Opelousas at Ville Platte

This year's edition of the Ville Platte Lady Bulldogs is looking to return to the Girls Top 28 Tournament for a third year in a row and looked poised to do so as it took down Opelousas 47-23 Monday night in front of a nearly capacity crowd and packed student section.
The team returns five players from the previous Top 28 teams including Jalaya Thomas, Miya McKinney, Kealogah Calvin, Jasmine Landry, and Tyreonna Doucet. Calvin led the team in scoring Monday with 14 points and Doucet scored eight points of her own. Tyreonna Doucet who played on last year's team chalked up nine points including three from beyond the arc.
Calvin stole it away on defense and converted for an opening score and began a 10-point run for the Lady Bulldogs got on the board. Ville Platte was up 10-2 at the end of the first quarter. The pendulum began to swing in favor of Opelousas as the Lady Tigers cut the lead to 12-7 in the second quarter but not before Jasmine Landry put her foot down and drained a three pointer to stop the bleeding. The Lady Bulldogs from that point maintained control of the game and preserved the win.
As far as the boys, they looked to continue the momentum into their game. They wore long sleeved purple T-shirts that read "Make 'em Believe" on the back. That belief manifested itself on the court as two players scored 20-plus points. Martin Jason turned in 21, and Kelion Semien turned in 20.
The Bulldogs were down 27-13 to close out the first quarter. The second quarter saw the Bulldogs get back in the game. Semien got the rebound on a missed free throw and scored. He later scored to make it a 12 point defecit and later split the pair of free throws as Ville Platte was down 32-21. Brandon Thomas got and offensive rebound and scores for the Bulldogs. Semioen then scored and was fouled as the near capacity crowd went wild. The Bulldogs were barking as Ville Platte trailed 37-32 with 1:51 remaining in the half. Tyran Jones sunk a three pointer to make it 39-35. Ville Platte trailed 47-40 at the half.
Opelousas started to break the game open in the third quarter, but the crowd remained in the game especially when Martin Jason made a basket with three minutes remaining in the quarter and was fouled as the crowd again went wild. The Bulldogs fell victim to the Tigers of Opelousas by a final score of 91-78, but they made themselves along with the fans believe that they can hang around with tough competition this year and make a run in the playoffs.

Bulldog battle at the dog pound

The National Dog Show came to Ville Platte Tuesday night in a game between the winning breed of the Non-Sporting Group with the Ville Platte Bulldogs hosting the David Thibodaux Bulldogs. It was an exciting game giving the home team a sense of accomplishment as it had a hand in the final outcome, and the home team never gave up. But the Best in Show title went to the visiting Bulldogs by a final score of 69-64.
Giving the visitors a huge advantage was their shooting from beyond the arc with 36 of their 69 points coming from beyond the three-point line. Jarrean Cormier and Trace Johnson led the way each knocking down five treys on the night.
Leading the way for the home team was Kelian Semien with 17 points and went three for 10 from the free throw line. Also scoring in double digits was Martin Jason with 12 points including two baskets from beyond the arc and went three of four from the charity stripe.
The Bulldogs wearing home whites trailed 15-9 at the end of the first quarter. Semien in the second quarter scored a basket to end a four point run. With that the game went back-and-forth as the teams began to exchange baskets. The quarter featured Shanicole Holland knocking down four consecutive baskets including two from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs in the home whites were down by four at 26-22 with four minutes remaining before the half but could not narrow the deficit. At the half Ville Platte trailed 35-31.
The third quarter saw the home team tie the game at 38, but that is the closest the score got the rest of the night. The home team then fell down by 10 points in the final quarter and managed to cut into the lead, but it was not able to clear that final hurdle to win the game.
Ville Platte will next see action as the Bulldogs host the parish tournament this week.

Lady Trojans outgun St Ed's on the road

Stephanie Fontenot and George Broussard led their troops into Eunice Thursday night for a game against the St. Ed's Blue Jays. The Lady Trojans outmanned the home team dressing out 19 players compared to only 10 across the court. This led to the Lady Trojans outgunning their hosts for a 10 point win 46-36.
Leading the way for the Lady Trojans was Kara Aguillard with 16 points who shot seven for nine from the field. Her first basket on the night was an early three pointer to tie the game. She later scored with another trey to go up 32-23 at the 6:03 mark of the third quarter.
Gabbie Andrepont was not far behind Aguillard in the points column racking up 12 points. She also batted a thousand from the field shooting at a five-for-five clip. Also batting a thousand for the Lady Trojans was Emilyse Bergeron who made a basket off the bench late in the contest.

