQ acts.

Ghana is joining a growing list of African countries enacting laws proscribing homosexuality.

Such laws enjoy popular support in many conservative African countries.

The legislation bans “promoting, sponsoring or advocating” LGBTQ acts, and the funding of LGBTQ groups and activities.

It also provides for a five-year prison term for someone who runs a brothel for prohibited sexual activity.

Supporters of the bill say it protects what they describe as Ghanaian family values and cultural norms, while critics say it violates constitutional rights and could encourage discrimination and abuse against sexual minorities.

Bus hits cars on I-95 in Virginia, killing 5 people A bus crashed into vehicles slowing for a work zone on Interstate 95 in Virginia early Friday, killing five people and injuring dozens, authorities said.

The crash happened at about 2:35 a.m. on southbound I-95 in Stafford County, near Quantico.

All five of the people who died were in vehicles hit by the bus, and 44 people were taken to hospitals, including three in critical condition, police said.

State police said there were “approximately” 34 passengers on the bus.

“We’ve got patients in multiple hospitals. We’ve got the driver at a hospital here,” said Peyton Vogel, a Federal Transit Administration spokesperson who was on the scene. “I’ve got to say, this is one of the most tragic things I’ve ever seen. Absolutely tragic.”

Four of the fatalities were in one car, which caught fire. State police said the victims were a 45-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman, a 13-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, all from Greenfield, Massachusetts. Their names were not released by police, but a statement from the school the children attended in Greenfield said they were Dmitri and Ecaterina Doncev and their daughter, Emily, and son, Mark.

The fifth victim, a 25-year-old woman from Worcester, Massachusetts, was in an SUV that was struck by the bus.

State police identified the bus driver as Jing S. Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York. Charges are pending, authorities said.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on X that Dong was an American citizen originally from China who got his commercial driver’s license two years ago in New York.

April for parallel lawsuits challenging the project. One was filed by a group of cultural and historic preservation organizations. The other was brought Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat who serves as an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center’s board. He ruled in favor of Beatty’s request but rejected the other challenge.

Justice Department attorneys said renovation plans for the building are limited in scope and well within the board’s authority to make without needing outside approvals.

Mike Floca, the Kennedy Center’s executive director and chief operating officer, spent several weeks during the spring walking a bipartisan group of lawmakers and their staffs, along with journalists and Washington city officials, through the expansive building that sprawls across 1.5 million square feet.

The tours were intended to show that the Kennedy Center, which began construction in 1965, was in genuine need of an overhaul.

BY EVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JULIO CORTEZ

Damage is visible following an apartment complex fire Friday in Dallas.

Firefighters: Evacuation was planned before blast

BY JAMIE STENGLE and JULIO CORTEZ Associated Press

DALLAS — Firefighters responding to reports of a gas leak at a Dallas apartment complex had already arrived and were preparing to evacuate residents when the building exploded in a massive fireball, killing three people and injuring several more, the city’s fire chief said Friday.

Dallas Fire-Rescue Chief Justin Ball said the first group of four firefighters arrived within two minutes of the call reporting the gas leak on Thursday.

“Right before they were going to enter and evacuate, it exploded,” Ball said.

Firefighters had been on scene for about 10 minutes, conducting necessary safety protocols that include blocking off the street, finding the leak, donning protective gear and setting up a water supply, he said, describing their actions as “heroics.”

“No time was wasted,” Ball insisted.

“That takes time to put all the safety protocols in place. I would be criticizing them if they had not done that.”

The explosion shook nearby homes and the resulting inferno razed the two-story complex. A child and two other people were killed and at least five people were injured and sent to hospitals. No firefighters were injured, Ball said.

The building’s 22 units were occupied by 19 families. Ball said authorities searched the charred wreckage late into Thursday night and early Friday morning with drones, cadaver dogs and specialized urban rescue teams, and did not expect to find any more victims.

“There is nobody unaccounted for or we’d still be searching,” Ball said. “We’ve had no one come to us and say, ‘Our fam-

ily member is missing.’ ” Several blocks of streets around the explosion site were still closed off by police cars and police tape Friday. The smell of smoke lingered over the area as law enforcement officials and workers in bright yellow vests circled the rubble of what was once the apartment building.

The cause of the gas leak before the explosion is still unknown.

The National Transportation Safety Board said a team of eight investigators arrived Friday. The agency investigates gas pipeline accidents, and said initial reports indicated a contractor had damaged an underground gas pipeline.

Atmos Energy, a natural gas provider in the area, said service to the neighborhood remained shut off, and company officials were working with investigators on-site.

An attorney for the apartment owner said the building was being sold to a buyer who planned to build a new housing unit. He said an engineering firm hired by that company struck the gas line while doing soil testing.

Phone and email messages left with an engineering company that the complex’s owner said was doing soil testing were not immediately returned.

Sherry Woods, who lives in an apartment across an alleyway from the fire site, said Friday she was sitting outside her front door when she and her boyfriend smelled what they believed to be gas.

Moments later, the explosion nearly knocked her down.

“All you heard was ‘boom.’ I shook like something was hitting me. It was scary to hear something like that. I felt the building shake,” Woods said.

Climbers who fell near mountain pass dead

BY BECKY BOHRER and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska — Three climbers on Alaska’s Mount McKinley who fell near a treacherous pass on North America’s tallest peak have died, a Latvian mountaineering group announced Friday. A fourth climber was rescued.

The four were members of a Latvian mountaineering expedition, the group said. They were part of a seven-person team traversing a route known for its exposed sections where many injuries and deaths have occurred over the years when they fell Wednesday, the National Park Service has said.

The climber who was rescued was

brought off the mountain by Denali National Park and Preserve search and rescue personnel late Thursday afternoon, the park service said Friday.

The fall happened near Denali Pass, which is about 18,200 feet. McKinley stands at about 20,310 feet. The three others in the climbing group tended to those who fell before returning to camp, the park service has said.

The group was on the West Buttress route, the most popular path to the summit. It’s known for its crevasses, steep ice and exposed ridges.

Two other climbers who were not with the group that fell were evacuated from the mountain by helicopter Wednesday, according to the park service.

NAIROBI, Kenya — A court in Kenya on Friday suspended a U.S. plan to establish a quarantine facility for Americans exposed to a rare type of Ebola virus spreading in Congo, following a backlash by medical workers and activists.

U.S. administration officials said on Thursday that the U.S. was planning to send Americans who are exposed to Ebola while abroad to a new facility in Kenya instead of flying them home. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to share the administration’s plans. They said the facility would be at Laikipia Air Base and would be operational with 50 quarantine beds by Friday.

The Kenyan government said it was in discussions with the U.S. on support for Ebola preparedness, but declined to address whether the country would

establish a treatment facility for Americans. The U.S. government intends to commit $13.5 million toward Kenya’s Ebola preparedness efforts, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.

The High Court in Nairobi on Friday put a stop to any deal on the Ebola facility until petitions against it are heard on Tuesday.

An organization formed to defend Kenya’s Constitution, Katiba Institute, and the Kenya Law Society separately challenged any presence of Ebola-related facilities. The Kenya Law Society asked the court to nullify any agreements signed between the U.S. and Kenya on the project, citing public health risks and a lack of public participation.

It also said that Kenya lacks “the high-containment infrastructure required to safely manage such a facility, exposing the public to serious health risks.”

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SCHOOL

Continued from page 1A Like many other school districts across the U.S., the Lafayette Parish school system has seen a decline in enrollment, which ultimately impacts its budget.

That decline is from a combination of declining birth rates, a national trend, and an increase in school choice options in Lafayette, primarily a growing public charter school scene.

MAP

Continued from page 1A favoring more GOP candidates, so Republicans can hang onto their razor-thin majority in the U.S. House after the midterms.

Black voters overwhelmingly favor Democratic candidates, so political leaders in Republican states seized on the Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate Blackmajority districts and draw new maps favoring Republican candidates.

There are six congressional districts in Louisiana’s map.

The blueprint approved Friday has one Democraticleaning district anchored in New Orleans that stretches up along the Mississippi River to Baton Rouge and is majority-Black. Democratic U.S. Rep Troy Carter currently represents that district.

Lawmakers got rid of the majority-Black district currently represented by Democratic U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields, which had stretched from Baton Rouge in the south up to Shreveport Fields in the north.

In its place is a Baton Rougeanchored, Republican-leaning district. The map also keeps intact four other GOPleaning districts.

Fierce protests

BUDGET

Continued from page 1A Even so, budget negotiations are not over yet: missing from the state budget is $200 million to fund permanent pay raises for teachers.

Gov. Jeff Landry has promised that he will work with the Legislature in the coming months to find a way to foot the bill for the raises. That could involve taking money out of the Minimum Foundation Program, a formula that determines how much money goes to school districts.

If nothing is done, teachers and school support staff stand to lose $2,000 and $1,000 stipends, respectively, that they have received for the last three years.

Other public employees had more luck. The budget includes $10,000 raises for firefighters who deal with wildfires, according to state Rep. Jack McFarland, RJonesboro, who plays a key role in negotiating a state spending plan as chair of the House Appropriations Committee.

Currently, those firefighters make $28,000, he said.

Entry-level corrections officers, known as cadets,

that require major repairs.

In the last five years, LPSS has replaced three school buildings in their entirety — Prairie Elementary, Carencro Bob Lilly Elementary and Lafayette High.

In 2024, the School Board hired a strategic planner, Civic Solutions Group, to assess its facilities and programs. The group ultimately recommended 14 actions for the district to implement, including consolidating and closing schools.

Comeaux High has had declining student enroll-

including students, voters, civil and voting rights activists, and Democratic Party leaders and elected officials — many of whom protested bitterly against the Republican plan to get rid of Louisiana’s second majority-Black congressional district.

Some told GOP lawmakers that their decision to get rid of the district was immoral in a state whose population is one-third Black. They said such a change undermined decades of hard-fought social and political gains, won in the face of violence and systematic and legal oppression against African Americans whose history in the country is rooted in slavery.

At one hearing, the only four Black congressmen Louisiana has elected since Reconstruction appeared together to speak out against the map.

The meetings occasionally turned volatile as protesters chanted in the halls of the Capitol, lawmakers leveled accusations of racism, and members of the public sometimes shouted at or belittled lawmakers to their faces.

With the governor’s backing and with Republican supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature, Democrats never had a real chance to block the map approved Friday.

The Legislature also officially rescheduled this year’s congressional elections: An open “jungle” primary will be held Nov. 3 and any runoff will take place Dec. 12. Qualifying is scheduled Aug. 5-7.

in its opinion gave tacit approval to that map.

Morris and other Republican lawmakers handling negotiations over the new map emphasized that politics — and not race — were the guiding force behind the way they were drawing new district lines.

“The goal is to get as much Republican representation in Congress as we can,” said Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter, a key Republican leader in the redistricting effort. “We didn’t use race as a factor.”

He added that Louisiana is merely doing what other states have done to gain more GOP seats.

In avoiding any mention of race, lawmakers sought to comply with the high court’s ruling — and prepare for legal challenges from groups on the left seeking to frame the new map configuration in racial terms and from those on the right unsatisfied with a map that has a district where Black voters hold a clear majority.

An uncertain future

Republican lawmakers in the Legislature said repeatedly that, in light of the Supreme Court ruling, they were prohibited from using race to draw the new congressional map.

As a starting point, they used a map the Legislature approved in 2022 that had five majority-White, Republican-leaning districts and one majority-Black, Democratic-leaning district.

Sen. Jay Morris, RWest Monroe, who sponsored the map legislation, SenMorris ate Bill 121, argued throughout the process that the Supreme Court

While Landry quickly signed the map into law Friday, a group of voters has already signaled that it’s prepared to ask a federal court to help draw a map different than the one in SB121.

Those White voters, known as the “Callais plaintiffs,” sued Louisiana over the previous map adopted in 2024 with two majority-Black districts, arguing the addition of a second Black district was racially discriminatory and unconstitutional.

They won that argument in the recent watershed Supreme Court case, Louisiana v. Callais, and the justices sent it back down to the lower federal district court to oversee this year’s mapdrawing process.

This week in legal filings, the Callais plaintiffs threatened to ask the district court to oversee another court-directed map-drawing process “that fully complies with” the Supreme Court decision.

They said the one majority-Black district in the map approved Friday doesn’t meet the new standard set by the high court.

Meanwhile, Black legislative leaders have also said they are evaluating a lawsuit over the new map.

“It intentionally dilutes the representation for Black voters across the state,”

will have their hourly pay bumped from $17.50 to $20.50. Cadets have one of the highest turnover rates of any state employees, and officials hope the pay bump will ultimately save money by cutting down on overtime costs.

And district, appellate and Supreme Court judges secured permanent raises ranging from $10,000 to $12,000. They had received temporary pay supplements last year; House Bill 124 by state Rep. Debbie Villio, RKenner, which turns those supplements into permanent raises, passed the Legislature on Friday.

Judicial pay raises are tied to raises for sheriffs, who receive pay bumps whenever district judges do. Together, judges and sheriffs make up a powerful lobbying group in the Legislature.

Senate Bill 25, by state Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter R-Port Allen, would give pay bumps to registrars of voters, also is one step away from becoming law.

Meanwhile, district attorneys struggled to secure raises for prosecutors.

House Bill 660 by state Rep. Peter Egan, which would have raised the base salary for assistant district attor-

neys from $50,000 to $60,000, appears dead on the vine.

But House Bill 719, also

by Egan, which gives some judicial districts more “warrants” — $50,000 allocations used to hire more district attorneys — is faring better. It needs one final sign-off from the House before becoming law.

In theory, the warrants could be split or stacked and used to beef up prosecutors’ salaries instead of hiring new staff.

Though most judicial districts stand to benefit from the measure, a last-minute Senate amendment means Orleans Parish would lose 10 warrants if HB719 passes.

Many of the pay raises included in the budget were in doubt after Landry took to X recently to proclaim that if teachers did not get permanent raises, no state employee would. Landry later walked back those comments, but they sparked a series of intense budget negotiations.

His statement came after a constitutional amendment he had backed failed at the ballot. Amendment 3 would have liquidated three education trust funds to make the teacher pay raises permanent.

Republicans cite politics

ment over the past five years, which school supporters have previously blamed on a lack of district investment, the opening of Southside High in 2016 and the lack of a feeder middle school.

The school is designed to hold about 1,700 students. It had about 640 enrolled students as of Feb. 1. Meanwhile, enrollment at the Career Center has been increasing, as has its demand. The district said it has a nearly 500-student waiting list.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD BOWIE

Students attend a commencement ceremony for the graduating class of Comeaux High School on May 19 at the Cajundome in Lafayette. There will be a public hearing Tuesday regarding the closure of the school.

Webster Webster

Lincoln Lincoln

Caddo Caddo

Ouachita Ouachita Bienville Bienville

DeSoto DeSoto

Red R ed River River

Caldwell Caldwell

Madison Madison

Grant Grant

Sabine Sabine

Allen Allen

3 4 5

Concordia Concordia W. FFeliciana W. eliciana E. FFeliciana E. eliciana

Avoyelles Avoyelles

Evangeline Evangeline

JJefferson efferson Davis Davis

6 Tangipahoa Tangipahoa

St. St. Helena H elena Pointe St. Landry St. Landr y Coupee

Washington Washington

EBR WBR

Cameron Cameron

2

Tensas Tensas

LaSalle LaSalle

Rapides Rapides

Vernon Vernon

Calcasieu Calcasieu

1

Franklin Franklin

Catahoula Catahoula

Natchitoches Natchitoches

Beauregard Beauregard

Richland Richland

Jackson Jackson Winn Winn

Proposed Louisiana congressional district map

Morehouse M orehouse West West East Carroll East Carroll Carroll Carroll

Union Union

Claiborne Claiborne

Bossier Bossier

St. TTammany St. ammany

Livingston

Acadia A cadia St. John hn Iber ville Lafayette St. Lafayette Ascension St. Martin Martin Vermilion Vermilion

Iberia Iberia

St. James James Assumption St. Mary St. Mar y

Orleans Orleans

Jefferson Jefferson

St. St. Charles C harles

St. Bernard St. Bernard

Lafourche afourche

Plaquemines Plaquemines

Terrebonne Terrebonne Staff S ff map Source: Louisiana Legislature

said Sen. Royce Duplessis, D-New Orleans. “It is a gerr y m a n d e r.

It’s not compact. It’s not contiguous.”

Duplessis also told his colleagues during debate on the Duplessis Senate floor Friday that a likely challenge by the Callais plaintiffs only added to the problems with the new map.

“At the beginning of this process, I would have said that we were building a house on a broken foundation,” he said. “Now it feels more like quicksand.”

Morris and other legislative leaders have said the map was crafted to comply with the U.S. Constitution and withstand scrutiny in court.

“Everybody wants exactly what they want, and if they have the money, they’ll litigate to get what they want

on both sides, whether it’s the Callais plaintiffs or the NAACP,” Morris said in an interview.

He also noted that Democrats and others calling on Louisiana to keep two Blackmajority districts were seeking something unconstitutional.

“From all the rhetoric that I’ve heard, it sounds like they want to racially gerrymander a map, which is wrong.

Everything they say has to do with race,” Morris said.

r y ou da tY o ar T St ove M

Landry wasted no time setting in motion redistricting in Louisiana.

The day after the Supreme Court’s seismic ruling, Landry declared a state of emergency and issued an executive order suspending U.S. House elections, saying that holding them under the previous map “flies in the face of the United States Constitution.” That was just two days before in-person voting was set to begin.

In his order, Landry encouraged lawmakers to pass a new map and schedule new elections as soon as practicable.

The next week, lawmakers held the first of three marathon public hearings on the new map that drew hundreds of people to the State Capitol in Baton Rouge —

The week after the School Board voted to close Comeaux, the Lafayette Charter Foundation, which oversees the Lafayette and Acadiana Renaissance Charter academies, voted to open another charter school in Broussard.

The district is funded in part by a combination of federal and state grants, property and sales taxes, and per-pupil funding. Fewer students mean less perpupil funding.

The district also has a number of aging facilities

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4A ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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Trump meeting on Iran ends with no decision

BY AAMER MADHANI and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump held a White House Situation Room meeting with his advisers on Friday but has not yet made a decision on whether to move forward with a deal to extend the Iran ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said the agreement has not been finalized.

Ahead of the meeting, Trump said he was looking to make a “final determination.” A senior administration official later said the roughly two-hour meeting with national security aides had concluded without a decision.

The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Trump would only sign a deal that “satisfies his redlines” and curbs Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Trump confirmed the high-level talks the day after The Associated Press and other news outlets reported that U.S. and Iranian negotiators had come to terms on a tentative agreement.

that the agreement “has not been finalized yet.”

On Thursday, U.S. Vice President JD Vance suggested negotiators were trying to strike general terms on Iran’s nuclear program, with the specifics to be hammered out in the ensuing talks.

Baghaei, however, said Friday that Iranian officials were “focused on the end of war and are not discussing the details of the nuclear plan at this point.”

Iran also wants any deal to include a truce between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, where fighting has intensified despite a nominal ceasefire.

And the Islamic Republic has been seeking the release of billions of dollars in frozen funds.

Ebrahim Azizi, who heads the Iranian parliament’s national security commission and is close to top leaders, posted on social media Friday that Iran “sets the terms: cash for cash, credit for credit, Nuclear issues still unresolved nothing for nothing.”

The Islamic Republic has 972 Later, but before Trump’s meeting concluded, Iranian Foreign pounds of uranium that is enriched Ministry spokesman Esmail up to 60% purity, a short, technical Baghaei told a state broadcaster step from weapons-grade levels of

The deal would extend the fragile ceasefire by 60 days as new talks are held on Iran’s disputed nuclear program.

