Go to Lafayette.
My name is Shannon Mia Belt and I am the new reporter covering high school sports and Louisiana football, baseball and softball for the Daily Advertiser.
As I entered Lafayette, I was hit by a heat I had never experienced before, but I was filled with enthusiasm to match the temperature. As a native Californian from Compton, heading south was a big step in the right direction, but such steps are nothing new to me. At 17, I left home to attend the University of Missouri, where I earned a degree in journalism and began my career as a sports reporter.
I had never been to the state before and had no ties there, but that didn’t stop me. There, I learned to adapt and continued to learn about the new sports culture around me. I plan to do the same in Lafayette while learning about the rich sports scene in Cajun Country.
Along the way, I’ve already eaten an unhealthy amount of beignets and tried my first crawfish at Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux in Lafayette. I still have a lot of Louisiana delicacies to try and boudin is next on my list.
My love for sports started at a young age when my parents sent me to soccer and basketball as a kid. At first it was the snacks that got me into sports, but I quickly fell in love with the thrill of competition. Every win was meaningful and every loss felt like a small heartbreak, but I was in it the whole time.
I played basketball and softball at Rancho Dominguez Preparatory High School in Long Beach, California, where my father recently took over as head football coach. I owe my initial exposure to sports to him, as I watched all the major sports with him as a child.
We watched everything from the Olympics to Sunday Night Football. He never hesitated to rewind a play and analyze it for me, especially when a team was playing an RPO offense—which was his favorite way to coach. When we weren’t watching sports games, I would go to the park with him almost every weekend to play basketball, trying miserably to replicate what I had seen the greats do on TV the night before.
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His influence, my time in Missouri and most recently my time at the Stockton Record have helped me become the sports reporter I am today. In Stockton, I learned how important community is to sports and how it helps shape the players on the field and on the court.
Telling stories about the people behind the statistics has become my passion and I can’t wait to tell those sports stories here in Lafayette. I’m excited to learn more about the deep-rooted rivals that pass through town, experience the Saturday atmosphere at Cajun Field and become a part of the Lafayette Parish community.
To any coaches, athletes, parents, administrators or sports fans in the Lafayette area who have a sports story to tell, please contact me.
Shannon Belt covers high school sports and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow her high school and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ShannonBelt3. Have questions about HS/UL athletics? Send them to Shannon Belt at [email protected].