Sacred Heart wins at St Ed's

Thursday night was the first St. Ed's basketball game with the football players since losing in the first round of the football playoffs last week. The team previously played two games in the Eunice jamboree. This because of lack of playing time together led to a lack of cohesiveness and a lot of bad passes in the first game of the regular season. The visiting Trojan team rather had more time to gel and play together as a team and won by a score of 52-42.
Chris Rider is coaching in his first year as head coach for Sacred Heart. He said "we wanted to come out against our rival school and play the best we could, and I think our boys showed a good game."
"We started off in a 1-2-2 defense, and it worked real well for us," he added. "Defense is gonna be our big strength this year, and offense we just gonna have to work at some of the plays being in a new system."
The Trojans were listening to the mandolin rain as three point shots came raining down on the night. Garrett Ortego scored two three pointers. His first came to put his team up 10-4, and he added his second before the first half ended. Keaton Tate knocked down another trey from the side of the key en route to his team leading 16 points. The final trey came from Jacques Fontenot to go up 25-14. Seth Shipp added 10 points as the second Trojan with double-digit points behind Fontenot's 16.
As for the coach's thoughts after the game, "So I think it was a good night so far. Starting the off 1-0, I couldn't ask for more."

Bulldogs at Church Point

When last we saw Church Point play a team from Evangeline Parish, it was Week 7 of the season as the Bears were running rampant through Pine Prairie propelled by big plays en route to a 41-13 win. This week in Week 10 the Bears were matched up against another team from the parish as the Ville Platte Bulldogs travelled to Church Point trying to spoil Senior Night.
The Church Point area was hit by bad weather throughout the week leaving behind not the best in field conditions. The field between the hash marks and between the 20-yard line and the 40-yard line on both sides of the field looked more like a mud track than a football field. Players' jerseys on both teams were covered in mud from wallowing in the slick turf as they tried to tackle the opposition and tried to elude tackles. The home team did a better job of adjusting to the field conditions and again like against Pine Prairie used the big play to take down the visiting Bulldogs 34-6.
The first quarter did not have much offense as both teams were slowed by the conditions on the field. Church Point turned the ball over on downs on the first possession of the game, and the Ville Platte was then forced to punt. Breelyn Jones picked up the punt and returned it to the Bulldog 37. The Bulldog defense stops the run to force 4th down. Breshonski Jones and Tahj Jack stepped up big for Ville Platte to force another turnover on downs. The Bulldog offense again failed to capitalize on the defensive stop and were forced top punt.
The Bears following the punt and took over at their own 35. On 2nd-and-5 Fred Williams burst through the Bulldog line and sprinted toward the end zone before getting wrapped up by Ronderkus Ben just shy of the goal line, but on the next play Church Point took it in for six points. The opening quarter ended by the same 6-0 score.

Williams on the next Bear possession again with his mud tread tires sprinted for a 12 yard gain down the near side toward end zone but was wrapped up by Terez Alfred at the Bulldog 15. Troy Matte then handed off to Eron Walker for another six points on the board from 15 yards out. The two-point conversion attempt was good putting the Bears up by 14-0.
The Bulldog offense looked like it made the necessary adjustments to deal with the slick conditions. Alfred on 1st-and-15 kept the ball himself and ran down the far side picking up a nice chunck of real estate for 2nd-and-5. The offensive converted for a first down but again was held in check bringing up another punt. The punter was tackled at the Bulldog 15 where the Bears took over. This sequence of events resulted in one of two passing touchdowns for either team as the Bears went up 21-0.
The other passing touchdown on the night came with about two minutes remaining on the third quarter and came on 4th-and-20. Matte threw a pass to Trey Babineaux for a 22-yard pass completion for a score.
The lone score on the night for the Bulldogs came between the Bear aerial attacks. Ville Platte started the second half with Martin Jason fielding the kick and returning it to the 40 yard line. Moments later Alfred scampered all the way down the far side of the field for a 57 yard touchdown run.
The Bears ranked number five in the power rankings prevailed over the Bulldogs on a slick field and with the win are guaranteed to host the opening game of the Class 3-A playoffs which will begin next week. The road to the Super Dome will pass through Church Point.

Bears visit Panthers on Thursday night

Coming off of a loss to the Northwest Raiders, the Pine Prairie Panthers looked to even their record in 5 3-A. Standing in their way was a Church Point Bear team ranked number 4 in the state. The Panthers fell victim to big plays and costly penalties as the Bears proved smarter than the average bear and left town with all the picnic baskets. Church Point after the win improved to 2-0 in distrcit as Pine Prairie fell to 0-2.
"They got a good ball club," said Panther had coach Yves Prince of his opponents across the field. "I wish them all the luck. I hope they can win the district."
Prince then went on to talk about a few positives on the night. "Well we got out of it with nobody getting seriously hurt. We scored a few points. We played good defese at times. The thing I think is the most positive thing we moved the ball on a good defense."
The visiting Bears began the opening drive at their own 35 yard line. Dylan Doucet was credited for a tackle on third down, but a facemask penalty against Pine Prairie kept the drive alive. Frederick Willimas was then tackled for a loss after being wrapped up by Clint Graser and Doucet. Troy Matte's pass was wide open to Williams who was brought down at the 5 yard line and who ran around the tackle for a five yard touchdown run two plays later.
The first quarter ended with Church Point leading 14-0 and getting favorable field position as the next 12-minutes of play began. Following a personal foul penalty against the Bears that backed them up 15 yards to the 25 yard line, Deshawn Wheeler picked up 6 yards. Kylance Castille then ran down the near side all the way to the Panther 35, but a holding penalty negated the pick up. Williams later on the reverse went down the far side for a 75-yard score to go up 20-0.
The Panthers fumbled on their next possession, and the Bears capitalized on Matte's pass completion in the end zone to Williams. The Bears recovered the fumble again on the next possession. This time they capitalized on a Wheeler reception for a 46 yard touchdown. Church Point scored again in the first half and led by a score of 41-0.