Trump wrote on social media that “Iran must agree that they will never have a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb.” He said the strait must be reopened for international navigation and all sea CO ONFLICT mines destroyed.

I r a n ’s m a i n IN THE T negotiator MIIDDLE Friday that itsaid has EAST AST “no trust in guarantees or words,” only actions, underscoring lingering distrust after the U.S. and Israel have twice attacked Iran over the past year while it was engaged in nuclear negotiations.

“No step will be taken before the other side acts,” Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “We do not gain concessions through talks, but through missiles.”

90%, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Iran has long maintained its nuclear program is peaceful and has not publicly committed to giving up the stockpile. It’s believed to be buried under three nuclear sites that were badly damaged by U.S. strikes last year.

Trump returned Friday to his onand-off demand for the removal of the cache as part of a deal. The material would be unearthed by the U.S., in coordination with Iran and the IAEA, “and DESTROYED,” he posted.

Baghaei said Iran and Oman, which lie on opposite sides of the strait, would manage it and “adopt mechanisms” for transit through it, “based on their own national interests and the interests of the international community.”

On Wednesday, Trump had warned Oman — a U.S. ally — not to enter into any agreement with Iran to share control of the strait or the U.S. will “have to blow them up.”

Iran has effectively closed the strait since the U.S. and Israel launched a surprise attack on Feb. 28 that killed Iran’s supreme Deal would reopen key strait leader and other top officials. BeThe proposed memorandum fore then, the waterway was open makes clear that Iran would not to international traffic, and around be able to impose tolls on the Strait a fifth of the world’s oil and gas of Hormuz and that it would have passed through it. to remove all mines from the vital Iran has said it lets some comwaterway within 30 days, accord- mercial vessels pass — about two ing to a U.S. official who was not au- dozen daily in recent days, comthorized to comment publicly and pared with more than 100 a day spoke on condition of anonymity. before the war. But the Islamic ReThe U.S. would gradually lift public also has charged tolls for at its blockade on Iranian ports and least some ships and established a would also agree to relax sanc- formal gatekeeper agency earlier tions, allowing Iran to sell more of this month, spurring a new round of U.S. sanctions this week. its oil.

Rescuers evacuate 1 of 5 villagers from cave

BY JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI and GRANT PECK

The five had been found by divers on Wednesday, but that left rescue workers with two serious tasks: extricating the five BANGKOK — Rescue divers in Laos on Friday and finding two more who are still missing.

Evacuations of the other four were susnight safely evacuated the first of five local villagers who had been trapped in a cave for pended until tomorrow because they were more than a week by floodwaters. not ready, said Chakkit Taengtang of Sai Lao and Thai rescue workers posted the Than Association, one of the Thai rescue news on social media, along with a video organization at the scene. showing the first rescued villager with a Rescue teams had pumped water out of lamp strapped to his forehead. The villager, the flooded cave’s passages on Friday, but a who was not immediately identified, was morning rainstorm complicated their work. walking unsteadily with the assistance of The trapped men have already been suptwo men. They handed him over to other plied with water, soft food, and foil blankets team members amid a waiting crowd for a to keep them warm. medical check.

The villagers had reportedly entered the

Associated Press

cave last week to look for valuable minerals before being trapped by flash flooding that blocked their way out. One other villager escaped in time and alerted the authorities to the seven left behind.

Rescue teams from Laos and neighboring Thailand were joined by Japanese and Malaysian colleagues. Indonesian and French specialists also had been reported to be coming to the site in a rugged area in the central province of Xaisomboun, about 75 miles north of the capital, Vientiane.

Working in the dark in unfamiliar surroundings, divers had to make their way through twisting, narrow, flooded passages with jagged walls.

PHOTO PROVIDED By METTA THAM RESCUE KALASIN

This video grab shows rescuers evacuating the first of five villagers, left, who had been trapped in a cave in Xaisomboun province, Laos, on Friday.

Russian drone hits apartment building in Romania, injuring 2

BY STEPHEN MCGRATH and NICOLAE DUMITRACHE Associated Press

BUCHAREST, Romania — A Russian drone that was part of an attack on Ukraine went astray and struck an apartment building in eastern Romania, injuring two people in the NATO member country, Romanian officials said Friday. The incursion added to concerns that the war could spread across the alliance’s borders.

The drone was tracked overnight by radar in Romanian airspace, crashed onto the roof of the building in the Danube port city of Galati and sparked a fire, the Defense Ministry said in a statement. The two injuries were minor and several people were evacuated.

It was the latest in a series of drones — from both Russia and Ukraine — to hit a NATO member since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The incidents have left the 32-member military alliance on edge. Friday’s incursion drew strong condemnation across Europe, with leaders calling Russia’s actions reckless and irresponsible.

Romania scrambled two F-16 fighter jets and a helicopter, and alerted residents

of the affected areas, but the aircraft didn’t engage the drone in the city, which is located near the borders of Ukraine and Moldova.

Romania asked NATO to speed up the transfer of antidrone capabilities to its military, the Foreign Ministry said, calling the incursion a serious violation of international law.

Asked about the drone during a state visit to Astana, Kazakhstan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said its origin is yet to be determined, telling reporters that “no one can say what origin a particular aircraft has until it has been examined.” He urged Romania to turn the drone over to Russia for it to conduct “an objective investigation.”

But Romanian President Nicusor Dan identified the drone as Russian.

“We had a Russian drone, Geran-2, leaving Russia.

We know the trajectory, we know where it went through Ukraine, we know where it entered Romania, part of a swarm of 43 Russian drones, of which only one reached Romanian territory,” a statement from Dan said.

He said later that investigators determined it was probably carrying at least 66 pounds of explosives.

Gen. Gheorghe Maxim, interim commander of the Romanian armed forces’ joint staff, told a news conference that the drone in Galati wasn’t “an attack from Russia against Romania,” but he added that “Romanians should understand that Russia is a threat to the security of the countries in the area.”

In Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had spoken to Dan, praising the country’s “principled, prompt, and strong” response. In a social media post, he said the countries’ militaries were in contact and that “we will remain in constant communication with Romania and continue working together to protect lives from all potential Russian threats.”

Romania has confirmed drone fragments landed on its territory on multiple occasions since the war began, including in Galati last month, but no one was hurt in any of those incidents, with debris falling in remote areas.

Dan convened Romania’s top defense body Friday to discuss what he called “the worst incident to hit the national territory” since the war began.

After the Supreme Council of National Defense met in Bucharest, Dan said the

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Russian consul in the Black Sea port of Constanta has been declared persona non grata and that the consulate will be closed.

A senior U.S. military of-

ficial, speaking on condition of anonymity, recently told reporters the number of “hybrid activities” — drone incursions, hacking attacks and other acts short of mili-

tary force in Europe that can be attributed to Russia — have increased and are part of a campaign to achieve strategic objectives without actually going to war.

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The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● 5A

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Bondi defends actions in release of Epstein files Ex-AG refuses to answer questions about Trump’s involvement

about her time as attorney general.

She said she had advised Bondi to only answer questions that were within “the ground rules laid with the committee” and not on other topics.

Interview was not videoed

BY STEPHEN GROVES Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Former Attorney General Pam Bondi refused to answer questions Friday on President Donald Trump’s involvement in the release of the Jeffrey Epstein case files as she defended the Trump administration’s actions before House lawmakers scrutinizing the process.

Bondi, who spent roughly four hours on Capitol Hill for her closed-door interview, was again defiant when she was confronted by lawmakers about the Epstein investigation. In her opening statement, she stood behind the Department of Justice’s handling of the case files and said that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, now the acting attorney general and Trump’s former personal attorney, had overseen the process to publish them.

“The bottom line is: Justice and transparency in this matter have been delivered at the direction of President Trump and his administration,” she said, according to her opening statement.

Bondi’s transcribed interview presented lawmakers with an opportunity to question a Cabinet official who was central to the political firestorm over Epstein that at times has rattled Trump’s Republican administration. She initially raised expectations for the full release of the Epstein case files, only to later backtrack. That reversal prompted Congress to step in and pass the law requiring the release.

But Democratic lawmakers said that Bondi told them she would not speak about the president in

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives for her deposition Friday at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By MANUEL CENETA

Victims of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse, from left, Liz Stein, Dani Bensky, Sharlene Rochard, Marina Lacerda and Andrea Sterling, are seen before former Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives for her deposition Friday at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington. the interview and, consulting with a lawyer from the Department of Justice, said that she could decline those questions because she agreed to appear before the committee voluntarily.

“It’s a sham in there,” Rep. Dave Min, D-Calif., said during a break in the interview. “They are not answering any questions.”

Democratic Rep. James Walkinshaw of Virginia said he asked Bondi whether Trump had any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes before they became public. Reading from his notes of the exchange, Walkinshaw told reporters that Bondi’s response was, “I’m not certain of the extent of his knowledge.”

Epstein killed himself in a New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial for trafficking and sexually abusing underage girls.

Trump was friends with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s but has said he cut ties with him years before Epstein pleaded guilty to Florida state charges in 2008 for soliciting prostitution from a minor.

Survivors tried to confront Bondi Several survivors of Epstein’s abuse gathered outside the Capitol office where the interview was taking place. They tried to make their presence known to Bondi as she entered the room, but several said they were shoved aside by police officers.

“I just hope that she does have a moment where she remembers her own humanity and our humanity and finds her compassion and remembers that this is a bigger story than political rhetoric,” said Danielle Bensky, one of the survivors.

The survivors also implored lawmakers to hold Bondi accountable for the handling of the Epstein case files’ release, which included the personal information of potential victims.

They confronted the committee chair, Republican Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, and he told them that he would press for the complete release of case files man-

dated by law.

“We want justice for the survivors, we do,” Comer added.

Bondi told lawmakers in her opening statement that releasing the Epstein case files was “an enormously complicated and laborintensive process” and conceded that the Justice Department had made redaction errors. But she mostly defended the department’s work, saying that it had complied with the law and demonstrated “an unprecedented commitment to transparency.”

Even after being ousted as attorney general last month, Bondi has stayed within the Republican president’s orbit.

Trump appointed Bondi, who revealed this week that she is being treated for thyroid cancer, to a White House panel on artificial intelligence this week, and she was be accompanied Friday by Justice Department officials, including Harmeet Dhillon, who heads the department’s Civil Rights Division, acting as her counsel.

Democrats called that arrangement a conflict of interest.

Dhillon told reporters after the interview that she had been there to “represent the interests of the Department of Justice” because Bondi was answering questions

Bondi was subpoenaed by the committee in March in a bipartisan vote, but she tried to head off that demand by holding a closed-door meeting with lawmakers. The maneuver only added to the enmity between her and Democrats on the committee.

Bondi’s departure from the Justice Department also raised doubts about the enforcement of the congressional subpoena. After the committee’s Democrats maneuvered to press for a civil contempt of Congress resolution against Bondi, she agreed to sit for a transcribed interview rather than a sworn deposition.

Democrats on the Oversight panel criticized that arrangement, saying it allowed Bondi to decline to answer questions. They also objected to Comer’s decision not to video the interview.

Comer has said he allowed Bondi to sit for a transcribed interview rather than a deposition as an incentive to cooperate. Previously, he had enforced a subpoena on former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after they resisted the demand. Both of their depositions were video-recorded.

Comer said that Bondi could face prosecution if she lies to Congress and that the committee would release a transcript of the interview.

Meanwhile, Democrats suggested they could still press to enforce the subpoena for Bondi. They also said they wanted to subpoena Blanche. Both actions would need Republican support.

“It’s important that we continue to keep this pressure on them,” said Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa.

Judge temporarily blocks payouts from Trump’s $1.776B ‘anti-weaponization’ fund

BY MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from proceeding with a new $1.776 billion settlement fund for the Republican president’s allies who believe they were victims of a weaponized government, halting its formation or any potential payouts for at least the next two weeks.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, scheduled a June 12 hearing for arguments on whether to extend her order barring the government from moving forward with its “Anti-Weaponization Fund” while pending litigation challenges it. The administration created the fund to resolve President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns.

A Justice Department spokesperson said it’s “extremely confident” that the fund is legally supported “by ample precedent,” including from settlements during the administration of President Barack Obama, a Democrat. “We will not allow the policy preferences of judges to interfere with

our efforts to provide restitution to victims of lawfare,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

The White House declined to comment on the judge’s ruling, referring questions to the Justice Department.

The judge, who was nominated to the bench by President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, gave the government another week to respond in writing to the plaintiffs’ arguments in favor of freezing the fund’s creation and operation, including any payments in or out of it.

The fund has generated a fierce backlash since it was announced last week, with even Republicans pressing acting Attorney General Todd Blanche over the eligibility considerations and the possibility that even violent rioters at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, would be free to seek compensation.

Also on Friday, the federal judge in Florida overseeing Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS ordered Trump’s attorneys to respond to “grievous allegations” by settlement critics that the president abandoned his claims to avoid the court’s scrutiny of an illegal deal. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams gave them until June 12 to respond in writing to

allegations of collusion and whether the case should be reopened because the court was the “victim of a fraud.”

The Justice Department hasn’t formed the five-member commission that will decide on payout criteria, so there has been no money paid out yet or claims accepted.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys from the legal advocacy group Democracy Forward are seeking a court order halting the fund’s implementation and preventing the Trump administration from disbursing any payouts from it. The federal suit claims there is no legal basis or accountability behind the fund.

“President Trump and his allies have long accused Democrats of using the government and the legal system as political weapons,” plaintiffs’ lawyers wrote.

“In doing so, the (Trump) administration fails to acknowledge the unprecedented campaign of targeting individuals and entities for retribution on personal and ideological grounds that it has carried out.”

Brinkema said it’s important to maintain the status quo — for at least the next two weeks — and to ensure that no funds are “irrevers-

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ibly disbursed” from the fund. Her order temporarily prohibits the Trump administration from transferring any money to the fund, considering any claims or dis-

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6A ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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TODAY

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

Humid with clouds and sun

Humid; a stray p.m. t-shower

Humid with a thunderstorm

A shower and thunderstorm

Couple of thunderstorms

Humid with rain and a t-storm

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

LOW

90° 73°

LOW

89° 75°

LOW

88° 75°

86° 72°

High/low Normal high/low Last year’s high/low Record high Record low

Beaumont 90/74

Baton Rouge 90/73

Lake Charles 90/74

Port Arthur 89/75

10s

20s

30s

Houma 90/74

40s

50s

YESTERDAY

TODAY

READING 56 MAIN POLLUTANT Ozone

MAIN POLLUTANT Ozone

60s

70s

80s

Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today

90s 100s 110s

FULL

MAY 31

City

Austin Boston Dallas Fairbanks Honolulu Las Vegas Louisville Miami Nashville

Shown are areas of precipitation and high temperatures for the day.

24-hour total Month to date Normal month to date year to date Normal year to date

HIGH

7:35p 1:27p 6:15a 9:26a 9:09a 8:34a 10:17a

FT.

NEW

JUN 8

Hi

92 52 93 63 85 90 83 88 83

TODAY Lo

72 47 75 38 71 70 57 77 64

FIRST

JUN 14

W

c r pc c r s pc t t

JUN 21

Hi

91 68 94 60 86 95 81 90 83

SUN. Lo

73 53 74 46 73 73 62 75 68

LOW

0.8 1.7 2.1 1.9 1.4 1.7 1.7

6:07 a.m.

8:04 p.m.

7:54 p.m.

5:15 a.m.

LAST

MODERATE

PRECIPITATION

86°/71° 89°/70° 87°/70° 98° in 1896 54° in 1934

TODAY’S TIDES Lake Pontchartrain (Tchefuncte River) Shell Beach South Point, Marsh Island Cypremort Point Grand Isle (Barataria Pass) Mississippi River (Southwest Pass) Wine Island

New Orleans 89/75

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

0s

Hattiesburg 89/72

Alexandria 92/73

Lafayette 90/73

LOW

85° 74°

TEMPERATURE Jackson 89/72

Many 93/73

LOW

Lafayette through 5 p.m. Friday

Longview 93/74

-0s

90° 73°

Monroe 92/74

Shreveport 94/75

-10s

LOW

It’s been a wet week with scattered showers and thunderstorms.

This weekend, however, we will get a break from the rain and storms, so expect a mostly sunny to partly cloudy, hot and humid day with a light breeze. Temperatures this afternoon will rise to the upper 80s to the low 90s. Heat index values, however, will be anywhere from 95 to 102. Expect a few isolated showers but only a 10% to 20% chance. Rain chances will fall a bit tomorrow, but the temperatures will be just as high.

W

c pc pc c sh s pc t t

0.19” 11.57” 5.03” 26.55” 23.65”

FT.

HIGH

6:54a -0.1 --- --8:25p -0.4 --- --8:32p -0.1 6:55p -0.2 9:34p -0.2

---------------

FT.

---------------

SOURCE: LOUISIANA DEQ AND AIRNOW.GOV

LOW

---------------

FT.

---------------

The solunar period schedule allows planning days so you will be fishing in good territory or hunting in good cover during those times. Major periods begin at the times shown and last for 1.5 to 2 hours. The minor periods are shorter.

MAJOR MINOR MAJOR MINOR

Today 11:03a 4:51a 11:28p 5:15p Sunday 11:52a 5:39a ---- 6:05p Monday 12:18a 6:31a 12:44p 6:57p Tuesday 1:12a 7:25a 1:38p 7:50p Wednesday 2:07a 8:20a 2:32p 8:44p Thursday 3:02a 9:14a 3:26p 9:38p Friday 3:54a 10:06a 4:17p 10:29p

City

New Orleans Orlando Philadelphia Phoenix Pittsburgh Raleigh St. Louis San Diego Tampa

Hi

89 90 71 93 70 88 85 71 86

TODAY Lo

75 74 52 72 44 58 65 61 78

W

t t pc s s t t s t

GOOD

Hi

89 90 77 100 75 78 84 72 89

SUN. Lo

75 73 58 76 47 66 69 62 79

W

t t s s s pc t s t

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

MISSISSIPPI Memphis Vidalia-Natchez Red River Landing Baton Rouge Donaldsonville Reserve New Orleans OHIO Cairo COMITE Near Olive AMITE Near Darlington Denham Springs Port Vincent TICKFAW Montpelier Holden ATCHAFALAYA Simmesport Melville Krotz Springs Butte La Rose Bayou Sorrel Morgan City

FLOOD STAGE

34 48 48 35 27 22 17

FRI. 24-HOUR STAGE CHANGE

19.60 32.30 34.10 17.40 9.90 7.44 5.20

+1.00 +1.50 +1.30 +1.00 +0.50 +0.35 +0.10

40

36.48

+0.78

19

-0.83

+0.30

18 29 8

-0.39 13.01 3.02

-0.12 +0.51 +0.02

13 15

2.17 1.91

-0.06 -0.09

47 34 29 20 12 6

15.54 10.87 9.26 7.84 5.50 3.29

+1.33 +0.66 +0.68 +0.43 +0.30 -0.08

data as of 7 a.m. Friday

Forecasts and graphics, except for Damon’s Outlook, provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2026

Blue Origin investigates rocket explosion

BY MARCIA DUNN

awaited liftoff several miles away at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, courtesy of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket.

Within 12 hours of the explosion, SpaceX launched more Starlinks to orbit Friday morning. CEO Elon Musk has two Florida pads in action, one on the Space Force side where the latest Falcon 9 lifted off and the other at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

Blue Origin has just one Florida pad: Launch Complex 36 dating back to the early 1960s. NASA’s Mariner and Pioneer interplanetary probes rocketed away from there, as well as the moon-bound Rangers and Surveyors. The Washington state-based Blue Origin spent more than $1 billion rebuilding the launch complex — taking it from double pads to a single — after leasing it from the Air Force in 2015.

