Ville Platte battles district rival Livonia

            Ville Platte High came into this district game Friday night like giants after beating division foes Port Barre and Pine Prairie in consecutive weeks. Livonia came into the game as royals of Class 2-A. The Wildcats are state runners-up from a year ago and are ranked first in the current polls. The first half in Livonia was a proverbial pitchers’ duel much like Game 3 of the World Series with Tim Hudson pitching against Jeremy Guthrie in San Francisco.  The second half; however, was the Malcolm Dedrick show as the Wildcat running back ran up-and-down the field. The game ended with Livonia pitching a shutout and winning 21-0.

            The Bulldogs gave the football to quarterback Rodricus Fontenot. Head coach Jorie Randle said of his freshman signal caller, “Our starting freshman had to step up and give us some good quality minutes. He did a good job. I couldn’t ask more out of him; he played well. To tell a freshman that he’s starting on Monday against a number 1 team in the state I think that will put anybody in a deer in the headlights type of mentality… I expect big things from him in the future.”

            Ville Platte received the opening kickoff and started its drive on its own 20-yard line. Dayton Jackson carried for a gain of 2 yards. Then the Wildcat defense held forcing a Bulldog punt. Livonia began its opening drive on the Bulldog 37-yard line and ended it a yard farther away as Anderson and Freeman combined for a tackle in the backfield on 3^rd down.

            The Bulldogs started the next series on the 15-yard line but was backed up all the way to the shadows of their own goal line. Another punt set up 1^st-and-10 for the Wildcats on the Bulldog 37-yard line. Facing 3^rd-and-16, Wildcat quarterback Cee Jay Powell connected with Christian Edwards bringing Livonia to the 25-yard line. Oxzabein Serie and Dylan Jones combined on the stop. The Wildcats scored 2 snaps later on a pass completion to Derrick Wells with 4:48 left on the clock in the 1^st quarter and missed the extra point attempt.

            Shabby Moore for the Bulldogs received the kickoff and returned the football to the 33-yard line. Dayton Jackson carried down the right side and converted on 3^rd down. Rodricus Fontenot ran a quarterback keeper close to the first down marker. The drive stalled on fumble recovery by the Wildcats. Meanwhile in San Francisco, Lorenzo Cain gave the Kansas City Royals a 1-0 lead on an RBI groundout in the top of the 1^st inning.

            Dayton Jackson combined with a couple other Bulldog defensemen to force another Wildcat punt. Ville Platte then mounted a drive into Wildcat territory. Fontenot kept the ball for a 1^st down to the 31-yard line as the 1^st quarter came to a close. Fontenot then handed off to Terese Thomas who carried for a 1^st down to the 42-yard line. Moore and Thomas combined to carry down to the Wildcat 39-yard line. But that it where the drive stalled causing a Bulldog punt.

            The Wildcats began the next drive on their own 9-yard line and were forced to punt. The football was fumbled on the catch and was returned for what appeared to be a Wildcat touchdown. However, a fair catch interference penalty gave the Bulldogs the football on the Livonia 26-yard line. The Bulldogs lost a yard and ultimately turned the ball over on downs and failed to capitalize on another turnover before the halftime whistle blew.

            The 2^nd half is when Malcolm Dedrick put the other 10 offensive players from Livonia on his back and carried them to the win. He scored on a 2-point conversion attempt after Powell connected to Stephen Guidry for a touchdown.

            Randle said of the touchdown, “Football is a game of inches. We had a blown coverage. They took a split screen to the house for 7-yards that made it 14-0, and I feel that was the game winning play.”

Livonia after a Ville Platte punt began its next drive on the 35-yard line. On 2^nd-and-10, Patrick Queen caught a pass for a 1^st down at the 49-yard line. Dedrick gained 4 yards on the ground, Christion Edwards gained 4 yards through the air, and Powell took care of the rest for a 1^st down at the Ville Platte 29-yard line. Following a Wildcat timeout, Dedrick ran all the way into the end zone. Livonia now led 21-0 with 9:39 remaining in the game. Moments later in San Francisco, the Royals scored on an Alex Gordon double to centerfield and led the Giants 2-0 in the top of the 6^th inning. They would add another run as Eric Hosmer singled in Gordon as the game in Livonia drew to a close.

            Randle called the game a “tale of the tape.” He said, “It’s been the tale of our whole season. We just have a little problem on offense. We just can’t seem to get some consistency on offense… Our defense played lights out. That’s been our (modus operandi) all season. We have a very veteran group on defense.” He concluded, “As a whole I’m proud of my guys. They’re very resilient. The kids don’t quit. They fought, and we just live to fight another day. We’re just trying to get a few more district wins, and next we face Church Point. We’ll just fight to make the playoffs.”