Pios top Lake Arthur to complete unbeaten regular season

It was quick and painless, at least for 26 Notre Dame seniors who didn’t have to spend that much time on the field in putting away the 34th straight regular season win. The Pios needed just 16 offensive snaps to score five first half touchdowns and finished with 323 yards rushing to cruise past Lake Arthur, 55-7, and claim the outright District 6-2A championship.
“I’m just really happy we were able to finish it and looked good in doing it,” said Coach Lewis Cook after the win. “We didn’t come out and slop around. Our kids played hard, executed well, made some nice plays, and did a lot of good things. We will start a new season with the playoffs and hope we have three games left.”
The first Pios offensive play saw Collin Kirsch take a handoff to the right side and sweep past defenders for a 62-yard touchdown. John William Lamm added the extra point with just under three minutes played in the first quarter.
On the next series, Pios safety David Schmid recovered a fumble at the Lake Arthur 14-yard line. After a penalty, QB Garrett Bergeron connected with Kaizer Lamm on a crossing route for a 15-yard gain. Two plays later, Bergeron tossed a middle screen to tailback Joe Ware and he followed blockers for a nine-yard score. Lamm kicked the point after to make the Pios lead 14-0.
Lake Arthur got most of its 59 first half yards on a fifteen-play, penalty aided drive that used eight minutes of clock time. The possession ended at the Pios 31 when Kyle Lyons and Konner Broussard teamed to stop a fourth down run by Tigers back Torrell Levias.
Pios QB Garrett Bergeron stood in against the rush to a 28-yard completion to Zack Miller. Halfback Joe Ware powered up the middle and broke for 36 yards inside the ten. Collin Kirsch covered the final eight yards for the score. Notre Dame led 21-0 after Lam added the PAT.
“We are playing awfully well right now offensively and on defense,” added Cook. “I was a little concerned after the emotion of last week, but these guys are mature, and they understand. We had a lot of seniors out there, some starting and some who haven’t been able to start. They are all competing well and giving it their all when they get the chance.”
The Pios defense was again impressive in forcing a Lake Arthur punt from their 17-yard line. QB Garrett Bergeron completed all eight of his passes for 113 yards on the night and he recorded four of those on consecutive plays in a quick scoring drive.
Bergeron hit C.J. Thibodeaux for a short three-yard gain on first down. ND receiver Gentry Borill toed the sideline on a 10-yard catch from Bergeron for a first down. Landon Meche grabbed a quick turn in for a six-yard gain and Bergeron then found tight end Thomas Bellard for 15-yards down the middle to the one. Gabe Doucet pounded it in for the touchdown and Lamm made it 28-0 with the point after.
Special teams joined the party after another three and out by the Tigers with Noah Bourgeois returning the Lake Arthur punt 21-yards. Bourgeois then took a swing pass around the left side for 27-yards down to the Tigers six. The junior running back finished off the drive by covering the final six yards to pay dirt. Lamm kicked the PAT to make it 35-0 Pios at the half.
“We talked all week about how we needed to finish,” noted Coach Cook. “You start the season off and never know how it is going to go. These guys have a chance to do something special and anytime you can go undefeated in the regular season it is just that. They came out and were tuned in and determined to finish.”
Cook planned to play his ones for a series to start the second half and then start working in the roster. That strategy lasted two plays.
After a two-yard loss on first down, Collin Kirsch took it off the edge and raced 59 yards for another Notre Dame score. Kirsch touched the ball five times on the night and gained 125-yards with three scores. John William Lamm added the point after to make it 42-0.
Seven of ten Lake Arthur possessions lasted four plays or less. Midway through the third quarter, the Pios had allowed just 58 yards to Lake Arthur. Led by the 11 tackles of Cody LeBlanc, 7 stops by Gabe Link, 6 tackles from Hayden Reiners and five tackles each by Cam Nelson and Alec Brouillette, the Pios defense turned away the Tigers on seven straight possessions.
A fourth Tigers punt set the Pios up near mid field. Gabe Doucet rushed for seven yards on first down and C.J. Thibodeaux got a first down on a six-yard run. Doucet picked up four more and QB Ben Broussard faked out the stadium on a dive option. When the ball was found, Broussard was coming off the left edge for a 41-yard TD run. The extra point was blocked and the PIos lead pushed to 48-0.
Lake Arthur drove against Pios reserves with a 28-yard run from Daylon Charles and a 37-yard run by Tory Levias. On first and goal at the Pios five, Tylan Turner and Stephen Cormier stopped Levias for a two-yard gain. On second and goal, Hayden Reiners and Zeke Petitjean dropped Levias for a two-yard loss. Reiners and Nicholas Venable stopped the Tigers RB for no gain on third down and Kane Bergeron knocked away a fourth down pass to complete the goal line stand.
Two plays later, C.J. Thibodeaux took a handoff up the middle, broke through the defense, ran through a tackler, and regained his balance to outrun everyone for an 86-yard touchdown. Lamm made it 55-0 with the PAT.
Lake Arthur got on the scoreboard with just under three minutes to play. Isaac Trahan capped a 72-yard drive with a 6-yard score and Chance Broussard added the point after to make the final 55-7.
Notre Dame has locked up the top seed for the playoffs and will have next week off with a first round bye. For the Pios seniors, it is a third straight undefeated regular season as Notre Dame begins down another path to the Superdome.”