The company’s smaller New Shepard rockets soar from Texas, skimming space for a few minutes

with tourists and science experiments. Those suborbital hops were paused in January so the company could focus on New Glenn and upcoming moonshots. All that is now on hold, pending the investigation into the explosion.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said late Thursday that the space agency will evaluate nearterm impacts to the Artemis program, which saw four astronauts fly around the moon in April. That Artemis II mission was hoisted

by NASA’s Space Launch System rocket.

Before the explosion, Blue Origin was on track to launch a prototype lunar lander to the moon on a New Glenn this fall, with another lander due to rocket into orbit around Earth in 2027 for docking practice by the Artemis III crew.

A touchdown by two astronauts on Artemis IV — using a Blue Moon lander or SpaceX’s Starship, whichever is ready first — was targeted as early as 2028.

SEC moves to end rule requiring reports on greenhouse gas emissions

Ninth body recovered from site of implosion

AP aerospace writer

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is assessing damage to its launch pad after a rocket exploded during a test firing, creating a giant orange fireball seen and felt for miles around.

The company fueled the hulking New Glenn rocket Thursday night, hoping to briefly ignite the engines ahead of a satellite launch next week. But the 321-foot rocket blew up, taking part of the pad with it.

Aerial views on Friday revealed heaps of crumpled structures on the ground, with just one tower and the water tank still standing.

Emergency officials warned the public to avoid any wreckage that might wash ashore and to instead PHOTO PROVIDED By @JCONCILUS call 911. There were no reported deaths or injuries.

A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket It’s a major setback for Blue Oriexplodes during an enginegin, coming just one month after firing test on Thursday in Cape the entire New Glenn fleet was Canaveral, Fla. grounded because of an upper-

BY MATTHEW DALY Associated Press

WASHINGTON — In the latest action to undo Biden-era regulations on climate change, the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday proposed repealing a rule that requires some public companies to report their greenhouse gas emissions and the risks they face from global warming.

The climate-disclosure rule has been on hold since last year, after the Republican-led commission said it was pausing its legal defense after legal challenges by business groups and Republican state attorneys general.

The SEC said in a statement that it is now moving to rescind the disclosure rules “in their entirety because they exceed the scope of the agency’s statutory authority.”

The rules, finalized in 2024, “impose substantial costs on public companies and their shareholders that are not justified by the informational benefits they may provide to some investors,” the commission said.

Eliminating the rule will “avoid

the practical effect of dictating corporate behavior” and ensure that agency rules will “be imposed only when the expected benefits justify the likely costs and burdens,” SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said in a statement.

Environmental groups said the action would leave investors without data they need to accurately assess financial risks and other hazards related to climate change.

“The SEC’s mission is to protect investors and the public by ensuring they have access to material information,” said Kathy Fallon, director of land systems at the nonprofit Clean Air Task Force.

“While imperfect, the rule was an important step toward giving investors consistent information about financially material climate risks, including the use of carbon offsets.”

She urged the commission to retain the rule and enforce disclosure requirements “that give both investors and the public the transparency they need.”

Repeal of the climate-disclosure rule is among dozens of environmental rollbacks imposed in

stage engine issue that dumped a satellite in the wrong orbit.

Named after John Glenn, the first American in orbit, New Glenn is the rocket that Blue Origin plans to use to launch landers to the moon under NASA’s Artemis program that aims to build a sprawling base near the moon’s south pole. The goal is to land the first Artemis moonwalkers as early as 2028. Earlier this week, the space agency awarded a new contract to Blue Origin worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

One of the biggest rockets to reach orbit, New Glenn has seven first-stage engines fueled by liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas, which is essentially methane. It has flown three times.

None of the assigned 48 Amazon Leo satellites were on board the newest rocket when the blast occurred. Another batch of Amazon Leo satellites — competing with SpaceX’s Starlinks to provide internet service to remote locales —

President Donald Trump’s second term. The Environmental Protection Agency has eliminated major climate change programs, promoted deregulatory efforts that Trump calls the largest such move in American history and canceled billions of dollars in Biden-era environmental justice grants.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has focused on weakening or eliminating regulations perceived as climate-friendly, including revoking a scientific finding that has long been the central basis for U.S. action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change.

Zeldin has said his actions will put a “dagger through the heart of climate change religion.”

The SEC, an independent agency whose members are appointed by the president, approved the climate rule in March 2024 on a party-line vote. Three Democratic commissioners supported it and two Republicans opposed.

The commission currently has three Republican members, including Atkins, and no Democrats.

The 2024 rule was one of the most anticipated in recent years

from the nation’s top financial regulator, drawing more than 24,000 comments from companies, auditors, legislators and trade groups over two years. The vote brought the U.S. closer to the European Union and states like California, which have imposed similar corporate disclosure rules.

Sen. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat who long pushed for the disclosure rule, said the SEC announcement “is the result of years of work by corporate polluters to delay, defang and decimate rules meant to protect people’s investments from risky and reckless business models.”

Americans’ retirement security, union pensions and savings should be protected by the SEC, “not put in harm’s way by companies that are exposed to climate risks or that depend on an unfettered ability to pollute in order to make money,” Markey said in an email to The Associated Press.

A public comment period will remain open for 60 days following publication of the proposal in the Federal Register, expected in the next few days.

Seattle Times (TNS) SEATTLE — A ninth worker killed in a Longview paper mill implosion has been recovered from the site, officials said Friday.

The tank implosion at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging pulp and paper mill likely killed 11 employees. Two people died shortly after the implosion in hospitals and six bodies were recovered Thursday.

The names of the workers killed in the implosion haven’t been officially released.

Gov. Bob Ferguson ordered flags at state agencies be lowered to half-staff Sunday for a week.

The mill’s tank held hundreds of thousands of gallons of white liquor. The implosion released a “high pH caustic liquid” through a storm drain and into a ditch that is connected to a drainage network that moves through the community of Longview, said Brooks Stanfield, the on-scene coordinator with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

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Duo accused in fraud scheme plead guilty Former police chief, businessman allegedly generated fake crime reports

BY JOEL THOMPSON

Both Onishea and Patel had initially pleaded not guilty; however, all five co-conspirators listed in a Former Glenmora Chief of Po- federal indictment issued in 2024 lice Tebo Onishea and Oakdale- have been scheduled for change based businessman Chandrakant of plea hearings, with one more Patel pleaded guilty Thursday to set to take place in June.

Patel, according to the indictfederal crimes related to their involvement in a visa fraud scheme. ment, orchestrated a scheme in Staff writer

which he would receive payment from prospective U-visa applicants, a special visa intended for victims of violent crimes. According to the indictment, multiple police officials, including Onishea, generated false police reports in exchange for payment, with Patel offering up to $5,000

per report.

The violent crimes listed in the false reports tended to be armed robberies, which led prosecutors to notice the unusually high rates of these crimes occurring in the relatively small communities. Each of the false reports acknowledged in the indictment in-

volve a victim with the last name Patel, although it is unclear if all, or in fact any, were related. Patel received a U-visa in 2023.

Additionally, Patel was charged with money laundering in relation to a $64,000 deposit, and will forfeit eight bank accounts associated with the conspiracy, as well as several pieces of property in the

ä See GUILTY, page 2B

BACH

ON TRACK

ABOVE: Grace Novosad performs during Bach Lunch at Parc Sans Souci in Lafayette on Friday.

Bach Lunch is a free outdoor concert series that invites families, students and downtown workers to enjoy live music during the lunch hour.

LEFT: People enjoy the shade and live music during Bach Lunch on Friday.

STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK

Two Angola guards cleared of excessive force

Former downtown bank building gets new owner

Inmate was pepper-sprayed while handcuffed

It is currently home to Ton’s, The Jefferson

BY QUINN COFFMAN Staff writer

BY ADAM DAIGLE

Acadiana business editor Jerome Moroux was eating gumbo inside Ton’s Downtown with his wife and brother when he mentioned how much he loved the building that houses it and The Jefferson next door.

His brother, commercial real estate agent Rex Moroux, then seized the moment: “Hey, is it something you’re interested in?”

He was, and last week he and his wife, Ashley, closed on a deal to purchase the historic downtown building at 500

STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK

The old Guaranty Bank building, shown in this 2023 photo, that is home to The ä See BUILDING, page 2B Jefferson and Ton’s Downtown, was sold last week for $2.6 million.

Two Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola guards who handcuffed an inmate through his cell bars and then pepper-sprayed him did not break the law in the course of their duties, a federal appeals court ruled.

Inmate Alvin Williams sued two correctional officials, Capt. David Voorhies and Lt. Omar Walker, in November 2021 on grounds of excessive force over the pepper-spraying.

Williams claimed that on the morning of April 28, 2021, he asked Voorhies and Walker to be given mental health assistance because he was “high” in his cell and “feared for his life.”

Voorhies ordered Williams to put his hands through the bars so he could be handcuffed, and

ä See CLEARED, page 2B

2B ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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EBR DA would gain funding with proposed bill BUILDING

Continued from page 1B

supporting the Local governments can by the formula to make sure Judicial District in East BaOrleans Parish billLegislators say the current distribu- also contribute money to- they divided warrants fairly. ton Rouge, which has 55 warof funding among the ward district attorneys’ of- That meant taking some po- rants, would gain 16 more. judicial district tion judicial districts is outdat- fices. Harris said he was un- sitions from Orleans.

“I am very grateful to the would lose money ed, and that it gives Orleans sure whether Orleans Parish “A lot of this was put in Legislature for recognizing

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

Baton Rouge, along with a few other judicial districts, could get more prosecutors as a bill to give district attorneys more money to hire them nears final passage in the Legislature.

The bill would be a boon for East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore, who has Moore spent recent months urging state officials to give more resources to his offices, where he says severe understaffing has compromised public safety in Baton Rouge. But the growth would come at a price for Orleans Parish, which would lose state funding for 10 district attorneys under an amendment the Senate added to House Bill 719 on Thursday evening.

a disproportionate amount of prosecutors based on old population data. They argue some funds need to be reallocated to places like East Baton Rouge Parish and St. Tammany.

But during a session where the Legislature has also considered proposals to cut down on the number of judges in Orleans Parish and eliminate its criminal clerk of court position, the latest amendment to HB719 has further rankled the New Orleans delegation.

“It’s a direct attack on the city of New Orleans,” said state Sen. Jimmy Harris, DNew Orleans. “You’re cutting the department that’s doing the work to keep crime down and to, you know, to prosecute violent offenders. That makes no sense. It makes no sense at all.”

District Attorney Jason Williams would be able to absorb the reduction to avoid cutting prosecutors.

State Rep. Peter Egan, RCovington, who is sponsoring HB719, said the Louisiana District Attorneys Association did an in-depth analysis of the distribution of “warrants” across the state. A “warrant” is the term used for each $50,000 allocation the state gives judicial districts to hire assistant district attorneys.

“They analyzed it from the standpoint of populations in each district, crime patterns in each district,” Egan said. “They came up with a formula of what would be optimal for each judicial district.”

Budget constraints meant Louisiana would not be able to add enough positions to meet the formula’s recommendations, Egan said, so officials had to look at the distribution recommended

place a long time ago, and the allocation to Orleans was based on a much larger population in Orleans Parish than currently exists today,” Egan said, adding that parishes like East Baton Rouge have grown in size.

Properly staffing district attorneys’ offices is key to fulfilling the promise officials have made to address crime in Louisiana, Egan said. In 2024, Gov. Jeff Landry called a controversial special session to pass a slew of laws that lengthened prison stays.

“If you don’t have a district attorney’s office to process” defendants, Egan said, overhauling crime laws is “to no avail.”

Under the latest version of HB719, which still needs to clear a final vote in the House, the state would get 61 new warrants overall.

Orleans Parish, which currently has 83 warrants, would get 73. But the 19th

the critical need to address the long-standing shortage of assistant district attorney positions in East Baton Rouge Parish,” Moore, East Baton Rouge’s district attorney, said in a statement. “Our parish is now in a much better position to fulfill our public safety obligations consistent with the size and needs of our population.”

Meanwhile, the 22nd Judicial District, which includes Egan’s home turf of St. Tammany Parish, also stands to gain from the proposal. It would get 14 more warrants, up from 30. The 1st Judicial District in Caddo would get four new warrants.

The Louisiana District Attorneys’ Association has identified St. Tammany, East Baton Rouge and Caddo as being most in need of new staffing.

Other districts would get between one and five new warrants, and some would maintain the same amount.

Texas billionaire set to acquire Caesars Entertainment Sale could bring improvements to industry

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer

The sale of casino operator Caesars Entertainment to Fertitta Entertainment is expected to shake up the national gaming industry while giving the Texas billionaire behind the deal a growing footprint in Louisiana.

But while the $6 billion sale to Tillman Fertitta may bring changes to the industry, for Caesars New Orleans, the state’s flagship casino at the foot of Canal Street, the deal will likely have little visible impact on day-to-day operations, gaming experts said, noting that the Caesars brand name is very unlikely to change.

Fertitta’s holdings in the national entertainment, food service and gaming sectors already are vast, and in Louisiana include the Golden Nugget Casino in Lake Charles and more than a dozen restaurants under multiple brands, including Landry’s Seafood and Saltgrass Steakhouse.

The acquisition of Caesars Entertainment will also give Fertitta control of Caesars, Harrah’s, Horseshoe and

GUILTY

Continued from page 1B Oakdale area. Both Patel and Onishea face up to five years in prison if convicted.

Last week, hearings were also held for former Oakdale Chief of Police Chad Doyle and former Ward 5

CLEARED

Continued from page 1B Williams complied. Then, Walker attempted to pepperspray Williams, succeeding on the second attempt.

Williams further claimed that while he was handcuffed and blinded by the spray, Voorhies walked him into a wall after taking him out of the cell and moving into a stairwell. He also claims Voorhies purposefully pressed him against the wall, giving his hand a stress fracture from where it was pressed.

A doctor found Williams’ right hand was swollen days later, but no evaluation revealed a fracture or break in Williams’ hand, according to court records.

When Williams’ suit was first before a lower court, a judge denied Voorhies’ and Walker’s motions for summary judgment, which

Flamingo casinos as well as Caesars’ online gaming platform and its customer rewards program.

Alton Ashy, a longtime gaming lobbyist in Baton Rouge, predicted that the deal would bring improvements in the Louisiana gaming industry, based on Fertitta’s reputation running other entertainment properties.

“Everything Tillman Fertitta does is first class,” Ashy said.

Caesars New Orleans General Manager Samir Mowad declined to comment because the deal has not been finalized and is pending approval by shareholders.

In a statement, Caesars Entertainment said the deal “positions Caesars to continue executing on the strategy that has made it the leading casino-entertainment company in the United States,” adding that its current executive leadership team will remain in place following the sale.

The deal comes roughly 18 months after Caesars New Orleans officially reopened following a $435 million renovation of the former Harrah’s. The overhaul included an update of the building, the addition of new, high-end restaurants such as Nobu and Emeril’s

and a new, high-rise Caesars Hotel.

The deal also comes nearly five years into Caesars’ $138 million naming rights deal with the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District, known as the Superdome Commission. The deal is a 20-year agreement that will keep the gaming company’s name and logo on the Superdome until 2041, regardless of who owns the Caesars brand.

Like other casino brands, Caesars’ parent company has changed several times over the years but its brand has endured, experts say, because it is one of the oldest and strongest in the industry.

Fertitta is unlike Caesars’ previous, publicly traded corporate owners. A selfmade billionaire, television personality and ally of President Donald Trump, who tapped him to serve as U.S. ambassador to Italy, Fertitta’s privately held company includes the Houston Rockets, dozens of restaurant brands, hotel chains and the Golden Nugget Casino.

If the Caesars deal is approved, he is expected to put his high-energy stamp on Caesars, integrating his dining and entertainment brands with the casino to create a new, 21st-century style gaming experience.

“He is familiar with the

Marshal Michael Slaney, in which they both changed their plea to guilty. Slaney admitted responsibility for certifying as many as 78 false police reports as part of the conspiracy.

The remaining conspirator, former Forest Hill Chief of Police Glynn Dixon, has a change of plea hearing scheduled for June

4. Each of the sentencing hearings is scheduled to take place in early September, with Oniseha scheduled for Sept. 2 and Patek scheduled for Sept. 10.

If convicted, the remaining defendants could also be ordered to forfeit additional bank accounts, properties and vehicles allegedly tied to the scheme.

Dining, sports and gaming

they sought on the grounds of qualified immunity as officers acting in the line of duty.

The judge’s denial was due to believing Williams had a claim of excessive force against Voorhies for the stairwell incident and a claim of failure-to-intervene against Walker.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed those rulings on May 8, dismissing Williams’ claims against both officers on qualified immunity grounds.

In the three-judge panel’s reasoning, they say that the several cases Williams cites in his argument aren’t relevant to what Williams experienced.

In one, the prisoner who claimed excessive force had been beaten by a “swarm” of guards, which is “worlds apart” from what happened to Williams, according to the panel.

Judge Dana Douglas offered a dissent to the ruling.

“Alvin Williams called out for help while suffering a drug-induced mental health episode. Instead of help, though, he was met with the spray of a chemical agent, while restrained, and was further subjected to unnecessary force, in violation of our circuit’s clearly established law,” Douglas said in her dissent.

She continued that since Williams was sprayed only after he already had been handcuffed through the bars of his cell, he was no longer a threat at the time of the pepper-spraying.

integration of dining, celebrity chefs, entertainment, sports and sports betting — all the different elements that seem to be where the gaming industry is going to create these experiential offerings,” said Dan Michalski, executive editor of casino. com, an industry publication, by phone on Friday.

That could spell possibilities for the 500 block of Fulton Street in New Orleans, an underperforming, openair area next to Harrah’s Hotel, part of the Caesars complex, that has long been envisioned as an outdoor nightlife hub.

Antitrust issues?

The deal is not Fertitta’s

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Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING POTENTIAL CLOSURE AND REPURPOSING OF OVEY COMEAUX HIGH SCHOOL Notice is hereby given, pursuant to the Lafayette Parish School System District Administrative Rule regarding school closure and repurposing, that the Lafayette Parish School Board will conduct a public hearing during a special meeting on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. in the Lafayette Parish School System Boardroom, 202 Rue Iberville, Lafayette, Louisiana 70508, regarding the potential closure and repurposing of Ovey Comeaux High School. The public hearing will begin with an explanation of the proposal presented by knowledgeable members of the LPSS administrative staff after which members of the public will be given an opportunity to make comments and ask questions about the proposal. There will be no vote on the proposal taken by the Lafayette Parish School Board during the public hearing. Any vote taken on the proposal will come at a subsequently scheduled public meeting.

Receiving School

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Reporting you can trust

9th 10th 11th 12th # of Rezoned Students 76 39 58 53 226 (Includes NJROTC Academy students) 104 57 66 54 281

Acadiana High School 315 Rue du Belier Lafayette, LA 70506 Lafayette High School 3000 W Congress St Lafayette, LA 70506 Southside High School 64 312 Almonaster Rd Youngsville, LA 70592

51

54

32

201

The proposed reassignment would result in the following projected total enrollment by grade level and school: Receiving School

LOTTERY

Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

If approved by the Lafayette Parish School Board, students currently zoned for Ovey Comeaux High School would be reassigned to the following schools for the 2026-2027 school year.

on stories that matter

THURSDAY, MAY 28, 2026 PICK 3: 3-5-9 PICK 4: 7-6-3-9 PICK 5: 8-3-0-9-1

first with implications for Louisiana.

In 2018, his company acquired Waitr, the app-based food-delivery company then based in Lafayette that helped create the category now dominated by DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats. Fertitta took the company public, but it struggled and later went out of business.