Dylan Doucet picked up the squib kick on the second half kick off and returned it the 37-yard line. Doucet kept the football himself and crossed the 50 for a 1st down. Douglas Fontenot then exploited a gap fora 49-yard touchdown run cutting into the Church Point lead.
Church Point convened its next drive with junior quarterback Logan Marks under center. Marks handed off to Jonathon Duplechain for an eight yard pick up. Marks handed off to Donavvon Gallow on back-to-back snaps setting up 4th and 2. A delay of game penalty backed up the Bears five yards. Marks handed off to Duplechain who got stopped for a turn over on downs.
Pine Prairie took over on the 46 yard line after the turn over on downs. Douglas Fontenot carried along the near side for a 1st down and more all the way to the Bear 34 yard line. Doucet crossed the 25 yard line for a 9 yard gain and then picked up the first down on a play fake. The third quarter ended with the Panthers turning the ball over on downs and giving it back to the Bears.
Marks again was under center and was sacked on first down by Clint Graser. Douglas Fontenot picked up the ball on the fumble for a 35-yard touchdown return again chipping away at the lead. Church Point led by the eventual final score 41-13 with 10:27 remaining on the clock.

"We looking forward down the road, and we're glad nobody got hurt," Prince said. "We looking forward to play Port Barre, and we need one win to secure us a spot for the playoffs. That's what we're working hard for."

Homecoming night in Mamou

Friday night was the midway point of the season for the Mamou football team. The squad came into the season as a young team having only three seniors. It faced tough out-of-district play against Ville Platte, Pine Prairie, and Oberlin. Distirct play which started on the night would get even tougher against teams like Welsh, Kinder, and Lake Arthur.
Friday night was also Homecoming at Green Demon Field. The capacity crowd was treated to festivities such as a Mamou fire truck hoisting up an American Flag and an Air EVAC Lifeteam helicopter flyover delivering the game ball at midfield that was presented to Coach Bobby Pommier. Other festivities included a pyrotechnic display as maid Caitlin Fontenot was crowned 2015 Homecoming Queen. The festivities; however, did not translate over onto the field against the aforementined Tigers of Lake Arthur. The home team came up short on the night by a score of 40-0.
Following a Mamou punt to begin the game, the Tigers started with a short field as the punt came down on the Demon 33 yard line. Lake Arthur ran a touchdown in from 5 yards out to go up 7-0 with 7:19 remaining in the first quarter. The visitors would go on to score on their next three possessions of the first half as the Mamou defense seemed to have no answer. Mamou trailed at halftime 26-0.
Mamou appeared to get something going offensively in the second half. Levi Fontenot eluded a couple of Tiger defenders for a gain of 21 yards to the Demon 49 yard line. The drive soon stalled at midfield following a sack on second down bringing up a punt. Mamou's offense took over at midfield after the defense held the Tigers to a three-and-out. Fontenot's pass was complete to Paul Williams for a first down at the Tiger 40 yard line. A pass again was complete to Paul Williams, but the Demons were penalized for illegal shift resulting in 1st and 15 from the 45 yard line. Fontenot's pass was intercerpted at the Tiger 28 yard where Lake Arthur took over.

The Tigers then drove down the field but lost a fumble that was forced and picked up by Trey Wilson at the 10 yard line. Wilson returned the ball across midfield. A late hit out of bounds and a face mask penalty on the return gave the Demons a 1st down inside Tiger territory at the 26 yard line. On the next play from scrimmage, Lake Arthur forced a fumble as Mamou taketh and giveth away to close out the 3rd quarter. At the end of the 3rd quarter Lake Arthur led 33-0
Levi Fontenot got injured in the fourth quarter, and Adam Chapman came in the game behind center. He led his troops down field and into the end zone for Mamou's only touchdown of the night with just over four minutes remaining in the contest.
"I thought our kids played hard tonight," commented Green Demon head coach Brian Brumfield. "At times we had some bursts. We stopped them a few times on defense, and other times we didn't do as well. Lake Arthur has a good running back, and he's hard to tackle. For the most part, I thought our kids played well. We just got to get a lot stronger."

Pine Prairie picks up its first win on the season against Pearl River

Pearl River with a record of 2-0 meandered from the banks of the river bearing the same name to the banks of Bayou Nezpique for a matchup against the 0-2 Panthers. The visitors beat a Pine team 20-19 in week 1 then came back in week 2 and pummeled Sci Academy 47-6. The home team came in after suffering defeats to Bunkie and Beau Chene.

"We came out and played a good first half," said head coach Yves Prince of his Pine Prairie team against Beau Chene. "And if we can put two halves together and be successful, then we have a great chance of winning the ballgame (tonight). We got Douglas Fontenot back tonight, and we got a chance to move the ball with Douglas and Dylan (Doucet) tonight."