Two years ago, he publicly expressed interest in buying the New Orleans Saints if the team were ever up for sale, telling the Houston Business Journal that he would be interested in purchasing the team from current owner Gayle Benson.

Jefferson St. that recently housed the Jefferson Street Pub but for years was the downtown home of Guaranty Bank & Trust.

The sale price was $2.6 million, according to land records. The seller was Seven Oaks Grand Coteau LLC, which is registered to Chris Granger with Maison Title.

“It’s a building I’ve loved since as long as I can remember,” said Moroux, an attorney with Broussard, David & Moroux in downtown Lafayette. “I think downtown is the heartbeat of the city, and the opportunity to own such an incredible piece of property downtown was too hard to pass up.”

The 15,000-square-foot building, which dates back to 1905 and still has the original bank vault, last changed hands three years ago when Granger purchased it and later brought in Ton’s in the old side bar area and The Jefferson, a wedding and event venue, for the main area.

The building, which also has five apartments upstairs, is the only one along Jefferson Street with classical revival elements and the only commercial building in Lafayette Parish that features a classically designed domed pavilion entrance, according to historic documents.

In the late 1990s, Dr. J. Lee Leonard and his wife, Jenny, planned to put in an upscale French restaurant after they bought it from the Times of Acadiana, according to archives. It dates back to 1905 when it first opened to house the original Bank of Lafayette.

Moroux said he has no immediate plans for the building.

“It’s in great shape,” he said. “It’s had awesome caretakers. I just hope to continue the legacy they’ve had.”

9th 10th 11th 12th Total Projected Enrollment 513 445 435 390 1,783 (includes NJROTC Academy students) 583 508 506 428 2,025

Acadiana High School 315 Rue du Belier Lafayette, LA 70506 Lafayette High School 3000 W Congress St Lafayette, LA 70506 Southside High School 499 511 527 475 2,012 312 Almonaster Rd Youngsville, LA 70592

No school expansion projects or school construction costs are required or proposed to accommodate the proposed reassignment of students from Ovey Comeaux High School to Acadiana High School, Lafayette High School, or Southside High School.

If approved by the Lafayette Parish School Board at a subsequent meeting, Ovey Comeaux High School will be taken offline on June 30, 2026, in anticipation of repurposing the campus as the Ovey Comeaux Workforce Innovation Academy. The facility would house the W.D. & Mary Baker Smith Career Center and E.J. Sam Accelerated School.

Existing athletic facilities would also be repurposed as the Lafayette Parish Schools Sports Complex.

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BUSINESS

The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● 3B

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M/news/business

DOW 51,032.46 363.49 0.72%

NASDAQ 26,972.62 55.15 0.20%

S&P 500 7,580.06 16.43 0.22%

EURO 1.1657 0.0006 0.05%

CRUDE OIL 87.76 -1.14 -1.28%

GOLD 4,542.40 43.10 0.96%

U.S. stocks gain ground, adding to their records

Meta to cut thousands more Bay Area jobs MENLO PARK, Calif. — Meta Platforms revealed a decision to slash thousands more jobs in the Bay Area, a new batch of official filings with the state labor agency shows.

The owner of the Facebook app reported it will eliminate 2,212 jobs in Menlo Park and 313 in Sunnyvale, for a total of 3,715 so far this year, according to filings with the Employment Development Department.

The layoffs are scheduled to take effect July 22, the EDD WARN notices show. Workers do not have the right to displace other employees, even if they have seniority.

The latest reductions arrive on the heels of the company’s revelation just days prior that it would cut 671 Bay Area jobs, affecting workers in Fremont, Burlingame, and San Francisco.

Meta Platforms held out the possibility that some employees might be able to continue working at the company under certain circumstances.

GM to make batteries for NASA’s moon rover General Motors Co. will help develop batteries for new manned rovers to be driven by NASA astronauts on the moon.

NASA awarded private space startup Lunar Outpost $220 million on Tuesday to build the Pegasus vehicle with help from GM, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and tech company Leidos.

NASA plans for astronauts to drive the rover on the moon during Artemis missions in 2028. NASA plans to use the rover on the moon’s South Pole, where GM says batteries must withstand extreme temperature swings.

GM’s role in battery development for NASA likely will help its work making commercial electric vehicle batteries. Low temperatures typically cut the distance EVs can drive without needing to be recharged.

FAA: Alaska Airlines let drunk passengers board Alaska Airlines may face a $165,000 fine for allegedly allowing intoxicated passengers to board its planes.

The Federal Aviation Administration has proposed the fine following incidents on 11 flights between February 2024 and February 2025, according to an FAA statement posted Tuesday.

The regulator prohibits airlines from allowing anyone who appears to be intoxicated to board an aircraft.

Alaska said it participated fully with the FAA’s audit of its practices and made changes.

30-YR T-BONDS 4.97 -0.01 -0.1%

Tomatoes become latest symbol of affordability

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Wall Street pushed further into the record books Friday, as the major stock indexes closed out a solid month of gains.

Big technology stocks have been behind much of the market’s record-breaking streak.

Their pricey stock values give them more influence in directing the market higher or lower. In May alone, technology stocks within the S&P 500 rose more than 15%, while most of the sectors in the benchmark index actually lost ground.

“The rally has been largely tech-led and supported by resilient earnings, but the key question is whether it can be sustained,” wrote Angelo Kourkafas, senior global strategist at Edward Jones, in a research note.

Tech stocks also powered the market higher Friday. Microsoft rose 5.4% and Broadcom gained 4.7%.

Dell Technologies surged 32.8% to lead all stocks in the S&P 500 after delivering profits that blew past expectations.

The company also raised its outlook, citing powerful demand for AI computing.

Most other sectors in the S&P 500 lost ground Friday. Among the decliners: Paramount Skydance fell 1.9%, Amazon.com dropped 1.2%, and Costco Wholesale closed 3.9% lower.

6-MO T-BILLS 3.75 -0.01 -0.27%

Prices are up 40% over the past year

BY MATT SEDENSKY AP National Writer ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ERIN HOOLEy

According to government figures, grocery prices have yet to be affected by the disruption of global energy production due to the war in Iran, but they are expected to rise as fuel and fertilizer prices continue to increase.

Trump claims food is affordable again Examples include avocados, fresh berries and a variety of pantry staples

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER

AP economics writer

WASHINGTON — In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, the president proclaimed “TRUMP’S MAKING FOOD AFFORDABLE,” and cited falling prices for a range of groceries, including avocados, fresh berries and a variety of pantry staples. Yet just two weeks earlier the Labor Department had released inflation figures showing grocery prices up nearly 3% in April from a year earlier.

So where’s the reality?

The graphic shared by President Donald Trump may be correct about the specific items he listed. It’s hard to know because he used data that isn’t publicly available and he didn’t specify what time frame he used.

But specific grocery items go up and down all the time, and his post ignores the broader reality consumers are facing at the supermarket: Overall, food prices have risen since his inauguration, and at a faster pace than they typically did before the pandemic. Most economists expect them to continue to do so in the coming months as a spike in diesel fuel prices lifts the cost of shipping groceries to stores around the country.

The April gain in grocery prices was the largest in 2 1/2 years. The 2.9% increase is only modestly above the 20year average of 2.6%, though in the decade before the pandemic, grocery prices rose an

average of just 1.1% a year.

And the increase comes after much larger, painful spikes that took place in 202122 under former President Joe Biden. Grocery costs soared nearly 28% from just before the pandemic in February 2020 until Trump took office in January 2025.

In his social media post, Trump focused on nine specific items without looking at overall grocery costs. He said that avocado prices have fallen 19%, cheese has dropped 5.6%, fresh berries and butter have dropped 13%, olive oil prices are down 16%, while chicken breasts are down 2.4% and eggs 90%.

Trump’s post cited data from Circana, a private company, as published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Neither Circana nor USDA responded by press time to requests from The Associated Press. The White House also did not respond to an email seeking comment on the post.

Still, many of Trump’s figures are in the ballpark of those in the government’s consumer price index, compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest-profile gauge of inflation. That data shows cheese prices falling 3.1% in April compared with a year ago. Egg prices have dropped 39% from a year earlier and 60% from the peak in March 2025, short of Trump’s 90% claim.

Many of the items Trump cited have gotten cheaper for reasons that have little to do with broader economic trends. Egg prices have fallen because chicken flocks have recovered after being devastated by the avian flu, and in part because the Trump administration allowed nearly 1 billion eggs to be imported last year.

The price of olive oil has declined recently because its production has recovered after a two-year drought.

Chicken breasts, according to the consumer price index, averaged $4.17 a pound in April, up from $3.97 when Trump was inaugurated. Still, chicken breast prices are down 0.3% from a year earlier. Butter has fallen 5.8% in price in the past year, according to the BLS. Yet the president left out all the items that have jumped in price and kept grocery costs elevated. Many factors are pushing up food costs, including Trump’s own policies: His tariffs have made many imported items more expensive, while droughts are also pushing up prices. A jump in oil prices from the Iran war has made fertilizer more expensive, but the impact of that will take months to show up on grocery store shelves.

Pricier diesel fuel is pushing up shipping costs, which affects nearly everything on store shelves.

Consumers paid 6.5% more for fresh fruit and vegetables last month than they did in April 2025, and 8.8% more for meat, according to the Labor Department.

Dry weather in the Western U.S. has pushed up beef prices, which in April were 15% higher year-over-year.

Coffee prices were up 18.5%, partly due to drought and other weather conditions that have hurt global coffee production.

In consumer confidence surveys, Americans still cite high prices as a top concern.

Those surveys have found that consumers generally have a dim outlook on the economy, even as the unemployment rate stays low and the economy continues to grow at a modest pace.

NEW YORK — Tomatoes, ubiquitous in everything from fast-food burgers to haute cuisine, are taking on a new role beyond the plate: A nagging reminder of rising costs.

Prices for those red orbs have soared more than any other food product over the past year to cement a spot as one of the consumer headaches du jour.

“The tomato has become a symbol of something much deeper,” says Isaac Bernal Carbajo, a New York City chef who lamented life’s “simplest pleasures” falling victim to price increases. “Something as basic as buying fresh vegetables is starting to become a serious financial decision for many families.”

Tomato prices are up about 40% over a year ago, according to the latest Consumer Price Index, dwarfing increases for other groceries.

A separate inflation gauge released Thursday showed that overall prices increased 3.8% in April from a year earlier, the highest reading in nearly three years.

Alongside crop yields, experts blame price increases for tomatoes, in part, on two pillars of President Donald Trump’s secondterm policies: the Iran war and tariffs. The war spiked gas prices and increased shipping costs. Meantime, the U.S. withdrew from a deal allowing duty-free imports of tomatoes from Mexico, which grows most of America’s supply.

Usha Haley, a Wichita State University economist, says it’s “a perfect storm of trade policy, extreme weather and Mideast policy.”

American tomato farmers cheered the withdrawal from the tomato deal last July, saying it would help rebuild their shrinking industry. But for consumers, it’s been painful. Though the U.S. withdrew from the Mexico tomato deal in July, it took time to see the impact in the produce aisle, with more imports in late winter and early spring.

When the tomatoes arrived, they were slapped with a 17% tariff.

“Tariffs are undeniably a big driver of the price inflation,” says Brett Massimino, a Virginia Commonwealth University business professor. “Because the U.S. relies on Mexico for the majority of its tomato supply, any changes in trade policy can have a large impact.”

U.S. tariffs collected on tomatoes ballooned from just $16,424 in 2024 to nearly $4.6 million, according to federal data, a staggering 27,879% increase.

Phillip Coles, a professor of supply chain management at Lehigh University, says prices should drop later in the year when domestically grown tomatoes are harvested. Higher prices, he says, will also “induce farmers to increase planting to meet the demand, but this takes longer because of the lead time.”

Meanwhile, it’s translating to a big hit for businesses like Snarf’s Sandwiches, which puts a tomato in nearly every sandwich it makes.

Wayne Humphrey, chief operating officer of Snarf’s, which operates dozens of stores in Colorado, Missouri and Texas, said cases of tomatoes went from costing him $27 to $93 in the space of a year, piled on top of rising expenses for other ingredients including bread and beef, as well as increased labor costs.

Southwest CEO indicates that flight prices may stick Iran conflict spiked fuel costs

JORDAN PARKER

The Dallas Morning News (TNS) Airline jet fuel prices will eventually come down, but that doesn’t mean the cost of flights will, according to Dallas-based Southwest Airlines’ chief executive.

Speaking at Bernstein’s 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference on Thursday, Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said in prepared remarks: “I think we — our network competitors, you can tell, we’re all focused on ratable production of results, steady pro-

duction of results, sustainable margins.” He continued, “And so I do think that produces a backdrop where we’ll — there’ll be — we’ll certainly not attempt to give some of these fare increases back.”

Aircraft fuel and oil are some of the biggest Jordan expenses for airlines, according to published statistics from World Air Transport — comprising nearly 29% of all costs and “highlighting the significant impact of fuel prices on operational expenses.”

Jordan said that the aviation in-

dustry has had seven consecutive fare increases since Feb. 1, acknowledging that Southwest had “participated in all of those.”

“That’s the most that I could remember in my 38 years in the industry, but with fares up though that much, there’s been no drop off in at all,” he said. ‘So no indication that the consumer is elastic in the spare environment. So leisure business across geographies, across all points in the booking curve, the consumer remains very strong despite this rise in fares.”

Airline fares rose nearly 21% in the past year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistic’s Consumer Price Index Summary published earlier this month.

And Jordan seemed to indicate that further fare increases may be in store for customers.

“If you just took today’s revenue environment or yield environment and you — and you took fuel prices as they are today. No, no, it’s not close,” Jordan said in response to a question about whether Southwest can cover the jet fuel price hike “at the latest round of fare increases.”

“So you still — you need further increases to fully cover the rise in fuel this far.”

Southwest operates a robust route network from Dallas, the company being based at Love Field. It operates 18 of the 20 gates at the airport.

4B ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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OPINION T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M/opinions

ANOTHER VIEW

Politics comes for late-night TV As the bile of partisan politics washes over American life, late-night television has been swept into the combat.

The cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s show by CBS, the temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show on ABC and President Donald Trump’s public demands that they both be fired ignited the recent controversy. It’s raised issues about free speech, censorship and editorial independence. It’s also raised questions about one-sided partisan programming.

When late-night TV emerged as an enterRon tainment powerhouse, shows competed on Faucheux the star power of hosts and guests. Who had the wittiest monologue, the best skits, the funniest stories? Now the question too often is: Which host matches my political bias?

The late-night genre began in 1954 with “The Tonight Show” — originally titled just “Tonight.” Host Steve Allen established the format we’ve come to know: the desk, the band, the monologue, big personalities on couches and a live audience. Allen’s calling card was an infectious laugh, not a partisan edge.

Jack Paar followed. His “I kid you not” catchphrase became a national punchline. Conversational and literate, he brought on a striking range of guests — Muhammad Ali, William F. Buckley Jr., the Kennedys, Ronald Reagan, even Fidel Castro. These guests were meant to open minds and satisfy audience curiosity.

Paar also had a flair for drama and self-deprecation. Angry at NBC’s format changes, he once quit in the middle of a show. A month later, he returned with a shrug: “I believe my last words were that there must be a better way of making a living than this. Well, I’ve looked… and there isn’t.”

Then came Johnny Carson, the king of late-night television for 30 years. His couch welcomed everyone from Elizabeth Taylor and Don Rickles to Richard Nixon and Martin Luther King Jr. His monologue and skits crackled with humor, and his reaction shots — those perfectly timed double takes — were physical comedy at its finest.

Late-night hosts have always made fun of politicians, as they should; it’s a strength of democracy that they can.

But in earlier days of TV, these hosts usually avoided constricting themselves by partisan identification. Those were the days — if not of innocence, at least of a rough balance. As Jay Leno later said, “Why shoot for just half an audience? Why not try to get the whole?”

A recent poll by the Economist/YouGov found that 40% of Americans opposed the cancellation of Colbert’s “The Late Show” and 24% were OK with it. Results were sharply partisan: While 54% of Republicans favored dumping Colbert, only 2% of Democrats did. A mere 9% of Donald Trump voters and a whopping 83% of Kamala Harris voters opposed cancellation.

Asked in the same poll to name their favorite late-night host, those surveyed produced a near four-way tie: NBC’s Jimmy Fallon 13%, Fox News’ Greg Gutfeld 12%, CBS’s Stephen Colbert 12% and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel 11%, with Comedy Central’s Jon Stewart at 8% and HBO’s John Oliver at 5%.

It was no surprise that Democrats put Kimmel and Colbert on top and Republicans lined up behind Gutfeld.

Independents leaned toward Fallon. Ideology tracked similarly: Liberals favored Colbert, conservatives picked Gutfeld and moderates chose Fallon.

Keep in mind, these aren’t network ratings, but a simple popularity contest among show hosts.

The most polarized audience belonged to Gutfeld, who drew 30% of Republicans and just 1% of Democrats. Colbert followed with 22% of Democrats and 3% of Republicans; Kimmel drew 23% of Democrats and 5% of Republicans. Fallon’s appeal was broadest — 14% among Republicans, 14% among Democrats, 13% among independents.

Digging into demographics, the poll had Gutfeld leading other hosts among Whites; Kimmel led among Black viewers. Kimmel led with Hispanics and the youngest adults (18-29). Gutfeld led those 65 and older. College graduates preferred Colbert; those without degrees selected Fallon.

Fallon and Kimmel did somewhat better with women; Stewart and Gutfeld did slightly better with men.

The future of late-night comedy is uncertain. Social media and podcasts are siphoning its viewers, as political controversy makes audiences smaller and more targeted.

It’s time to remember the value of late-night television that makes room for viewers of every persuasion. After all, who wants partisan hectoring to be the last thing they hear before going to bed?

Ron Faucheux is a nonpartisan political analyst, pollster and writer based in Louisiana.

YOUR VIEWS

Reducing block grants will erode childcare U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy has recently introduced a sweeping rewrite of the Child Care and Development Block Grant, which helps working families access childcare. His proposal won’t fix the childcare crisis; it would make it significantly worse.

The drafted bill would cut the eligibility period in half, from 12 months to just six; eliminate protections providers rely on to keep their doors open; strip states of the flexibility needed to serve families efficiently; and deny coverage to children who are U.S. citizens if their parents don’t have immigration status.

Cassidy is calling this an “antifraud” package. Make no mistake: Childcare is already one of the most regulated and closely monitored programs in the country. In Louisiana, providers are required to undergo regular inspections, perform annual audits and report all spending to the federal government. There has been no evidence of significant or widespread fraud.

What there is overwhelming evi-

dence of is that childcare is severely underfunded, providers aren’t paid enough and families are being left behind. More than 7,000 children are currently on a waitlist. Most childcare workers make less than $15 an hour in a state where the current sustainable wage for a family with two working parents and two children is $23/hour per adult.

The families who cannot find or afford childcare and the providers struggling to make payroll in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Shreveport and every parish in between are Cassidy’s constituents. He should withdraw this bill. He should listen to the nearly 200 organizations and the millions of families they represent who are telling him clearly that this is not the solution.

The solution is meaningful investment in childcare, not a wrecking ball dressed up as reform.

MARIA HARMON executive director, Step Up Louisiana DESIREE COLLINS Power Coalition

Gerrymandering fiddles with rights of all voters I am a White woman in Washington Parish, an independent voter who often votes Democratic, and I want to say something plainly about Louisiana v. Callais. The map the Republican Legislature wants to draw will dilute my vote. It will also be racist. Those are not two separate complaints. They are the same fact described two ways.

Louisiana votes about 60% Republican statewide. A six-seat delegation that honestly reflected the state would be roughly four to two.

The 2022 map made it five to one.

Lawmakers are openly preparing to redraw it that way again.

Black Louisianans vote about 90% Democratic. White Louisianans vote about 80% Republican — facts established in the Robinson litigation.

When race and party line up that tightly, a map drawn to suppress Democrats is mechanically identical to a map drawn to suppress Black

voters. The map is the same. The harm is the same. Only the vocabulary changes.

State Sen. Sharon Hewitt, who chaired Senate redistricting in 2022, said on the floor: “I hear again and again that a third of our population is Black — I hear that — but it does matter where people live.” That is the mechanism, stated almost openly.

The court has now ruled that fixing the racial result requires proving conscious racist intent — Justice Kagan’s “well-nigh impossible” — while in Rucho, it already ruled the partisan version is none of the courts’ business. So lawmakers do it, call it partisan, and no one can stop them.

It is unfair. It is racist. It is both.

Whatever the Legislature calls the next map, I want them to fix it.

Iran war looking more and more misguided Well, the president is crawfishing. Iran has adroitly gamed America’s midterms, betting we would declare victory and head home sooner than later. It’s the economy, stupid!

And let’s not fool ourselves; the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps will eat just fine and happily burn Iran to the ground if necessary — potential martyrs all. I’m sick of watching us blunder into war without a clue what victory looks like and if it’s worth the cost.

When the dust settles, Iran will still be standing, still have their enriched uranium, still have their ballistic missiles, still have a theocracy, still ship oil to China, still control Hormuz and still chant, “Death to America.”

Republicans? We’ll lose Congress, lose Trump’s MAGA agenda and possibly lose 2028.

The lesson? If we’re unwilling to land troops, eliminate the IRGC and occupy Iran until a new government is installed, forget it!

My above views notwithstanding, I’m a proud American, a Vietnam vet, a retired Marine and a lifelong, loyal and voting Republican. I root for America and think Dems have lost their way and their minds on every political, cultural and economic issue of consequence, save one. And on that one, I pray we’re both wrong.

GEORGE LANGE Luling

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S at u r d ay, M ay 30, 2026

OPENING FIZZLE

1CN

Healthy Blackmon hikes IQ of Saints secondary

BY ROD WALKER Staff writer

Julian Blackmon still doesn’t know exactly when or how the injury occurred.

He thinks it could have been on a seconddown play in the fourth quarter of the New Orleans Saints’ season opener against the Arizona Cardinals.

All he knows is that when he woke up the next day, something in his shoulder didn’t feel right. Just like that, the veteran safety’s first season in New Orleans had come to an abrupt ending.

“It was hard,” Blackmon said. “It was really hard. You don’t go into a season just to get out after one game.”

For Blackmon, there was no better feeling than being back on a football field this week practicing as the Saints went through their first week of organized team activities.

Blackmon had been waiting since last September for this.

“I only played one game, so coming back is more urgency and more excitement to be back,” he said. “Especially since I haven’t done the things that I’ve wanted to in my career.”

Blackmon’s shoulder injury last season

ä See SAINTS, page 3C

Saints safety Julian Blackmon STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

UL starting pitcher Cody Brasch waits for a new ball after giving up a home run to Cincinnati first baseman Ryan Tyranski during their NCAA regional game on Friday at Dudy Noble Field in Starkville, Miss. UL lost 12-2.

Bearcats hit six home runs to send Cajuns to losers’ bracket

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

Things were frustrating but still manageable for the UL Ragin’ Cajuns heading into the bottom of the fourth inning of Friday’s 12-2 loss to No. 2-seeded Cincinnati at the Starkville Regional.

The Cajuns had gotten three runners thrown out on the bases to spoil two prime scoring opportunities, but the score was knotted 1-1.

Then the Bearcats figured out UL starter Cody Brasch

like no one had done all season long, and the game got away from the No. 3-seeded Cajuns quickly.

Cincinnati pounded Brasch for five runs in the fourth to seize a 6-1 lead. First, Enzo Infelise hit a two-run homer, followed by a Christian Mitchell run-scoring triple and a two-run bomb from nine-hole hitter Charlie Niehaus.

Jack Natili had another homer off Brasch with one out in the second inning, then Ryan Tyranski led off the fifth with a solo homer to force Brasch’s exit from the game.

ä See CAJUNS, page 3C

Florida coach Sumrall not afraid to be himself

BY EDGAR THOMPSON

Spurs, Thunder reach Game 7 breaking point

Orlando Sentinel (TNS)

BY TIM REYNOLDS

SANDESTIN, Fla. — The Jon Sumrall tour arrived at the Florida Panhandle, where the new Florida football coach continued to share opinions and anecdotes in his energetic, entertaining style.

Sumrall’s authenticity has endeared him to college football fans. His willingness to deliver unvarnished opinions, often sprinkled with sarcasm or humor, has been refreshing for Gator Nation after four seasons of Billy Napier’s measured — at times droning — delivery.

Sumrall would not consider another approach.

“The openness to player movement, player payment, all those things has created more transparency,” he told the Orlando Sentinel earlier this week. “At least in you, there’s so much more that’s out there. It’s like, what are keeping them quiet? Naturally, I’m pretty open. I’m not real guarded.

What you see is what you get.”

The former SEC linebacker is made for the moment when college football is more popular, complicated and ubiquitous than ever.

Sumrall, 43, has appeared in around 50 interviews — podcasts, radio and TV —

OKLAHOMA CITY — The last time Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder played a Game 7, it decided last season’s NBA championship.

That’s why when the two-time MVP spoke about the Game 7 that looms against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night to decide the Western Conä Spurs at ference title, it might have Thunder 7 P.M. seemed mildly surprising that he said these five SATURDAy, NBC, words: “Biggest game of PEACOCK my career.”

“It’s the next game,” he quickly added. “And if I lose, my season’s over.”

Simple as that. Game 7. Spurs vs. Thunder.

The winner goes to the NBA Finals to play the New York Knicks starting on Wednesday night; the loser goes home to lament what might have been.

The Thunder went 2-0 in Game 7s last season on its way to the NBA title, while Spurs star Victor Wembanyama will be making his maiden appearance on the Game 7 stage.

“I know there’ll be a lot of added attention, a lot of eyes watching,” Spurs coach Mitch

AP basketball writer

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By CHRIS WATKINS

New Florida football coach Jon Sumrall speaks during a news conference on Dec. 1 ä See SUMRALL, page 3C in Gainesville, Fla.

ä See SPURS, page 3C

2C ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS On TV AUTO RACING 7 a.m.

Indy NXT: Detroit, practice FS1 11 a.m. Indy NXT: Detroit, qualifying FS1 3 p.m.

ISMA: Detroit Grand Prix NBC 3:30 p.m. NASCAR: Nashville practice PRIME 4:40 p.m. NASCAR: Nashville qualifying PRIME 6 p.m.

NHRA: Maryland qualifying FS1 6:30 p.m. NASCAR O’Reilly: S.I. Resorts 250 CW BEACH VOLLEYBALL Noon AVP: League Week 1 CW BOXING 8 p.m.

MVPW-03: main card ESPN COLLEGE SOFTBALL (WCWS) 2 p.m.

Texas Tech vs. Tennessee ABC 6 p.m.

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DP Tour: Austrian Alpine Open Golf 12:30 p.m. PGA Tour: Schwab Challenge Golf

12:30 p.m. PGA Tour: Schwab Challenge CBS 12:30 p.m. LPGA: ShopRite LPGA Golf 11 p.m. LIV: Busan, South Korea Fox HORSE RACING 11 a.m. America’s Day at the Races FS2 1:30 p.m. America’s Day at the Races FS1 2:30 p.m. America’s Day at the Races FS2 MEN’S HOCKEY (IIHF) 8 a.m.

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Philadelphia at L.A. Dodgers MLBN NBA PLAYOFFS 7 p.m.

San Antonio at Oklahoma City NBC MEN’S RUGBY 10:55 p.m. St. George Illawarra at Brisbane FS2

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FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

SAILING 2:30 p.m. SailGP: Event 6 CBSSN SOCCER 1 p.m.

The Soccer Tournament: TBD NBC 8 p.m.

The Soccer Tournament: TBD NBC MEN’S SOCCER 11 a.m. Paris Saint-Germain vs. Arsenal CBS 6 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Louisville CBSSN 7 p.m.

Tigres UANL at Deportivo FC FS1 WOMEN’S SOCCER 12:30 p.m. Boston at Kansas City ION 3 p.m.

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French Open TNT/TruTV 1 p.m.

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Houston at Birmingham ESPN2 WNBA 7 p.m.

Indiana at Portland CBS

FRENCH OPEN

Djokovic ousted by teenager

Sean Sweeney’s wait to become a head coach is about to be over.

The Orlando Magic are set to give him the shot he’s wanted for years.

Sweeney is in the final stages of completing a deal that will make him the next coach of the Magic, according to a person with knowledge of the move who spoke to the condition of anonymity. The Magic declined comment. ESPN first reported that an agreement between Sweeney and the Magic was being finalized.

Sweeney — currently the associate head coach for the San Antonio Spurs — is getting the job over, among other candidates, longtime coaches Billy Donovan and Jeff Van Gundy. The 41-year-old replaces Jamahl Mosley, who was let go by the Magic after five seasons but has since been hired as coach of the New Orleans Pelicans.

BY SAMUEL PETREQUIN and JEROME PUGMIRE Associated Press

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CHRISTOPHE ENA

Novak Djokovic of Serbia, left, and Joao Fonseca of Brazil hug after their third-round match at the French Open on Friday in Paris.

Despite missing the NCAA Tournament and posting a 9-21 record in Southeastern Conference play, LSU baseball coach Jay Johnson plans on bringing back the same coaching staff next season.

The Tigers missed the NCAA tourney for the first time since 2011, and had their worst win total against the SEC since the season before Skip Bertman’s appointment in 1983.

If they all return in 2027, pitching coach Nate Yeskie, recruiting coordinator and third base coach Josh Jordan and Marc Wanaka, the director of offensive player development, will be in their fourth, fifth and sixth seasons with the program, respectively.

Assistant coach Josh Simpson would also be going into his fourth year with the team.

Magic, Sweeney finalizing deal to make him coach

Serbian star joins Sinner as another major upset victim PARIS — There will be a new men’s champion at the French Open after Novak Djokovic followed Jannik Sinner out of Roland Garros in a five-set stunner on Friday.

Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca beat 24time major winner Djokovic 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5 in the third round to follow Thursday’s huge upset, when No. 1 Sinner lost to 56th-ranked Juan Manuel Cerundolo.

“Ten minutes after the match I could realize a little bit what I did, what I achieved,” the 19-year-old Fonseca said. “How difficult it was and how amazing it was for me.”

Djokovic’s latest quest for a record 25th Grand Slam was ended, and it was just the second time he lost from two sets up, the other also coming in Paris in 2010.

Along with veterans Marin Cilic and Stan Wawrinka, all the men’s major winners are out, thus guaranteeing that a new pair of hands will raise the Coupe des Mousquetaires trophy aloft on June 7 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

“Of course, Jannik and Djokovic out, there’s more chances,” said Fonseca, who next faces two-time runner-up Casper Ruud, who beat Tommy Paul 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 7-5.

The 39-year-old Djokovic faded as the court slowed in the evening cool.

“Tough one for me to lose,” Djokovic said.

“I was barely standing on my legs toward the end of the match.”

In the final game, Djokovic had a break point for 6-6 but Fonseca served out with three consecutive aces and became the first teenager to beat Djokovic at a Grand Slam tournament.

“I just enjoyed being on court and what a pleasure it was. It’s my first time stepping on court against him,” Fonseca said. “We still think he’s 20. At the end of the match, I think he was more fit than me, that’s crazy.”

Fonseca wished his mother in the crowd happy birthday and thanked all the Brazilians who turned up to watch.

This wasn’t as big of an upset as Sinner’s loss because Djokovic came to Paris with doubts.

After he lost the Australian Open final to Carlos Alcaraz, a shoulder injury limited his clay-court buildup to one competitive match, and Djokovic labored for at least three hours in each of his previous two rounds before facing the full fury of Fonseca’s booming forehand.

“Taking everything in consideration and all the circumstances, I think the level was really good,” said Djokovic, whose last major title was the 2024 U.S. Open.

The heat that stressed Sinner also got to Djokovic, who applied ice packs on both sides of his face during changeovers.

Djokovic snapped at a TV camera operator for getting too close to his face at one point.

By the fifth set, he couldn’t hide his fatigue: He hunched over the advertising boards, his forearms dangling; slumped back in his chair with a towel on his head; grabbed his head with his hands.

LSU plans to keep baseball coaching staff intact for ’27

Sixers to hire Gansey as lead front office executive

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By JAyNE KAMIN-ONCEA

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford talks to the media at a news conference on Thursday in Los Angeles. Stafford, 38, recently signed a two-year contract extension with the team.

MVP Stafford gets why L.A. Rams took Simpson

BY GREG BEACHAM AP sportswriter

LOS ANGELES — Matthew Stafford says he understands why the Los Angeles Rams drafted Ty Simpson last month, even though they happen to have the NFL’s reigning MVP quarterback under contract for at least the next two years.

“Listen, I’m not 25 years old, and I get that,” Stafford said Thursday after organized team activities at the Rams’ training complex. “So we’re doing everything we can to be as good a football team as we can for now, for the future, for all of it.”

The 38-year-old Stafford said he has “constant dialogue and a great relationship” with coach Sean McVay, who called him last month to tell him the Rams were about to stun the NFL by using the 13th overall pick on Simpson, the Alabama quarterback who was not expected to go that high in the draft — or to go to the Rams, who already knew Stafford was returning for 2026.

The sixth-leading passer in NFL history then signd a hefty contract extension for 2027 last week, cementing his future in a role that was already rock-solid.

McVay has repeatedly stated that Stafford is the Rams’ starting quarterback for as long as he wants to play, even after the Rams used their highest draft pick in 10 years on a quarterback.

But Stafford also underlined why the Rams drafted a quarterback when he reiterated Thursday that he’s still going to take a year-by-year approach to his future, even after making a two-year contractual commitment.

“Happy to have next year taken care of if I decide to play — and they still want me back,” Stafford said with a grin. “Excited to get that behind me, because I just want to come out here and play, and not think about the extra stuff.

PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelpia 76ers are set to hire Mike Gansey as their president of basketball operations, a source confirmed to The Philadelphia Inquirer on Friday.

Gansey has been the Cleveland Cavaliers general manager under Kolby Altman since 2022, and before that was the assistant general manager and general manager of the G League’s Cleveland Charge.

He has been part of the front office that executed trades for Donovan Mitchell and, earlier this season, James Harden. The Cavaliers advanced to the Eastern Conference finals before being swept by the Knicks.

Brewers pitcher Uribe suspended for behavior

Rams quarterbacks Matthew Stafford, left, and Ty Simpson look on during practice Thursday. Simpson was taken as the No. 13 overall pick in the NFL draft.

It’s good to get it done sooner rather than later.”

Stafford and Simpson have been working out alongside returning backup Stetson Bennett and undrafted rookie Matthew Caldwell this month.

Bennett and Simpson are expected to compete for the No. 2 job behind Stafford, who is heading into his 18th NFL season.

Stafford and the 23-year-old Simpson appear to be getting along well so far, although Stafford is understandably focused less on mentorship and more on a genuine chance to secure his second Super Bowl ring in the upcoming season.

“He’s a guy that asks questions,” Stafford said. “I’ve been trying to answer those as honestly and as thoroughly as I possibly can. He’s a smart kid. He’s got talent, obviously.

Happy to add good players to our team. He’s one of them.

But my job is to go out there and get myself and our team as ready to play as we possibly can.”

Stafford is coming off one of the best seasons of his career in which he won his first MVP award. He passed for an NFLbest 4,707 yards and a careerhigh 46 touchdowns against just eight interceptions while leading the Rams to a 12-win season, two road playoff victories and a spot in the NFC championship game.

While Stafford will wait until the next offseason to decide whether he’s coming back for 2027, it’s increasingly clear that he doesn’t want to play for another team. He turned down overtures from around the league a year ago, and he quickly cemented his future with the Rams this year after his MVP season.

When asked if he intends to finish his career with the Rams, Stafford replied: “That would probably be a ‘Yes,’ but ... this is life, and I don’t know what’s going to happen. I do love playing here. I love playing for this organization. Love my teammates, and my family loves it here.”

HOUSTON — Milwaukee reliever Abner Uribe received a one-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for his inappropriate actions toward the St. Louis dugout earlier this week, MLB announced Friday.

Uribe appealed the suspension so he could be available Friday night when the Brewers opened a three-game series at Houston.

The suspension comes after Uribe’s behavior Tuesday night following an inning-ending strikeout in a 6-0 victory over the Cardinals.

Uribe retired Alec Burleson on a called third strike with two outs and runners on first and second in the eighth, the only inning he pitched. Uribe then made three WWE-style crotch chops while facing the Cardinals dugout.

Spaun’s 68 puts him two strokes back at Colonial

FORT WORTH, Texas — J.J. Spaun is thinking a little bit about his schedule and a lot about his putting while in contention at the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial.

The reigning U.S. Open champion said he believes he’s getting both lined up just about right three weeks before he tries to defend his first major title.

Spaun surged with four birdies on his front nine before a couple of late bogeys in a 2-under 68 that put him at 8 under.

He’s two shots behind Englishman Jordan Smith and one back of Hideki Matsuyama, Ryan Gerard and Brian Harman after 36 holes at Colonial.

Spaun was joined by Akshay Bhatia (65), Russell Henley (66), Brice Garnett (66) and Alex Smalley (67).

The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● 3C

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CAJUNS

Continued from page 1C

STAFF FILE PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton scores a touchdown as Saints safety Julian Blackmon defends during a preseason game on Aug. 23 at the Caesars Superdome. Blackmon returned to the field this week during organized team activities for the first time since September.

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C was the second straight year he got hurt in the season opener. The season before with the Indianapolis Colts, he suffered a torn labrum.

He fought through it and played in 16 games for the Colts before having surgery in January 2025.

The injury with the Colts was at the front of his labrum. The one with the Saints was toward the posterior. He wasn’t able to play through this one, making it the second time in his career he missed significant time. Blackmon missed 11 games with the Colts in 2021 after tearing an Achilles. He dealt with an ankle injury in 2022.

Going through one injury after another can take a toll on a player.

“Especially after having three different injuries that have sidelined me,” Blackmon said. “It’s one of those things that you have to make sure that your mentals are good. That mental battle is you vs.

SUMRALL

Continued from page 1C on non-practice days during the spring.

“I felt like it was important to pull back the curtain to our fan base, so they can see who we are, what we’re about,” he said. “What really matters is winning football games, but at the same time there’s an appreciation for people being able to know what this looks like.”

Sumrall frequently posts on the X account he manages, addressing recruiting, Florida’s athletic success in other sports, the state’s flagship university and the sport itself.

After Texas coach Steve Sarkisian fired shots at Ole Miss’ academic standards — and indirectly former coach Lane Kiffin — Sumrall, a one-time assistant in Oxford, entered the fray.

“Grateful to coach at a top 10 public university that also offers advanced basket weaving!” he tweeted, while generating 2 million engagements.

“Sark thanked me,” Sumrall said. “He’s like, at least some-

SPURS

Continued from page 1C Johnson said. “It’ll be a hostile environment, but we’ve been saying this for a long time: We’ve had a lot of firsts. This one will be a little bit more important or higher stakes than all the others. That’s the goal as you keep playing and the season gets longer.”

This will be only the second time in NBA history that two teams that won 62 or more games during the regular season meet in a Game 7. The other was in 1981, when Boston beat Philadelphia 91-90 to win the Eastern Conference title.