Prince got exactly what he was looking for and more as his team picked up its first win of the season by a score of 32-31. The Panther offense was sparked by the thunder and lightening duo of Douglas Fontenot and Dylan Doucet. Fontenot in the first half collected 103 yards rushing and 141 yards on kick returns. He finished the night with 180 yards rushing and 166 yards on kick returns. Doucet at quarterback added 84 rushing yards on the night.

With Pine Prairie down 31-26 with 7:55 remaining on the clock in the game, Pearl River took over at the 43 yard line. Tucker Deshotel sacked the Rebel quarterback for a loss of 5. The Rebels were later penalized 5 yards for false start setting up 2nd and 20. Then on 3rd and 20, the pass down field was broken up and almost intercepted by Dylan Doucet.

The punt went out of bounds as the Panthers took over at their own 42 yard line. Dylan Doucet picked up a first down on a quarterback sneak to the 40 yard line of Pearl River. Joshua Fontenot then ran up the middle for another 1st down. On fourth down as the drive appeared to stall, Dylan Doucet with another keeper rushed for a gain of enough real estate for a first down and more setting up 1st and 10 at the 16 yard line. It was 2nd and 9 after a Douglas Fontenot run. After a Pine Prairie time out Doucet ran down the near side for a 15 yard touchdown. The score after a failed two-point conversion attempt was 32-31 with :59 in the game. Devin Leggett forced a turnover for the Pantherts, and they went into victory formation with 31 seconds remaining on the clock to preseve the victory.

"Douglas is not in shape at the moment, but I'll tell you what he did a great job tonight," said his head coach after the game. "And I thank the Lord for having him back. It's a big boost to the team. Our offensive line came around... and we played good defense."

"We came from behind to win. To come from behind against a 4-A school, I think we're headed in the right direction."

The thunder and lighteing show started with Dylan Doucet returning the kick near to midfield following a Rebel touchdown that made the score 7-0 with 2:50 remaining in the first quarter, but offsetting penallties resulted in a rekick. Douglas Fontenot on the rekick returned it 65 yards to the Rebel 15 yard line for 1st and 10 putting the wheels in motion to set up the tying score as Doucet kept the football himself.

Douglas Fontenot began the second quarter with another kickoff return for 79 yards down to the Rebel 13 yard line. Josh Fontenot then would pick up a 1st down at the 1-yard line for 1st and goal. Pine Prairie scored another touchdown on a quarterback keeper this time from a yard out. The two point conversion went incomplete so the scoreboard read 14-12 with 9:43 before halftime.
Douglas Fontenot found a couple seams a few possessions later for a touchdown carry of 78 yards as the first half clock expired. Pearl River lead 21-20 at the half. Dylan Doucet founds some seams of his own in the tbird quarter for a 54-yard touchdown run, but a holding penalty negated the score.


Following a Rebel field goal from 31 yards out to make the score 31-20, the Panthers began at the 50 yard line. Doucet's pass appeared to be complete to Joshua Fontenot for a Panther 1st down, but it was ruled incomplete as the pass hit the ground on the reception. Douglas Fontenot again found the endzone after a gain of 45 yards.

"Next week is Mamou," added Prince after the game. "And it's at home again, and we play Tara another 4-A school. So we got a chance to win the next two games and get ready for district."

BUNKIE VS PINE PRAIRIE FOOTBALL

Pine Prairie kicked off its season on a warm and humid Friday night at home in what was called "The Battle of Highway 49" and "The Panther Bowl" and succomed to the visiting Panthers of Bunkie by a final score of 48-14. The Bunkie offensive force was propelled by senior running back Joseph Murray, who amassed 277 rushing yards on 12 carries for four touchdowns. Pine Prairie's closest answer was Dylan Doucet garnering 90 yards rushing on 8 rushes for a touchdown.

"We've seen some good things from our younger players," said assistant coack Jack O'Steen. "We're running a new offense. It's gonna take a little bit for it to get rolling."

The game started with Pine Prairie having nowhere to go as Bunkie was controlling the line of scrimmage. Bunkie took over after a punt at its own 44-yard line. On second and 10, Murray carried the football down to the Pine Prairie 25-yard line for a gain of 31 yards. Two plays later Jon'Ques Williams took it the rest of the way for a touchdown. Bunkie after a missed extra point attemopt led the contest 6-0 with 8:35 remaining in the first quarter thus setting the tone early.
Pine Prairie again went three-and-out and was forced to punt. Bunkie in a shot gun formation saw a deep pass completed to Jacob Boatner to the Pine Prairie 43-yard line. The subsequent plays from scrimmage saw some resistance from the home team as evidenced by Josh Fontenot and Gaten Chaddrick bringing up second and 11 on a slow developing play. The resistance proved futile as the Bunkie possession resulted in Murray's first touchdown of the night from five yards out making the score 13-0.

The next possession of Bunkie saw a greater Pine Prairie resistance as the tandem of Corryn Anderson and Jeremiah O'Steen provided a big stop on third down which led to the visitors turning the ball over on downs. The momentum appeared to switch sidelines as the home team saw a glimmer of hope on offense. Dylan Doucet carried for a gain of five resulting in third and short at the 42 yard line. Chaddrick then converted for a first down at the 45-yard line. The glimmer of hope soon faded as pass incompletions led to another Pine Prairie punt.