And it could be easily argued that Wembanyama is about to play the biggest game of his career. Then again, he might take exception to that.

In the mind of the 7-foot-4 French star, who had 28 points in 28 minutes to lead San Antonio’s romp in Game 6 that staved off elimination and got the Spurs into Game 7, every game is Game 7.

It’s the attitude he’s taken to the

you. At that point, you have to be focused on the things that you’re grateful for.”

He’s grateful the Saints didn’t give up on him. He was one of the team’s brightest spots in training camp last season as he was brought in on a one-year deal to fill the void left by the sudden retirement of Tyrann Mathieu. The Saints signed him to another oneyear deal in January.

Saints coach Kellen Moore likes what he’s seen from Blackmon’s return.

“Julian is a big-time leader,” Moore said. “Super smart. When you put him and Justin Reid back there and you’ve got Jonas (Sanker) back there with those guys, that’s really high football IQ. Those guys work hand in hand together really well.”

Blackmon, drafted by the Colts in the third round in 2020, credits his experience for that high IQ. “I’ve always been a guy who wanted to just learn as much as I can,” Blackmon said. “I’m going on Year 7. Just being in the fire makes a big difference. Just being out

Email Rod Walker at rwalker@theadvocate.com.

body got in the bunker with me and was realizing I was just trying to make light of how hard our academic situation is. People sometimes take everything so literally and so serious. It’s like, ‘Hey, let’s enjoy life. Let’s have a little bit of fun.’

“There will be times it’s fourth and 1. There’s also times it’s not.”

Sumrall accepted the Florida job Nov. 30 while his Tulane team prepared for the Sun Belt Conference game with a College Football Playoff berth on the line.

Reporters laughed Tuesday at the SEC spring meeting as he described the challenge of running two programs simultaneously.

Sumrall juggled two recruiting classes, two programs and two phones while surviving, he recalled, on two hours of sleep.

Meanwhile, every coach is trying to thread the needle to assemble a roster once the season ends.

In 2024, the early signing period was moved to early December to avoid overlapping with the NCAA transfer portal. In 2025, the portal window was reduced to a single two-week period in early January, further intensifying tampering, bowl opt-outs and roster distractions for teams advancing deep

into the CFP. Facing a roomful of SEC and national reporters, Sumrall echoed a sentiment he shared in Gainesville earlier in the spring.

“The NFL has a really cool model where they play until the season ends,” he said. “Then coaches take jobs, then they do roster turnover, then they have some practices, then they play the season again.

We’re like doing all that at once.

“You feel like you’ve been drinking. That’s like mixing tequila, bourbon and beer. It’s gonna make you sick.”

While winning conference titles twice at each Troy and Tulane, Sumrall — who signed a six-year deal worth $44.7 million at Florida — did not face the expectations or have the opportunities he has now.

The Gators have produced only one winning season since playing for the SEC title in 2020, but Sumrall expects to eventually put Florida in the mix for the CFP. He’d also like to see the field expand to 24 teams, despite mixed opinions within the SEC. Commissioner Greg Sankey prefers expansion to no more than 16 teams.

Sumrall pointed to the exclusion of Texas and Vanderbilt in 2025,

there on the field and understanding different route concepts. A lot of that IQ comes from just playing and being in the fire.”

For now, Blackmon and Reid are playing mostly at safety while Sanker is playing the nickel corner position that Alontae Taylor played last season. Blackmon has been practicing some at that position, too.

“We have more than enough guys who are smart and that can play that position and can fill that role,” Blackmon said. “The safety room is so versatile with so many elite thinkers that can play multiple positions.”

Blackmon is just glad he’s back in the mix after missing all but one game last season.

“I’m just appreciative of the opportunity I get to be back out here with these guys,” Blackmon said.

“We have a great group of players.

Being able to stay close to them and get back in the playbook feels really good.”

In his first three at-bats, Natili was 4-for-5 with a double, three homers and five RBIs. The Cajuns led 1-0 in the first inning. Noah Lewis walked with one out and then scored when Lee Amedee’s RBI single was misplayed in right field to allow Lewis to get home. Colt Brown’s grounder then got Amedee caught in a rundown to end the threat.

In the top of the fourth, Brown and Drew Markle both walked, but Donovan LaSalle’s deep fly ball to right-center resulted in a double play at second base to again strand a runner in scoring position.

The pitches were mounting pretty quickly on Cincinnati starting pitcher Nathan Taylor early on, but it didn’t matter in the big picture. The 6-foot-5 right-hander had thrown 82 pitches after four innings, but he finished giving up just one unearned run on two hits, four walks and three strikeouts in six innings to improve to 7-3 on the season.

Maddox Mandino greeted Bearcats reliever Dominic Mauro with a pinch-hit RBI single in the seventh to make it 10-2.

JR Tollett closed out the game for UL, giving up three runs on five hits, one walk and five strikeouts in 31/ 3 innings.

In four-plus innings, the righthander allowed seven runs on eight hits, no walks and struck out five.

In 21 previous outings this season, Brasch had given up four or more runs just twice — five against Missouri State in the season opener as a closer and then four against Troy in Sun Belt play.

The Cajuns fell to 39-24 on the season and will now play No. 4-seeded Lipscomb at 3 p.m. Saturday in an elimination game.

Top-seeded Mississippi State defeated Lipscomb 10-1 in Friday’s first game.

It’s the third straight regional the Cajuns have opened with a loss. The last opening win was over TCU in 2022.

Cincinnati (38-20) will play the host Bulldogs at 8 p.m. Saturday in the winner’s bracket contest.

Brasch had allowed only five home runs all season but gave up four bombs against the Bearcats.

Overall, the six home runs allowed by UL pitchers Friday were the second most they allowed all season. The Cajuns gave up eight at Texas State on March 22.

The Bearcats entered the regional with 84 homers and the Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@ UL pitching staff had allowed 79. theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

UL designated hitter Steven Spalitta is tagged out at second base by Cincinnati infielder Jackson Smith during their NCAA regional game on Friday at Dudy Noble Field in Starkville, Miss. along with the SEC moving to a nine-game conference schedule this season.

“Talking to the other coaches, they felt like by going to nine games, they felt like it would shift the playoff model (to 16), but it didn’t,” he said. “They felt misled.”

Clarity — whatever the consequences — is Sumrall’s style. The approach, he believes, is required in leadership.

Growing up in Huntsville, Alabama, Sumrall became accustomed to being front and center.

He said he always served as a team captain and was elected class president every year beginning as a freshman.

“By the time I got to my senior year, nobody would even run against me,” he said. “I really wasn’t necessarily ridiculously interested in student government.

I just thought, ‘Hey, if they’re gonna have a competition, I’ll run and see if I can win.’

“But I do enjoy leading. I do enjoy challenging people. I do enjoy pushing others and holding them accountable, including myself.”

Sumrall will have plenty of help at Florida. Expectations have overwhelmed previous coaches.

“I’ve never been in any sort of fish bowl like I am now,” Sumrall said.

Still, Sumrall plans to go with the flow, rather than fight the tide.

He will wear his emotions on his sleeve, voice his thoughts and vent his frustrations when necessary.

Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin welcomes Sumrall’s attitude and ability to connect with people.

“He’s got — my mom would say — personality plus,” Stricklin said. “He’s incredibly genuine, authentic and over the top as far as relatability. He’s gregarious and fun, and brings a ton of energy.”

Whatever happens going forward, Sumrall insists, will never change him.

“I don’t know any way to be different,” he said. “Whether things are going good or bad, being real and authentic is what matters.

And things are going to go bad. We might lose a game, but I’m not going to change. There’s going to be storms. There’s going to be great, great victories, too.

“But you have to just be consistent. I don’t have any interest in being a robot, and just regurgitating the old coach speak. I’m going to be human.”

City’s biggest lead was 13 before the Thunder won by nine.

The gaps have grown as the series goes along. Both teams led by at least 15 points at times in Game 3 (a 15-point Thunder win); the Spurs led by as many as 25 before winning Game 4 by 21; the Thunder led by 20 before winning Game 5 by 13; and the Spurs led by 28 before winning Game 6 by 27.

The games themselves might not have all been classics. The series, as a whole, looks like one.

It comes down to one game — the 12th between the teams this season, with San Antonio 7-4 in the previous 11.

“The one thing that we’ve learned more than anything AP PHOTO By DARREN ABATE is every game has a new life,” San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper drives against Oklahoma City Thunder coach Mark Daigneault Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Thursday in San Antonio. said. “Every game is earned if you want to win it. Game 7 will be court for as long as he can re- the Game 6 win Thursday. “The no different. This is obviously a competitive drive feels exactly quality opponent. We have to play member. a lot better than we did (in Game “For me, winning in the NBA the same.”

Game 1 was a double-overtime 6), and we understand that from a today isn’t any more important than winning a regional champi- thriller, with neither team ever number of experiences.”

Since the start of the 2025 playonship back when I was playing in leading by more than 10 points the U-13 division,” Wembanyama before the Spurs eventually pre- offs, Oklahoma City is 9-0 in the said in his native French after vailed. And in Game 2, Oklahoma game immediately after a playoff

loss — winning those by an average of 15.4 points.

“We’re just a motivated group and we accept the challenge ahead,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.

“Every game is going to present a different challenge and obviously when you lose, it hurts a little more and there’s a little extra motivation and we tend to fight a little bit harder.”

And given that this is Game 7, there will be plenty of fight on both sides.

Gilgeous-Alexander will be in his fourth Game 7. Wembanyama will be in his first. Most of the Spurs’ rotation players will be on this stage for only the first or second time. But everyone knows the stakes.

“I think there’s been a lot of legendary Game 7s, and I feel like we’re a group that wants to be a part of that,” said Spurs rookie Dylan Harper, whose father — five-time champion Ron Harper — played in a pair of Game 7s.

“We want to be a part of that kind of history of Game 7. We’re going to go out there swinging. No matter what, we’re just going to leave it all on the table.”

4C ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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Northwest two-way star rising in football recruiting

BY MIKE COPPAGE Contributing writer

Markez Davis is a popular topic in football recruiting circles.

The senior from Northwest High, who has been known as a college basketball prospect for years, is taking an official Davis football visit this weekend to LSU, which is in hot pursuit of him as a defensive back.

“They’re telling me things I want to hear,” said the 6-foot-3

Davis, whose recruitment is being overseen by LSU cornerbacks coach Corey Raymond. “It feels like a dream come true. Every kid in Louisiana dreams of going to LSU.” Basketball scholarships began arriving during his sophomore season, with football offers coming fast and furious near the end of his junior year.

LSU, like other schools, loves Davis’s long frame.

“They like my size, my (footwork) ... everything about me,” said Davis, who has been a deep receiving threat for the Raiders for three years.

During last season, an injury to a Northwest starting defensive back prompted Davis to volunteer to play both ways. The rest is history.

“He’s the fourth guy from our school to start out as a basketball player and get a football scholarship,” Raiders football coach Chris Edwards said.

Davis, who was participating in summer league basketball on Thursday at David Thibodaux, has played on a prestigious AAU circuit in the past but could put that on hold this summer to focus on football.

“He’s just a very genuine kid who is always smiling,” Edwards said.

“Markez is a great leader with a great home life. You couldn’t ask for a better family. He’s a hard worker who could play safety, cornerback or receiver in college.”

Davis, who has exceptional leaping ability, helped the Raiders reach the state basketball tournament as a junior.

“The kid has always been hungry to play against the best,” Northwest hoops coach Mark Cassimere said.

Davis, who debuted in the Rivals rankings as the No. 28 football player in Louisiana, also has official visits planned to Tulane and Houston, but LSU hopes to per-

suade him to make a verbal commitment this weekend.

“He’s a hard worker who does what’s necessary,” Cassimere said.

“He does all the right things. I envisioned this from Day 1. His skills are second to none.”

Davis hauled in over 700 receiving yards as a junior in an offense that featured the running of Ke’Von Johnson, and he intercepted three passes.

“I’m a freak athlete who is always down to work,” he said. “I’m ready to make a name for myself.

Where I’m from, not a lot of people make it to the next level. I want to show everybody it’s possible.”

SCOREBOARD Odds

6 p.m.

Sports Betting Line MLB

Game 11 — Game 7 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 11 a.m. x-Game 12 — Game 7 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 1:30 p.m.

Game 13 — Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m. x-Game 14 — Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8:30 p.m.

Monday’s games

Saturday

American League FAVORITE LINE Detroit -121 Toronto -123 at TEXAS -125 at CLE -138 at TAMPA -159 N.Y Yankees -150 National League FAVORITE LINE at WASH OFF at N.Y METS -139 Atlanta -134 Chicago Cubs -131 at COLORDO OFF at LA DDGRS OFF Interleague FAVORITE LINE at PITT -139 Milwaukee -123 at SEATTLE -161

UNDERDOG at WHITE SOX at BALTIMORE Kansas City Boston LA Angels at ATHLETICS

LINE +102 +104 +106 +118 +134 +126

UNDERDOG San Diego Miami at CINCINNATI at ST. LOUIS San Francisco Philadelphia

LINE OFF +119 +114 +111 OFF OFF

UNDERDOG Minnesota at HOUSTON Arizona

LINE +119 +103 +135

Pro basketball

Championship Series (Best-of-3) Wednesday, June 3

Game 1 — Teams TBD, 7 p.m.

CONFERENCE FINALS

(Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

Double elimination; x-if necessary

Atlanta Regional Friday

Game 1: Georgia Tech 22, UIC 5 Game 2: The Citadel (35-24) vs. Oklahoma (32-21), n

Athens Regional

L 2 2 3 3 3 3 5 6

Pct .714 .714 .625 .625 .571 .500 .375 .250

GB — — ½ ½ 1 1½ 2½ 3½

Thursday’s Games

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Auburn Regional Friday

Game 1: Milwaukee 13, Auburn 8 Game 2: NC State vs. UCF, n

Saturday

Game 3: Milwaukee vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: Auburn vs. Game 2 loser

Sunday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Austin Regional

Dallas 95, Las Vegas 87 Golden State 90, Indiana 88

Friday’s Games

Los Angeles at Washington, n Minnesota 79, Chicago 58 New York 75, Phoenix 68 Atlanta at Portland, n

Saturday’s Games

Seattle at Toronto, noon Los Angeles at Connecticut, 5 p.m.

Indiana at Portland, 7 p.m.

Hockey NHL playoffs CONFERENCE FINALS (Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

EASTERN CONFERENCE Carolina 3, Montreal 1

Thursday, May 21: Montreal 6, Carolina 2 Saturday: Carolina 3, Montreal 2, OT Monday: Carolina 3, Montreal 2, OT Wednesday: Carolina 4, Montreal 0 Friday, May 29: Montreal at Carolina, 7 p.m. x-Sunday, May 31: Carolina at Montreal, TBA x-Tuesday, June 2: Montreal at Carolina, TBA

WESTERN CONFERENCE Vegas 4, Colorado 0

Wednesday, May 20: Vegas 4, Colorado 2 Friday: Vegas 3, Colorado 1 Sunday: Vegas 5, Colorado 3 Tuesday: Vegas 2, Colorado 1

College softball NCAA Div. I World Series glance At Devon Park Oklahoma City, Okla.

Double elimination x-if necessary

Thursday’s games

Game 9 — No. 1 Texas vs. Game 8 loser, 2 p.m.

Game 10 — Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 loser,

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Starkville Regional

Sunday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

Tallahassee Regional Friday

Game 1: St. John’s (NY) 6, Florida State 5 Game 2: NIU (35-17) vs. Coastal Carolina (37-21), n

Saturday

Game 3: St. John’s vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: Florida State vs. Game 2 loser

College Station Regional

Game 1: Texas A&M 7, Lamar 5 Game 2: Texas St. (36-24) vs. Southern California (43-15), n

Saturday

Game 3: Texas A&M vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: Lamar vs. Game 2 loser

Sunday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Eugene Regional

Friday

Game 1: Washington St. 3, Oregon St. 2 Game 2: Oregon (40-16) vs. Yale (30-13-1), n

Saturday

Game 3: Washington St. vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: Oregon St. vs. Game 2 loser

Sunday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Gainesville Regional Friday

Game 1: Florida 8, Rider 7 Game 2: Troy (32-29) vs. Miami (FL) (38-18), n

Saturday

Game 3: Florida vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: Rider vs. Game 2 loser

Sunday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Hattiesburg Regional Friday

Game 1: Little Rock 7, Southern Miss 4 Game 2: Jacksonville St. 15, Virginia 7

Saturday

Game 3: Little Rock vs. Jacksonville St. Game 4: Southern Miss vs. Virginia

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Friday

Game 1: USC Upstate 8, Oklahoma St. 5 Game 2: Alabama 21, vs. Alabama St. 3

Saturday

Game 3: USC Upstate vs. Alabama Game 4: Oklahoma State vs. Alabama St.r

Sunday

Monday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

American League East Division Tampa Bay New York Toronto Baltimore Boston

W 34 34 28 26 23

L 19 22 29 31 32

Pct .642 .607 .491 .456 .418

GB — 1½ 8 10 12

Cleveland Chicago Minnesota Kansas City Detroit

W 33 29 27 22 22

L 25 27 30 34 35

Pct .569 .518 .474 .393 .386

GB — 3 5½ 10 10½

Seattle Athletics Houston Texas Los Angeles

W 28 27 26 25 22

L 29 29 32 31 35

Pct .491 .482 .448 .446 .386

GB — ½ 2½ 2½ 6

Central Division

West Division

Thursday’s Games

L.A. Angels 7, Detroit 1 Chicago White Sox 6, Minnesota 2 Atlanta 10, Boston 2 Toronto 2, Baltimore 1 Houston 5, Texas 1

Friday’s Games

Pittsburgh 6, Minnesota 5 Toronto 6, Baltimore 5 Cleveland 4, Boston 3 Tampa Bay 8, L.A. Angels 5 Chicago White Sox 4, Detroit 3, 10 innings Texas 9, Kansas City 1 Milwaukee at Houston, n N.Y. Mets 9, Miami 7, 10 innings Arizona at Seattle, n

Saturday’s Games

Detroit (Valdez 2-3) at Chicago White Sox (Kay 4-1), 1:10 p.m.

Kansas City (Lugo 2-4) at Texas (Rocker 2-5), 3:05 p.m.

Minnesota (Ober 6-2) at Pittsburgh (Keller 5-2), 3:05 p.m.

Toronto (Yesavage 2-2) at Baltimore (Young 3-1), 3:05 p.m.

Boston (Gray 5-1) at Cleveland (Messick 6-1), 3:10 p.m.

L.A. Angels (Detmers 1-5) at Tampa Bay (Rasmussen 4-1), 3:10 p.m.

Milwaukee (Sproat 1-3) at Houston (Lambert 3-4), 3:10 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees (Weathers 2-2) at Athletics (Ginn 2-3), 9:05 p.m.

Arizona at Seattle (Woo 4-3), 9:10 p.m.

Game 3: Kansas vs. Arkansas Game 4: Northeastern vs. Missouri St.

Atlanta Philadelphia Washington Miami New York

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

Saturday’s Games

Minnesota (Ober 6-2) at Pittsburgh (Keller 5-2), 3:05 p.m.

San Diego (King 4-3) at Washington (Griffin 6-2), 3:05 p.m.

Miami (Phillips 0-0) at N.Y. Mets (Scott 0-0), 3:10 p.m.

Milwaukee (Sproat 1-3) at Houston (Lambert 3-4), 3:10 p.m.

Atlanta (Pérez 2-3) at Cincinnati (Singer 2-4), 6:15 p.m.

Chicago Cubs (Brown 1-2) at St. Louis (Pallante 5-4), 6:15 p.m.

San Francisco (Houser 2-4) at Colorado (TBD), 8:10 p.m.

Arizona (Nelson 2-3) at Seattle (Woo 4-3), 9:10 p.m.

Philadelphia (Painter 1-5) at L.A. Dodgers (Sasaki 3-3), 9:10 p.m.

East Division

W 38 29 29 26 23

Central Division

L 19 27 28 31 33

Third Round Andrey Rublev (11), Russia, def. Nuno Borges, Portugal, 7-5, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2).

Pablo Carreno Busta, Spain, def. Thiago Agustin Tirante, Argentina, 7-6 (0), 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.

Rafael Jodar (27), Spain, def. Alex Michelsen, United States, 7-6 (2), 6-7 (5), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.

Jakub Mensik (26), Czechia, def. Alex de Minaur (8), Australia, 0-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3.

Jesper De Jong, Netherlands, def. Karen Khachanov (13), Russia, 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-2.

Joao Fonseca (28), Brazil, def. Novak Djokovic (3), Serbia, 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5.

Third Round Marta Kostyuk (15), Ukraine, def. Viktorija Golubic, Switzerland, 6-4, 6-3.

Wang Xiyu, China, def. Yuliia Starodubtseva, Ukraine, 6-3, 7-5.

Iga Swiatek (3), Poland, def. Magda Linette, Poland, 6-4, 6-4.

Mirra Andreeva (8), Russia, def. Marie Bouzkova (27), Czechia, 6-4, 6-2.

Sorana Cirstea (18), Romania, def. Solana Sierra, Argentina, 6-0, 6-0.

Jil Teichmann, Switzerland, def. Karolina Muchova (10), Czechia, 6-1, 7-5.

Elina Svitolina (7), Ukraine, def. Tamara Korpatsch, Germany, 6-2, 6-3.

Belinda Bencic (11), Switzerland, def. Peyton Stearns, United States, 6-3, 6-3.

First Round Thiago Agustin Tirante and Roman Andres Burruchaga, Argentina, def. Santiago Gonzalez, Mexico, and Maximo Gonzalez, Argentina, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (10).

Major League Baseball

National League

Sunday

Atlanta 8, Cincinnati 3 Pittsburgh 6, Minnesota 5 St. Louis 6, Chicago Cubs 5 San Diego 7, Washington 5 Miami at N.Y. Mets, n Milwaukee at Houston, n San Francisco at Colorado, n Arizona at Seattle, n Philadelphia at L.A. Dodgers, n

Men’s Doubles

Omaha, Neb.

Game 1: Kansas 6, Northeastern 3 Game 2: Arkansas 9, Missouri St. 5

Saturday

Atlanta 10, Boston 2 Chicago Cubs 7, Pittsburgh 2

Women’s Singles

Tuscaloosa Regional

Super regionals June 5-8 College World Series June 12-21/22

Friday

Thursday’s Games

Men’s Singles

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Game 3: East Carolina vs. North Carolina Game 4: Tennessee vs. VCU

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

GB — 4½ 4½ 14 16½

At Stade Roland Garros Paris Purse: €28,900,000 Surface: Red clay Results Friday from French Open at Stade Roland Garros (seedings in parentheses):

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Monday

Pct .643 .564 .564 .393 .351

Friday

Game 1: East Carolina 7, Tennessee 3, 14 innings Game 2: North Carolina 8, VCU 0

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

L 20 24 24 34 37

Game 3: Liptscomb vs. UL, 3 p.m.

Game 4: Mississippi St.vs. Cincinnati, 8 p.m.

Friday

Sunday

W 36 31 31 22 20

French Open Results

Sunday

Saturday

Los Angeles Arizona San Diego San Francisco Colorado

Saturday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Friday

GB — 4 4½ 5 6

Tennis

Monday

Monday

Pct .623 .544 .537 .527 .509

Game 1: Mississippi St. 10, Lipscomb 1 Game 2: Cincinnati 12, UL 2

Saturday

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

L 20 26 25 26 28

Friday

Game 3: Texas vs. Tarleton St. Game 4: Holy Cross vs. UC Santa Barbara

Lawrence Regional

Sunday’s games

Game 3: Kentucky vs. West Virginia Game 4: Wake Forest vs. Binghamton

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Game 5 — No. 1 Texas 4, No. 5 Mississippi State 0 Game 6 — Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser, n Game 7 — No. 3 Texas Tech 8 vs. No. 2 Tennessee, 2 p.m.

Game 8 — No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 1 Nebraska, 6 p.m.

Saturday

Sunday

Sunday

Saturday’s games

Game 1: Kentucky 6, Wake Forest 5 Game 2: West Virginia 10, Binghamton 1

Friday

Game 1 — No. 3 Texas Tech 8, No. 5 Miss. St. 0 Game 2 — No. 2 Tennessee 6, No. 1 Texas 3 Game 3 — No. 1 Alabama 6, No. 2 UCLA 3 Game 4 — No. 1 Nebraska 5, No. 2 Arkansas 3

Friday’s games

Morgantown Regional

Game 1: Texas 19, Holy Cross 1 Game 2: Tarleton St. 11, UC Santa Barbara 5

Chapel Hill Regional

W 5 5 5 5 4 3 3 2

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Monday

Saturday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Minnesota Golden State Dallas Portland Las Vegas Los Angeles Seattle Phoenix

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Game 1: Liberty 4, Boston College 3 Game 2: Georgia 15, vs. LIU 1

Monday

GB — ½ 1 1 1 1½ 4½

Sunday

Sunday

Friday

Wednesday, June 3: New York at Team TBD, 7:30 p.m.

Friday, June 5: New York at Team TBD, 7:30 p.m.

Monday, June 8: Team TBD at New York, 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday, June 10: Team TBD at New York, 7:30 p.m. x-Saturday, June 13: New York at Team TBD, TBA x-Tuesday, June 16: Team TBD at New York, TBA x-Friday, June 19: New York at Team TBD, TBA

Pct .667 .571 .500 .500 .500 .429 .111

Game 3: St. Mary’s vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: UCLA vs. Game 2 loser

Athens, Ga.

Sunday

L 2 3 4 4 3 4 8

Saturday

Friday

W 33 31 29 29 29

Friday’s Games

Friday

Sunday

Monday, May 18: San Antonio 122, Oklahoma City 115, 2OT Wednesday, May 20: Oklahoma City 122, San Antonio 113 Friday, May 22: Oklahoma City 123, San Antonio 108 Sunday, May 24: San Antonio 103, Oklahoma City 82 Tuesday, May 26: Oklahoma City 127, San Antonio 114 Thursday, May 28: San Antonio 118, Oklahoma City 91 Saturday, May 30: San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 7 p.m.

FINALS (Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

W 4 4 4 4 3 3 1

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Monday

Game 3: Liberty vs. Georgia Game 4: Boston College vs. LIU

Atlanta Indiana New York Toronto Washington Chicago Connecticut

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Saturday

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

WNBA Glance EASTERN CONFERENCE

Sunday

Pro basketball

New York 4, Cleveland 0

New York vs. TBD

Game 3: Nebraska vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: South Dakota State vs. Game 2 loser

Game 1: Saint Mary’s (CA) 3, UCLA 1 Game 2: Cal Poly (36-22) vs. Virginia Tech (30-24), n

x-Game 3 — Teams, TBD, 7 p.m.

Milwaukee Chicago St. Louis Cincinnati Pittsburgh

West Division

Saturday

Los Angeles Regional

Monday

Oklahoma City 3, San Antonio 3

Game 1: Nebraska 4, South Dakota St. 1 Game 2: Arizona St. (37-19) vs. Ole Miss (36-21), n

Friday, June 5

Game 2 — Teams TBD 8 p.m.

Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner

Western Conference

Friday

Monday

Eastern Conference Tuesday, May 19: New York 115, Cleveland 104, OT Thursday, May 21: New York 109, Cleveland 93 Saturday, May 23: New York 121, Cleveland 108 Monday, May 25: New York 130, Cleveland 93

Lincoln Regional

Thursday, June 4

Game 3: Georgia Tech vs. Game 2 winner Game 4: UIC vs. Game 2 loser

NBA Playoff Glance

x-Game 7: Rematch Game 6

Pct .667 .518 .509 .456 .411

GB — 8½ 9 12 14½

Men’s Doubles

Second Round Adam Pavlasek and Patrik Rikl, Czechia, def.

Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash (3), Britain, 6-4, 6-4.

Marcel Granollers, Spain, and Horacio Zeballos (1), Argentina, def. Vasil Kirkov, United States, and Bart Stevens, Netherlands, 6-3, 6-4.

Petr Nouza, Czechia, and Neil Oberleitner, Austria, def. Zizou Bergs and Raphael Collignon, Belgium, walkover.

Edouard Roger-Vasselin, France, and Hugo Nys (10), Monaco, def. Hendrik Jebens, Germany, and Ray Ho, Taiwan, 6-4, 6-3.

Harri Heliovaara, Finland, and Henry Patten (2), Britain, def. Fabian Marozsan, Hungary, and Mattia Bellucci, Italy, 6-1, 6-4.

Hugo Gaston and Titouan Droguet, France, def. Robert Cash and James Tracy (15), United States, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-4.

Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori (5), Italy, def. Michael Venus, New Zealand, and Yuki Bhambri, India, 6-3, 6-4.

Marcelo Demoliner, Brazil, and N. Sriram Balaji, India, def. Jakob Schnaitter and Mark Wallner, Germany, 7-5, 6-2.

David Pel and Sander Arends, Netherlands, def. Nikola Mektic, Croatia, and Austin Krajicek (12), United States, 4-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (10).

Women’s Doubles

First Round Magda Linette, Poland, and Yuliia Starodubtseva, Ukraine, def. Elsa Jacquemot and Tiantsoa Sarah Rakotomanga Rajaonah, France, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Women’s Doubles

Second Round Anhelina Kalinina and Dayana Yastremska, Ukraine, def. Tatjana Maria, Germany, and Zeynep Sonmez, Turkiye, 2-0, ret.

Kristina Mladenovic, France, and Hanyu Guo (13), China, def. Hsieh Su-wei, Taiwan, and Wang Xinyu, China, 6-1, 6-4.

Nicole Melichar-Martinez, United States, and Cristina Bucsa (6), Spain, def. Anastasia Zakharova and Oksana Selekhmeteva, Russia, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Gabriela Dabrowski, Canada, and Luisa Stefani (4), Brazil, def. Qianhui Tang, China, and Elena Pridankina, Russia, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Shuko Aoyama, Japan, and En-Shuo Liang, Taiwan, def. Jelena Ostapenko, Latvia, and Erin Routliffe (5), New Zealand, 7-5, 6-4.

Taylor Townsend, United States, and Katerina Siniakova (1), Czechia, def. Emiliana Arango, Colombia, and Iva Jovic, United States, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.

Demi Schuurs, Netherlands, and Ellen Perez (7), Australia, def. Sara Errani, Italy, and Lilli Tagger, Austria, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (8).

Aleksandra Krunic, Serbia, and Anna Danilina (2), Kazakhstan, def. Maya Joint, Australia, and Hanne Vandewinkel, Belgium, 6-2, 6-3.

Mixed Doubles

Second Round Christian Harrison, United States, and Fanny Stollar, Hungary, def. Hao-Ching Chan, Taiwan, and Orlando Luz, Brazil, 6-3, 7-6 (1).

Rafael Matos, Brazil, and Cristina Bucsa, Spain, def. Kevin Krawietz, Germany, and Tereza Mihalikova (8), Slovakia, 6-3, 6-3.

Evan King, United States, and Gabriela Dabrowski, Canada, def. Vera Zvonareva, Russia, and Albano Olivetti, France, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 10-7.

Olivia Nicholls and Henry Patten (6), Britain, def. Nicole Melichar-Martinez, United States, and Theo Arribage, France, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3), 10-6.

Golf Charles Schwab Challenge Friday

At Colonial Country Club Fort Worth, Texas Purse: $9.9 million Yardage: 7,289; Par: 70 Second Round Jordan L. Smith Ryan Gerard Brian Harman Hideki Matsuyama Michael Thorbjornsen Akshay Bhatia Brice Garnett Russell Henley Alex Smalley J.J. Spaun Michael Brennan A.J. Ewart Mackenzie Hughes Mac Meissner Ludvig Aberg Keegan Bradley Ricky Castillo Doug Ghim Garrick Higgo Ryo Hisatsune Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen Andrew Novak Andrew Putnam Gary Woodland Luke Clanton Eric Cole Joel Dahmen Lee Hodges Tom Hoge Matt Kuchar Matthew McCarty Keita Nakajima Kevin Yu Christiaan Bezuidenhout Chandler Blanchet Ben Griffin Emiliano Grillo Billy Horschel Tom Kim Robert MacIntyre Thorbjorn Olesen J.T. Poston Adrien Saddier Austin Smotherman Justin Thomas Davis Thompson Zachary Bauchou Nick Dunlap Nicolas Echavarria Austin Eckroat Steven Fisk Rico Hoey Max Homa Mark Hubbard Jeffrey Kang Michael Kim Max McGreevy Taylor Moore Davis Riley Kevin Roy Adam Schenk Kevin Streelman Sahith Theegala Erik Van Rooyen Pierceson Coody Patrick Fishburn Lucas Glover Lanto Griffin Takumi Kanaya John Keefer Seamus Power Patrick Rodgers Brandt Snedeker Sam Stevens Jackson Suber Stephan Jaeger

65-65—130 -10 64-67—131 -9 65-66—131 -9 66-65—131 -9 66-65—131 -9 67-65—132 -8 66-66—132 -8 66-66—132 -8 65-67—132 -8 64-68—132 -8 67-66—133 -7 70-63—133 -7 66-67—133 -7 66-67—133 -7 66-68—134 -6 65-69—134 -6 65-69—134 -6 65-69—134 -6 69-65—134 -6 66-68—134 -6 65-69—134 -6 69-65—134 -6 64-70—134 -6 65-69—134 -6 65-70—135 -5 67-68—135 -5 69-66—135 -5 64-71—135 -5 68-67—135 -5 67-68—135 -5 64-71—135 -5 69-66—135 -5 65-70—135 -5 68-68—136 -4 68-68—136 -4 68-68—136 -4 70-66—136 -4 65-71—136 -4 64-72—136 -4 68-68—136 -4 69-67—136 -4 69-67—136 -4 69-67—136 -4 68-68—136 -4 69-67—136 -4 69-67—136 -4 71-66—137 -3 70-67—137 -3 66-71—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 66-71—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 70-67—137 -3 67-70—137 -3 69-68—137 -3 66-71—137 -3 67-70—137 -3 66-71—137 -3 68-69—137 -3 67-70—137 -3 65-72—137 -3 71-67—138 -2 70-68—138 -2 70-68—138 -2 71-67—138 -2 69-69—138 -2 71-67—138 -2 69-69—138 -2 69-69—138 -2 70-68—138 -2 68-70—138 -2 69-69—138 -2 75-WD

Transactions Major League Baseball

MLB — Suspended one-game and fined an undisclosed amount Milwaukee RHP Abner Uribe for inappropriate actions toward St. Louis’ dugout during a game on May 26.

American League BALTIMORE ORIOLES — Agreed to terms with RHP Albert Suárez on a one-year contract. Optioned RHP Cameron Weston to Norfolk (IL). Transferred RHP Dean Kremer to the 60-day IL. CHICAGO WHITE SOX — Placed RHP Jordan Leasure on the 15-day IL. Recalled LHP Tyler Gilbert from Charlotte (IL).

CLEVELAND GUARDIANS — Transferred SS Gabriel Arias to the 60-day IL. Selected the contract of OF Stuart Fairchild from Columbus (IL).

KANSAS CITY ROYALS — Placed RHP Nick Mears on the 15-day IL, retroactive to May 28.

MINNESOTA TWINS — Placed LHP Kendry Rojas on the 15-day IL, retroactive to May 26. Agreed to terms with RHPs Yolcar Garcia and Manuel Meza on minor league contracts. Reinstated RHP Cody Laweryson from the 15-day IL. Recalled LHP Kody Funderburk from St. Paul (IL). Optioned RHP Travis Adams to St. Paul.

TAMPA BAY RAYS — Designated RHP Jonathan Heasley for assignment. Reinstated 2B Ben Williamson from the 10-day IL. Optioned SS Carson Williams to Durham (IL). Selected the contract of RHP Andrew Wantz from Durham.

National League ATLANTA BRAVES — Designated RHP Carlos Carrasco for assignment. Recalled RHP Anthony Molina from Gwinnett (IL).

CINCINNATI REDS — Placed RHP Graham Ashcraft on the 60-day IL. Selected the contract of RHP Yunior Marte from Louisville (IL).

MILWAUKEE BREWERS — Sent LHP Jared Koening to Nashville (IL) on a rehab assignment.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES — Designated RHP Justin Lawrence for assignment. Reinstated RHP Jared Jones from the 60-day IL. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS — Selected the contract of OF Nelson Velázquez from Memphis (IL). Recalled C Jimmy Crooks from Memphis. Optioned C Yohel Pozo and 3B César Prieto to Memphis.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS — Reinstated RHP Cole Henry from the 15-day IL.

HOCKEY

National Hockey League NASHVILLE PREDATORS — Signed F Felix Nilsson to a three-year, entry-level contract.

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING — Signed F Benjamin Rautiainen to a three-year, entry-level contract.

LIVING

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M

|

S at u r d ay, M ay 30, 2026

5CN

STAFF PHOTO By MADDIE SCOTT

The beef tikka skewer is a popular item at Al Shami food truck at 13461 Tiger Bend Road.

Middle Eastern food truck opens

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

A Middle Eastern food truck soft-opened May 15 in Baton Rouge with dishes like chicken shawarma, beef tikka, grilled liver, kibbeh and more.

A Texas-based food truck called Al Shami has set up shop on Tiger Bend Road, next to AZ International Fine Foods, after customers asked for a location in Louisiana, according to co-owner Talal Bani Hani. He said there are five food truck locations in Texas (three in Houston, one in San Antonio and one in Austin).

“A lot of our customers in Houston were driving five hours from Louisiana to try our food,” Bani Hani said.

The food truck will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. every day and possibly later on weekends if customers keep coming, Bani Hani said.

The menu has dishes like beef tikka, served with Turkish sauce, onions, tomatoes and parsley. The dish can be ordered as a skewer ($8), sandwich ($11.99) or meal ($18.99).

There are also sides like fries, fattoush salad and fried or grilled kibbeh. Desserts include a milk pudding called mhallayeh and halawet el jibn, a Levantine dessert made with rolls of sweet cheese dough filled with cream and topped with syrup drizzle and pistachios.

Bani Hani said the most popular dish is the chicken shawarma sandwich, served as a wrap with garlic sauce and sliced cucumber pickles. There’s also a shawarma plate that includes meat served over rice with garlic sauce, sliced cucumber pickles, fries, shami sauce, coleslaw and mixed pickles.

“The chicken shawarma with garlic sauce — we make it exactly like back home,” he said. “Everything is handmade. We cut it. We slice it.”

Al Shami, 13461 Tiger Bend Road. Open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

CHILL OUT! STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Ciary Rogers sits in a shallow spot at Liberty Lagoon. The popular BREC waterpark is open daily through July.

Public pools and splash pads in BR are great spots to beat the heat during the summer

BY JOY HOLDEN

5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday through Friday, and from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The pool is closed on Tuesdays.

Howell Community Park 5509 Winbourne Ave. This summer, Howell Community Park is only open for swim lessons. For more information on swim lessons, visit brec. org/aquatics.

Staff writer

Need to cool off? Summer is here, which means heat and humidity are right there with it.

Where to find water becomes one of the main priorities for Baton Rouge residents, especially when long summer days and children are involved.