Bunkie began the next series with its worst starting position of the night but ended it with Murray busting loose around the right side and finding some running room for another touchdown. The KZLG radio team commented that was "running a lot more physical tonight that he did in the jamboree against Marksville."

The first half ended with Bunkie leading 20-0, and the second half began with Murray breaking loose early in the third quarter for a 65-yard touchdown run. With his team down 27-0, Dylan Doucet sprinted down the right side for a 95 yard touchdown. At the 6:13 mark of the third quarter the score was 27-6 after a failed 2 point conversion attempt.

After Bunkie fumbled and Pine Prairie returned the favor by coughing up a fumble of its own, Fred Weber ran it in for a touchdown to increase the lead to 34-6. Jeremy Lewis for Bunkie provided another touchdown on its ensuing possession. Dylan Doucet then took the ball down to Pine Prairie's 45-yard line on the kick. A couple of snaps later Ahmad Fontenot on the option picked up a 1st down at Bunkie's 38-yard line. The freshman Jordan Ardoin on a quarterback keeper broke loose for a big gain setting up 1st and goal at the 10 yard line. Coming out of the I formation, the play resulted for a Pine Prairie by touchdown Ardoin. Brandt Deville converted on the two point conversion as time expired.


O'Steen said of his freshman signal caller after the game, "He showed us some good things tonight."

The Pine Prairie Panthers takes their 0-1 record on the road next week to Arnaudville as they visit the Beau Chene Gators. As to the rest of the season, O'Steen commented, "We just got a lot of work to do. We're gonna keep working hard... We got a long season, so I'm sure Pine Prairie will continue those long strides to continue."

Trojans defeat Highland Baptist

The Lady Trojans opened the playoffs with a win against Highland Baptist Monday night behind three perfectly pitched innings from Elizabeth Soileau. “The game was very well played,” said coach Patrick Richey. “Our whole season has been well played this year. We just gotta keep our hitting and our bats done. Our fielding has been coming on really strong.”

Soileau started the game retiring Highland Baptist in order, and she led off the bottom of the inning with a single. Courtney Vidrine singled setting up a 2-RBI single for Gabby Andrepont. Morgan Touchet then pitched her way out of trouble to end the inning.

The second inning featured Soileau again retiring Highland Baptist in order. Hannah Lemoine picked up a ball at short stop off the bat of Amelia Provost and threw to Andrepont at first base to record the third out of the inning, but an illegal pitch was called on Soileau. A pitch later Provost again grounded to Lemoine who threw to Andrepont for the out. As Yogi Berra would say, “It's déjà vu all over again."   

Touchet found a groove in the bottom of the second inning despite two Lady Trojans being left on base. Laura Beth Fontenot reached on an error, and Vidrine got on base with a two out walk.

The script continued for Soileau in the top of the third inning as she retired the side in order. The Lady Trojans then exploded in the bottom of the inning with 12 runs, eight hits, and two errors as they sent 14 hitters to the plate. Deuces were wild in the inning as Kara Aguillard hit two doubles and scored two runs and as Caroline Fontenot and Sydney Fontenot both scored two runs. Vidrine added a triple after the visitors went to the bullpen bringing in Haley Peters and Lemoine added a double four batters later.

“We’re looking forward to our next game against whoever we get to play,” added Richey. “Hopefully after tonight we’ll get to see who it is, and then we’ll figure out when we’re gonna play.” His questions were answered as tenth ranked St. Edmund defeated 23^rd ranked Northwood-Lena 9-8. The Lady Trojans host the Lady Blue Jays Wednesday with a trip to Sulpher on the line.

Playoffs: Mamou vs Northeast Lady Vikings

The Mamou Lady Demons hosted the opening round of the basketball playoffs Thursday night as the Vikings came North by Northeast. The theme of the first half was the Demons forcing turnovers, but they could not capitalize as the ball rattled off the rim. The Mamou band providesd the halftime entertainment from the corner of Section A belting out such tunes as Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror." As the lyrics of the song suggest, the Lady Demons during the break were taking a look at themselves and then make that change in their style of play on the night. However, they fell victim by a final score of 60-48.
"In the first quarter, we couldn't convert the easy (shots)," said head coach Mark Temple. "The free throws hurt us and (Northeast's) size. They had a good inside presence... I appreciate my girls and love their effort. They gave their all."
Mikeisha Causey scored a basket for Northeast to take a 2-0 lead with 4:26 left in the quarter. The fans at that point began encouraging the Lady Demons, "We gotta make our shots." Darelzray Wilson responded as she laid it up and in under the net to tie the game at 2 to get the boisterous crowd on its feet. Arkieyanah Thomas responded as well as she stole the basketball away and scored to tie the game at 4 in the waning seconds of the opening quarter. The quarter ends with the Lady Vikings leading by 2 at 6-4.
At the 4:52 mark Thomas headed to the line and split a pair of free throws cutting the score to 11-7, then Bellard drained a three pointer to cut the deficit within 1 point. The Lady Vikings increased the lead on back to back to back scores and started seizing control of the game. With 3:40 to go in the half, the Lady Vikings lead 18-10. Bellard added two points from the charity line with 3:03 in the half to make the score 18-12. It was a good year for Louisiana but a bad score for Mamou.
Thomas drained a three pointer, and the score was 20-15 with 1:58 to go in the half. The Lady Vikings took a double-digit lead heading into halftime with the score being 25-15. Lauri Kight started the second half by muscleing her way on the court to put up baskets. Mamou called a timeout at the 5:53 mark with the team down 31-15 and got on the board in the half with a basket from Tia Gallow.
With Mamou down 34-22, the team was again starting to impose its will on defense giving the offense a chance to get back in the game. However, it appeared the Lady Vikings were adjusting on both ends of the court.
Gallow scored from under the net and was fouled. At the 1:43 mark of the third quarter, Mamou was down again by 10 points. Bellard drained another trey cutting the deficit to single digits, but the Lady Vikings answered. Kiajah Wilson again brought the deficit within single digits. That is how the third quarter ended with the Lady Vikings up 42-33.
The final eight minutes of play began with "Let's go defense" echoing through the Mamou gym. The score hovered around the same point margin in the first half of the final quarter of play, but the lady Vikings broke the half century mark on the scoreboard with just over 4 minutes remaining in the game. The visiting team led 51-37. Bellard would not go away quietly as she knocked down a couple of three pointers to close out the game, but it was proverbially too little too late.
The Lady Demons will now have to wait until next season to hang another banner from the rafters commerating a trip to the Sweet 16. "We had a good season at 22-9 and are still young," said Temple after the game. "We got a lot of building blocks   around us."

Pine Prairie Boys vs Church Point

            Chris Guillory talked before the game about the basketball landscape in Class 3-A. To paraphrase him said… The past couple of years we’ve gone from Class B to 2-A to 3-A. We didn’t see much of a change going from B to 2-A playing teams like Glenmora, Rapides, Chataignier, Bayou Chicot, and Vidrine. But going to 3-A last year we saw a huge difference in the style of play with the more competitive teams. A couple years ago Red River came in here and beat us in the playoffs and went on to win the state championship. You put that team in 3-A, and they probably won’t even make the playoffs.

            His Panthers played one such team Tuesday night as the Church Point Bears came to town. Javon Ardoin scored the first bucket to go up 2-0 at the 7:30 mark. Sylus Carsus picked up the offensive rebound and the basket to go up 4-2. Josh Freeman then drained a three pointer from the deep corner of the key to go up 8-2.

            Allen Myles and Ardoin combined to give the Panthers a 12-2 lead going into the 4:14 mark. It seemed the game was well at hand for the Panthers, but the Bears went on a run and clawed back into the game. At the half the Panthers lead 33-30. Church point sunk a bucket coming out the half, and then the Panthers later answered to retake the lead. Freeman drained another three pointer from the corner of the key with just over 5 minutes to go in the quarter.

The bandaged Carson, who previously suffered a laceration above his right eye, stopped bleeding but did not stop believing on the journey as he extended the lead 46-42 for the Panthers. He followed it up with another bucket to go up 48-42 and was good on the three-point play. Going into the final 8 minutes of play in Pine Prairie, the Panthers lead 49-47.

Freeman once again buried a three pointer to go up 52-47. With a full timeout called on the court at the 4:20 mark, the Panthers were high above the Bears by a score of 59-53. Carson buried another 3 pointer with just under a minute to play to go up 66-61 and to secure the win by a final score of 72-61.

With the win the Panthers are 6-0 in district and have a chance to finish district play undefeated and host the opening game in the playoffs. 

Pine Prairie Girls vs Church Point

Deflategate made its way from New England to Pine Prairie as the Lady Panthers hosted the Church Point Lady Bears Tuesday night. After the first quarter with the score tied at 11, the pressure in the game ball was checked to see if it was properly inflated. All jokes aside, the game ended up going under the win column of the Bears by a final score of 54-44. 

Church Point won the toss and got the first bucket on the night at the 6:50 mark. Britney Rider tied it up on an offensive rebound, and Taylar Deville gave the Lady Panthers an early lead at the 5:32 mark. Church Point went on a run to go up 9-6 before Rider tied it with a three point basket. Deville then got an offensive rebound and the basket to give the Panthers an 11-9 lead. Church Point tied it at 11 as the clock wound down in the first quarter.

            At the end of the 1^st half the score was tied 22-22. Church Point drained back-to-back three pointers to go up 28-23 at the 5:27 mark of the third quarter. The Lady Bears knocked down another 3 to go up 31-23. Kaitlyn Bradley connected with back-to-back buckets to pull the Lady Panthers within three points, and Sarah Vidrine picked up an offensive rebound and a bucket to climb within 1 at 31-30.