Baton Rouge has private neighborhood pools and health club pools that require memberships, but here are a few public facilities for swimming and splashing options.

BREC swimming pools Anna T. Jordan 1750 Stilt St. The Anna T. Jordan Community Park swimming pool is open from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday during the summer.

City-Brooks Community Park 1650 Eddie Robinson Sr. Drive The City-Brooks Community Park swimming pool is open from 2 p.m. to

Hotel pool day passes If you’re looking for a one-day break with a touch of luxury, two Baton Rouge hotels offer access to the pools and services for a fee.

Crowne Plaza Executive Center 4728 Constitution Ave. For a swimming daycation, Crowne Plaza offers day passes for $25 per adult, for ages 18 and older. Pool amenities include lounge chairs, towels, food and drinks available for purchase, a fitness center STAFF FILE PHOTO By TRAVIS SPRADLING and changing rooms with showers. To purchase tickets, visit www.resortpass.

Visitors enjoy the spraying water at the com.

splash pad at BREC’s Forest Community Park.

ä See CHILL, page 6C

Spelling bee big business for coach Scott Remer earns $180 an hour to guide kids in competition

BY BEN NUCKOLS Associated Press

When Dev Shah won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2023 and Faizan Zaki took the title last year, they posed for remarkably similar photos on the confetti-strewn stage. Standing next to them, beaming, was a bespectacled man in an aloha shirt, holding up a copy of his book “Words of Wisdom.”

For Scott Remer, the champion spellers’ coach, posing for a picture was more than just a celebration. It was a business necessity.

While nearly every National Spelling

Bee champion over the past 15 years has worked with a coach, the 32-yearold Remer is the country’s only fulltime, professional tutor for elite spellers. Most coaches are former spellers who are still in college or even high school.

When the field of 247 spellers at this year’s bee — which concluded Thursday in Washington — is cut down to 10 or so finalists, it’s all but inevitable the group will include multiple Remer students.

“He’s probably one of the most influential figures in spelling over the past 10 years,” said Shah, now 17.

Remer has coached five national champions, and since the bee emerged from the pandemic disruptions of 2020 and ’21, he has scaled up the coaching profession. He claims 34 spellers as his students this year and has worked

with no fewer than 29 during each of the past four bees.

He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he receives up to 10% of their winnings, which he called “a performance-based bonus.”

Many spellers and their families believe Remer is worth it — despite, or perhaps because of, the intense personality that emerges during his lessons.

Always earnest and gregarious on any spelling-related topic, Remer describes coaching as a passion that grew out of his disappointing fourth-place finish in 2008, his final year as a speller.

He says he’s motivated by sharing his knowledge, helping kids reach their

PHOTO PROVIDED By SCOTT REMER

Scott Remer poses with his student, Faizan Zaki, on May 31, 2024, the day after Faizan finished second in that year’s ä See SPELLING, page 6C Scripps National Spelling Bee.

6C ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

lll

Avoid using mothballs to scare away animals Dear Heloise: Mothballs might seem like an easy way to scare away animals, but they cause more trouble than they’re worth.

They’re full of strong chemicals that can hurt your family, your pets and the land around Hints from your home. The Heloise strong smell does more than just scare off pests — it can cause bad headaches or make it hard to breathe. It can also make the air dirty in small spaces like an attic.

People who work with animals say that you shouldn’t use them this way. In some places, using mothballs to scare animals is against the law. If animals are living in your house, it’s better to close up the holes that they use to get in. You should also clean up any food they might find. Using safe traps or calling in a professional can help you solve the problem without using scary chemicals.

Some old tricks just aren’t safe to use anymore. Picking a safer way keeps your family and the animals in your yard much safer.

— Dave K., via email

Safe water for neti pots Dear Heloise: Is distilled water that is labeled “for small appliances” safe to use in a neti pot? — Jane, in San Antonio Jane, distilled water is a great choice for a neti pot. This kind of water is very clean and doesn’t have germs that could make you sick. The labels on the bottle might say that it’s for “small appliances,” but this is just one way that people use it. Use distilled water if the seal remains unbroken. Always make sure that the water is clean before you use it.

SPELLING

Continued from page 5C potential and the challenge of discovering spelling beeworthy words.

“This is really about the love of language and the love of the competition. Part of it is once you’re stung by the bee, there’s kind of no going back,” Remer said.

“I’m not going to deny that it pays well, because it does.

But I don’t know that there’s anything wrong with that.”

The last two champions he coached say he was crucial to their victories.

“Even though his classes are more expensive, it’s definitely worth it,” Faizan said.

“I saw results.”

Faizan’s father, Zaki Anwar, said he negotiated a reduced rate of $120 an hour for Remer’s services because Faizan was already an accomplished speller.

Remer took home 7% of the champion’s prize haul of $52,500 — a bonus of $3,675.

“After winning, it doesn’t really matter,” Anwar said.

Remer drills his students on roots, language patterns and the exceptions to those patterns. He seeks to instill a deep understanding of languages that will allow spellers to figure out a word even if they have never seen or heard it before, as Shah did with “rommack” in 2023.

But Remer’s pricing, and his coaching style, have led some spellers to seek help elsewhere.

“I found it prohibitively expensive,” said Navneeth Murali, a University of Pennsylvania student who competed through 2020 and now coaches spellers, charging roughly $50 for an hourlong lesson. “It wasn’t a realistic option for me.”

Grace Walters, who coached 2022 champion Harini Logan, charges $75 an

CHILL

Continued from page 5C Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center 201 Lafayette St. At the Hilton Capitol Center downtown, adults and children can swim and lounge right by the Mississippi River with a dynamite view of the bridge. Adult passes start at $25, and child passes start at $10. Rent out a cabana to have your own shaded spot for $175 for the day. To purchase tickets, visit www.resortpass.com.

L’Auberge Casino Hotel 777 L’Auberge Ave. L’Auberge offers a day pass and a complimentary drink for adults for $30 a person Monday through Thursday. Passes must be booked by 10 a.m. for that day. The rooftop pool overlooks the Mississippi River, providing a scenic view for the visit. Guests must be 21+ to enter. Children are not allowed.

LSU UREC Pool 102 Student Rec Complex For LSU students and members, the LSU University Recreation Center offers three aquatic options to beat the summer heat. The outdoor lap pool is divided into a four-lane deep lap section and a fourlane shallow lap section.

The deep lap pool also has basketball goals and pool basketballs for some cool competition.

The indoor pool is a space to get in a workout while

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON

Faizan Zaki reacts after winning the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2025. hour. She and Murali take a handful of students each year.

“I’m very much quality over quantity. It’s really important to me that I’m able to get to know each speller as a whole person, not just as a speller, and tailor my curriculum to them as individuals,” said Walters, a graduate student in linguistics at the University of Kentucky. “But I have to give credit where it’s due: If everyone was doing it like me, there wouldn’t be enough coaches for all the spellers out there.”

Sree Vidya Siliveri was coached by Remer before her 60th-place finish in 2024 but didn’t respond well to his methods, said her father, Sreedhar Siliveri. She found a new coach and finished 10th in 2025.

“We were looking for alternatives and found some of the fresh, like, high school students who can be friendlier and charge less,” Sreedhar Siliveri said.

Even spellers and their parents who swear by Remer say he can be brusque and demanding of his middle school-age pupils. Simone Kaplan, who finished runnerup to the “octo-champs” of 2019, appreciated Remer’s

tough coaching but said it’s not for everyone.

“Scott is a true logophile, a master of languages. He pushes his students to keep up with him,” Kaplan said.

“That can inspire some spellers to learn and succeed, but it can also leave a student feeling like they’ve disappointed him if they don’t spell every word right.

And that’s difficult for a kid.”

Remer said his goal is to be supportive while giving spellers the feedback they need to avoid repeating mistakes.

“I try to be tough but fair, and I also try to modulate my teaching methods, based on the kids’ needs and the kids’ personalities,” he said.

“Whether I’m always successful at that is I guess an open question.”

Remer graduated from Yale in 2016 and earned a master’s degree from Cambridge a year later. His first study guide, “Words of Wisdom: Keys to Success in the Scripps National Spelling Bee,” was published in 2010, when he was a teenager.

That was also the year he coached his first champion, Anamika Veeramani.

He has published three other books and has worked

cooling off. The eight-lane pool, 25 yards in length, provides plenty of space for racing or practicing strokes.

For less exercise and more relaxation, the ideal spot is the LSU-shaped leisure river where visitors can drift inside the letters of the campus.

They do have a summer membership option.

Admission for full-time LSU students is free. Other membership options are available for LSU alumni, faculty and staff, LSU affiliates and LSU guests at www. lsu.edu/urec/membership/ index.php.

er rides, and capacity levels have been adjusted to support a safer family experience. In addition, Liberty Lagoon is excited to bring in City Pork Catering & Events, offering upgraded food options for guests throughout the season.

General entry ticket prices are $12. Online tickets will be available 24 hours before your park play date, starting as low as $12 each. Ticket tiers will increase by $4 per level, with Tier 1 including slide access and the next tier including FloRider access.

Children 1 year old and under are free. Online ticket sales are capped at 650, then Liberty Lagoon ticket window options will be available as space allows.

111 Lobdell Ave. BREC’s Liberty Lagoon Check the weather before has grown to include attrac- purchasing tickets, as no retions like the Shockwave, funds will be issued. Liberty tube slides, plunge slides, a Lagoon also has a clear bag lazy river and a children’s policy. For more informaplay area. The lagoon opens from noon to 6 p.m. through July. On Tuesdays, the park is closed, and on Wednesdays, the park will have a delayed opening due to BREC Camps and will be open from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

For the 2026 season, Liberty Lagoon is partnering with Southeast Louisiana Aquatics, a leader in aquatic safety and training. SELA Aquatics specializes in educating and certifying lifeguards and safety professionals through American Red Cross programs, ensuring staff are highly trained and prepared.

All waterslides and the Shockwave have been reSTORE.THEADVOCATE.COM freshed to provide smooth-

You can also boil tap water for a few minutes, then let it cool.

Never use water that is straight from the sink. Tap water can contain tiny bugs that shouldn’t go into your nose. Stay safe by using water that is distilled, sterile or boiled. — Heloise

Car seat safety Dear Heloise: Car seats don’t last forever. They have expiration dates, so always check the manufacturer’s label before using one — especially a used seat. The parts inside can break down over time, even if the seat looks OK.

for the Council on Foreign Relations and as the communications coordinator for an LGBTQ-friendly synagogue in New York. Since 2020, he has been a full-time spelling coach while also offering tutoring in Chinese, Spanish, writing and standardized test prep. Born and raised in the Cleveland suburbs, he now lives in Mexico City.

Remer has written an op-ed about the bee for the Guardian every year since 2019. He emails out lists of his students and sends updates on their progress, calling them “my spellers” even if they have multiple tutors.

(Faizan had three coaches last year.) During bee week, Remer is a constant presence, giving lessons on-site and sitting with spellers’ families while the television cameras roll.

He knows he has to market himself, but he says he doesn’t enjoy it.

“I think I’m trying not to be particularly self-aggrandizing in general,” Remer said, “so if the question is, does it come naturally to me to do that sort of promotional and marketing work, the answer is no.”

Scripps, the Cincinnatibased media company that has run the bee for a century, does not endorse coaching, but Corrie Loeffler, the bee’s executive director, described the practice as inevitable, given the intensity of the competition.

Loeffler gently pushed back at the idea that any coach should claim credit for a speller’s success.

“It’s hard work, it’s study ethic, it’s perseverance,” she said. “These kids are doing pretty incredible things at a really high level, especially at a young age, and I want them to be able to take credit for that themselves, knowing that it’s a community and they’ve had so much support along the way.”

tion, visit libertylagoon.com.

Splash pads For splashing fun without committing to a day at the pool, check out the seven splash pads in town. These are all free, open to the public and open from sunrise to sunset until Oct. 13.

Anyone can activate the water spray features by pushing the activator but-

Also, if an accident occurs with a car seat inside, you must replace the car seat. Even a small crash can break the straps or the frame in ways that you can’t see. It’s not worth the risk to keep using it.

If you’re unsure on how to install the seat in your car, go to a nearby fire station. Many firefighters will check your car seat for free and show you how to lock it properly. Doing these small things helps keep your child safe.

— Mary A., in Vancouver,Washington Send a hint to heloise@heloise. com.

TODAY IN HISTORY

By The Associated Press

on steelworkers demonstrating near the Republic Steel plant in South ChiToday is Saturday, May 30, the 150th day of 2026. cago.

There are 215 days left in In 1971, the American the year. space probe Mariner 9 Today in history: blasted off from Cape On May 30, 2024, Donald Kennedy on a journey to Trump became the first Mars. former American presiIn 1972, three members dent to be convicted of fel- of the militant group ony crimes as a New York known as the Japanese Red Army opened fire at jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme Tel Aviv’s Lod Airport, now Ben-Gurion Airport, to illegally influence the killing 26 people. Two at2016 election through a hush money payment tackers died; the third was to a porn actor who said captured. the two had sex. (Trump In 2002, a solemn, wordreceived a no-penalty less ceremony marked sentence, or unconditional the end of the cleanup at discharge, just 10 days ground zero in New York, before his January 2025 81/ 2 months after the terror inauguration to a second attacks of Sept. 11 brought term.) down the World Trade Also on this date: Center’s twin towers.

In 1431, Joan of Arc, In 2012, former Liberian condemned as a heretic, President Charles Taywas burned at the stake in lor was sentenced to 50 Rouen, France. years in prison after being In 1911, the first Inconvicted on 11 counts of aiding and abetting war dianapolis 500 auto race crimes and crimes against was held at Indianapolis humanity at a trial at The Motor Speedway; driver Ray Harroun won the race Hague.

In 2023, disgraced with an average speed of Theranos CEO Elizabeth 74.6 mph.

Holmes began serving an In 1922, the Lincoln 11-year sentence at a TexMemorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated as prison after being conin a ceremony attended victed on felony counts of

by President Warren G. fraud and conspiracy for Harding, Chief Justice overseeing an infamous William Howard Taft and blood-testing hoax.

Abraham Lincoln’s survivToday’s birthdays: Actor ing son, 78-year-old Robert Keir Dullea is 90. Actor Stephen Tobolowsky is 75.

Todd Lincoln.

Actor Colm Meaney is 73.

In 1935, Babe Ruth Country singer Wynonna played in his last major Judd is 62. Musician Tom league baseball game Morello (Audioslave; Rage for the Boston Braves, Against The Machine) is leaving after the first in62. Filmmaker Antoine ning of the first game of Fuqua is 61. Actor-singer a doubleheader against Idina Menzel is 55. Rapthe Philadelphia Phillies.

(Ruth announced his reper-singer Cee Lo Green is tirement three days later.) 51. Rapper Lucki is 30. AcIn 1937, 10 people were tor Jake Short is 29. Actor killed when police fired Sean Giambrone is 27.

ton located within the splash pad. This will engage the water system and which will run for approximately 12 minutes and turn off. Pushing the button will activate the system again.

Locations: n City-Brooks Community Park, 1515 Dalrymple Drive n Forest Community Park, 13900 S. Harrell’s Ferry Road

n Greenwood Community Park, 13350 La. 19 n Highland Road Community Park, 14024 Highland Road n Jackson Community Park, 12250 Sullivan Road n North Sherwood Forest Community Park, 3140 N. Sherwood Forest Drive n Zachary Community Park, 20055 Old Scenic Highway

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The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● 7C

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FrAnK And erneSt

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zodIAC GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Speak up, clear the air and move along. Carrying the weight of the past forward will alter your chance to follow your aspirations.

Clear a path that leads to freedom. cAncER (June 21-July 22) You're in a better position than you think. Don't let skepticism and negativity influence what you choose to do. Limiting your input will also diminish your chance to advance.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) A change in your professional direction or picking up a pastime that eases stress or brings you in contact with like-minded people will help you explore possibilities and encourage you to embrace life.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Sit tight, observe and consider the consequence of a change. Don't feel the need to make a decision when the vibe isn't right or when someone is trying to strong-arm you.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Close the doors you find most frustrating. Focus on what flows and can carry you to a place you want to go. Pursuing your interests will help you recognize new outlets for the attributes and experience you already have. scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Pump up your progress by taking action. A change in the dynamics of your relationships with others will diversify as you branch out and pursue your dreams. sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Ignoring health issues will make things harder than they need to be. You can have fun without jeopardizing yourself physically

or causing problems with someone close to you. cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Working in unison with someone who shares your dreams and is intent on reaching such aspirations will add to the momentum you build and the results you achieve.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Think matters through and dismiss anger. Verify facts, and map out a plan that is simple, affordable and helps you move on without malice. Change can be good if you are open to trying something new.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Choose to do something you enjoy. The opportunities and connections you encounter by following your heart and allowing yourself the pleasure of participating in life's little joys will change your mindset regarding how or where you want to live.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) An unusual job offer or cash infusion is apparent.

Attending social events and exploring the possibilities will spark your interest and help you discover something or someone who can improve your life. tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Take control of your health and well-being. Physical activity and opening your heart will have an impact on relationships. Choose to have an open mind, and express your feelings and intentions through kind gestures.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

For better or For WorSe WonderWord

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beetLe bAILeY CeLebrItY CIpher Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

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Mother GooSe And GrIMM

SherMAn’S LAGoon FAMILY CIrCUS

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8C ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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Sudoku InstructIons: Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers.

The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

BaBY BLueS

BLondie

THe wiZard oF id

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La TimeS CroSSword

The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● 9C

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Bridge

By PHILLIP ALDER This week we have been looking at various uses for the trump suit. Here is one more, a technique that arises rarely, but is fun to execute when it does.

South is in four spades. West leads the heart two, a known singleton. How should declarer plan the play?

North’s two-heart cue-bid raise showed at least three-card spade support and a maximum initial pass. South, who expected the heart finesse to work and liked having a singleton, jumped to four spades.

If the bidding had been perfect, NorthSouth would have reached three notrump, which has nine top tricks: five spades, two hearts (with the aid of the finesse), one diamond and one club.

Here, declarer is faced with four losers: two hearts and two clubs. He has only those nine top tricks just listed. Is there any hope?

Whenever declarer has a short suit and dummy’s trumps are strong, he should consider a dummy reversal. He takes ruffs in his own hand and uses dummy’s trumps to remove the opponents’.

South takes the first trick, plays a diamond to dummy’s ace, ruffs a diamond in his hand, leads a trump to dummy and ruffs another diamond in hand. Then declarer overtakes his spade queen with dummy’s king, ruffs the last diamond

garfield

Pearls Before swiNe

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with his spade ace, crosses to dummy with a club to the ace, draws West’s final trump and takes his second heart winner.

Declarer’s 10 tricks are three spades in the dummy, the heart ace-queen, the diamond ace, the club ace and those three diamond ruffs in his hand. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

wuzzles Each Wuzzle is a word riddle which creates a disguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD = GOOD AFTERNOON

PiCKles

Previous answers:

mallard fillmore

word game InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3.

Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

toDAy’s WoRD — VEntRAL: VEN-trul: Of or relating to the abdomen.

Bizarro

marmaduKe

Average mark 33 words Time limit 50 minutes Can you find 46 or more words in VENTRAL? yEstERDAy’s WoRD — DIVERts deist diet dire dirt dive diver divert divest dries driest drive

ides vest vide vied vier vise edit rest ride rise rite

rive rivet tide tied tier tire tired tried tries side sire

site stir stride strive

loCKhorNs hidato Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

today’s thought “you will show me the path of life: in your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand there are pleasures for ever more.”

Psalms 16:11 Everyone should want to follow the Lord. The benefits are wonderful. G.E. Dean

10C ● Saturday, May 30, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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