Church Point sunk a pair of free throws to go up 35-30 just before the buzzer sounded to end the 3^rd quarter and knocked down a series of jump shots to go up 41-33 with 5:02 to go in the game. A timeout on the court with 4:28 to go saw the Bears up 43-33, and the lead for Church Point remained in the double digits to close out the game and put an end to any deflategate conspiracy theories in Pine Prairie.

Renotta Edwards after the game was proud to get three competitive quarters from her squad. She is still hoping it can maintain that competitiveness for the whole four quarters.

Sacred Heart Boys against North Central

            As much of the northeast hunkered down for a blizzard, the Sacred Heart boys basketball team Tuesday night hunkered down for a hurricane as North Central paid a visit. The Trojans appeared to be weathering the storm most the night, but in the end the Hurricanes picked up a late burst of hot air to come from behind and win 57-55. The North Central head coach spoke for both coaches as he said, “The kids (from both teams) played their hearts out tonight.”

The student section started getting into the game, and the Trojans fed off the enthusiasm on both ends of the court. At the end of 1 from the Sacred Heart gym, the Trojans lead 18-11. The Trojan squad continued to feed off the enthusiasm, and Seth Shipp looked like Odell Beckham, Jr., out there with the one handed catch and score to go up 43-37.

The enthusiasm began to wane as North Central headed to the line with 5:33 left in the game and split a pair of free throws. Laughlin retook control with a basket to go up 50-47. North Central again cut it within 1. Timeout on the court at 1:32 mark had Sacred Heart up 50-49.

North Central took the lead 51-50. Jacques Fontenot was at line with just under a minute left and sunk both foul shots. Sean Fontenot scored a layup to go up 53-52. The Hurricanes went up 55-52 with 34.1 seconds remaining. The three point play was good. Sean Fontenot answered making the score 56-54 with 22.5 seconds left. Tate headed to the line with 14.1 seconds left and split the pair of free throws. North Central was then at the line for 1-and-1 to go up 57-55. With 10.8 seconds remaining Tate went back to the line. Timeout on the court Trojans were down 57-55 with 7.5 seconds left on the clock. Shipp inbounded from midcourt coming out of back-to-back timeouts. He passed to Sean Fontenot who shot a 3 point basket that was no good as time expired.

Sacred Heart Girls vs North Central

            In a game when the Sacred Heart fans were figuring out the area of similar rectangles, the Lady Trojan basketball team was figuring out math problems of its own as to finding the best angles to the basket. There right angles came out more acute and obtuse as they fell victim against the North Central Lady Hurricanes 75-30.

Natalie Earles scored the first points on the night. North Central answered, and Joseph put the Hurricanes ahead 4-2. At the 6:04 mark, Robertson from North Central shot from the free throw line to increase the lead to 6-2.

Earles picked up a defensive rebound, dribbled coast-to-coast, and was fouled. At the 5:37 mark, Sacred Heart was down 6-3. Kara Aguillard then added bucket to pull within 1.

            North Central moments later went on a 22-0 scoring run as the fans started murmuring that the Trojans needed to slow down. Moira Parks broke the scoring draught just over halfway through the quarter. Sacred Heart was at that point down 28-7.

After the teams traded a series of buckets, North Central buried a 3 pointer to go up 42-11. Earles was fouled at the half time buzzer and sank a foul shot. At the half Sacred Heart was down 46-12.

Martin started the half with a lay up to put the Hurricanes up 48-12. At the 5:25 mark Gabbie Andrepont went to the bench with her 4^th foul as North Central went up 52-15. Joseph from North Central shot, scored, and almost went through the stage doors to go up 58-17. Sacred Heart added a bucket in the waning moments of the quarter as North Central was then up 61-21. Earles and Andrepont then added six points for the Trojans.  

            Borrowing from Ernest Lawrence Thayer, there was no joy to end the game as Gabbie Andrepont fouled out.

Sacred Heart boys survive against the Hornets

            The Sacred Heart Trojan basketball team Friday night survived a storm of three point shots to defeat Catholic of Pointe Coupee 66-52. Trojan head coach Gerald Cayer said of his squad, “We’ve been having problems making easy shots, and we made them tonight. Also we had problems shooting foul shots, and we nailed them tonight. And that’s the big difference. The last seven or eight games that’s been some of the problems we’ve been having. We’ve been working, and it paid off tonight.”

            Seth Shipp knocked down the first two Trojan buckets giving the home team a 4-0 lead at the 7:05 mark. Christopher Tate answered a Hornet score with a three point play. Sean Fontenot then drained a trey putting the Trojans up 10-2.

            With 4:25 to go in the first quarter, Cayer told his squad to “stay in the paint.” That is when the storm of three point shots began. Mikey Laughlin for the Trojans got in on the three point shooting as he made one from the corner of the key. The score was tied 17-17 at the end of one.

            Sean Fontenot tied the game at 19 and gave the Trojans a lead as he made both foul shots at the 4:33 mark of the second quarter. Laughlin then added another three point basket and increased the lead to 25-24. The natives started getting restless as Sean Fontenot picked up a foul and headed to the bench with his team up 26-25 as the first half was winding down. The half came to a close with the Trojans up by the same score.

            The second half saw emotions riding high from both ends of the bleachers. Tate scored the first four points of the second half for the Trojans. Laughlin then picked up an offensive rebound and scored. At the 5:51 mark of the third quarter, the home team was up 32-30. Tate and Gabe Fontenot each scored a three point bucket in the quarter as the Trojans went up 43-40 at the end of three.

            Laughlin again drained a three pointer before a technical foul on the Hornets sent Sean Fontenot to the charity stripe for two shots. He made them both, and the Trojans retained possession. Unofficial stats on the night reflect Shipp added eight points to close out the game and to secure the win for the Trojans.

           

Sacred Heart wins with wholesale substitutions

            The Sacred Heart Lady Trojans pitched a shutout until the 5:08 mark of the second quarter and used wholesale substitutions Friday night to defeat Catholic of Pointe Coupee 55-15. The Trojans opened the spigot early in the game, and the Hornets could not find a way to stop the flood of points.  

            Gabbie Andrepont and Natalie Earles each put the Trojans on a four point run to begin the game. Erin Fontenot dribbled from coast to coast to score a bucket putting the Trojans up 14-0 at the 4:38 mark of the first quarter.

            One pair of sisters got in on the scoring to close out the first quarter as Hannah and Carrie Lemoine each scored a bucket. The elder sister added a pair of free throws putting the home team up 22-0.

            In the game head coach Stephanie Fontenot saw the dividends of mixing in her bench onto the court. Kara Aguillard scored before the 5:08 buzzer of the second quarter putting the team up 25-0. Unofficial stats on the night show she added eight more points on the night and led the bench in scoring. 

Mamou girls play like Syracuse against Pine Prairie

            On this the Twelfth Night when most people look for the baby in a king cake, the Mamou Lady Demons with a record of 13-6 went into Pine Prairie looking for a win. Coach Mark Temple in the game employed a Syracuse defense that would have given a Geno Auriemma coached team fits. This type of defense led to Mamou finding the win by a final score of 66-38.

            Temple said of his defensive effort, “We executed well defensively, and the intensity was there.” He added, “Still we got a couple of little things to get nipped and tucked for district, but other than that good execution all around.”

            Mamou began the game on a 14-0 run. Highlights of the run were Darelzray Bellard knocking down an early 3-point shot and Amber Jack driving from coast-to-coast for a 2-point bucket.

            Pine Prairie joined in on the scoring at the 4:15 mark in the first quarter as Kaitlyn Bradley knocked down a bucket. Mamou soon answered with Ka’Zhana Richard scoring a 3-point shot from way downtown. Unjel Lazard added a 3-point shot of her own giving Mamou a 22-6 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter for the Lady Panthers was all Bradley as she scored 8 points in the quarter. Mamou as a team in the second quarter scored 21 points. Leading the way in scoring were Kiajah Wilson, Arkieyanah Thomas, and Kamaneisha Wilson. The first half ended with Mamou up 43-14.

The third quarter was evenly matched in the score column with Mamou outscoring Pine Prairie 17-14. The big plays of the quarter were Bellard knocking down a 3-point shot from the corner of the key and Richard knocking down a bucket from the top of the key. With a time out on the court at the 2:54 mark in the third quarter, Mamou led 54-23. The Lady Panthers outscored the Lady Demons 10-6 in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough as they fell and saw their record go to 3-12 on the season.

In the game Kaitlyn Bradley led Pine Prairie with 24-points and shot at a 57% clip from the field. Tori Bordelon was the next leading scorer with 7-points as she shot 75% from the field and 100% from behind the arc.

Pine Prairie coach Renotta Edwards called the game “a learning experience” for her young team as it tries to get better.

Pine Prairie boys out physical Mamou

            The Mamou Green Demons played the basketball game Tuesday night against Pine Prairie looking like Mardi Gras riders without a captain. They knew what they had to do but were missing that leader waive the flag getting them where they needed to go. Thus they fell by a score of 76-53. With the win, the Panthers increased their record to 19-5 on the season.

            Luke Thomas from Mamou started the scoring with 2-points at the 7:01 mark of the first quarter. Nathaniel Holland quickly added another bucket along with a foul shot increasing the lead to 5-0.  Javon Ardoin scored Pine Prairie’s first points on the night from the charity stripe as he knocked down both free throws at the 6:34 mark. Allen Myles brought the Panthers within a point with a layup.

            Ardoin knocked down a trey from the top of the key giving Pine Prairie a 10-6 lead. Josh Freeman knocked down a trey of his own from the corner of the key as Pine Prairie closed out the first quarter with a 15-6 lead.

            Sylus Carson highlighted the second quarter driving from coast-to-coast and scoring for the Panthers. At the half the Panthers led 37-17. Freeman added a coast-to-coast scoring play in the third quarter increasing the lead to 52-28.

            The fourth quarter saw both teams in the bonus and saw the scoring go back-and-forth. In the end; though, it was Pine Prairie who out physicalled Mamou.

            Mamou coach John Jack thought, “we started the game pretty good the first couple of minutes. It seemed like Pine was coming with a slow start. The second quarter we just didn’t score any points. We dug ourselves a hole too deep, and once they got going we just couldn’t contain them.”