Tom Dodge
In a battle of unbeaten teams, the team that makes the least mistakes usually wins.
Breaux Bridge took advantage of seven Bobcat turnover as the Tigers grabbed a 28-15 win Friday night over No. 6 Eunice.
“You can’t win when you have seven turnovers,” Eunice head coach Paul Trosclair said. “The big pass plays hurt us but with out the turnovers I don’t they would have scored 28 points.”
Things started badly for the Bobcats as after a holding penalty a fumble after a catch gave the ball to the Tigers a minute in to the game.
The Eunice defense forced a punt, but Bobcat offense still couldn’t move the ball.
After a short punt, the Tigers took over at the Bobcat 39 midway through the first period.
Breaux Bridge went for it on fourth down, but Jahiem Mitchell batted down the pass attempt.
Eunice moved the ball down the field, aided by a pass from Simeon Ardoin to Traelyn Cooper near midfield.
Strong runs by Jeoul Hill, Simeon Ardoin and Devin Richardson moved the ball to the Breaux Bridge 1.
On the next play as the ball was put over the line, it was knocked loose for a touchback.
Two plays later, Bryson Poullard picked off a Breaux Bridge pass at the Tiger 11 and dove into the endzone.
Simeon Ardoin ran in the two-point conversion and the Bobcats led 8-0 with 1:18 left in the first period.
Breaux Bridge quickly responded when Gavan Courville connected with Dartravien Girod for a 70-yard touchdown. The PAT closed the gap to 8-7 with 30 seconds left in the quarter.
The Bobcats attempted a fourth down conversion at the Breaux Bridge 32 early in the second period, but Tejun Lastrape snared an interception at the Tiger 4.
After a holding call, Courville found Girod open as the speedy receiver raced 98 yards for the touchdown.
The PAT gave the visiting Tigers a 14-8 advantage with 8:58 left in the half.
The Bobcats were driving the ball on their next possession, but Tylynn Menard recovered an EHS fumble at the Tiger 18.
The Eunice defense forced a punt, but another Bobcat fourth down play was intercepted to stop the drive.
“We were only down 14-8 right before the half and we threw and interception because we messed up a route,” Trosclair said.
“That interception was the turning point of the game.”
Breaux Bridge moved 53 yards in nine plays capped by a 15-yard touchdown pass from Courville to Cole Fuselier with 24 seconds left.
The PAT gave the Tigers a 21-8 lead heading into the intermission.
Defense dominated the third quarter as the Bobcats lost two fumbles in the period and Eunice High’s Jordan Oglesby jumped on a loose ball to stop a Tiger drive.
With 4:11 left in the quarter, the Bobcats moved 33 yards in seven plays.
On third-and-goal, Breaux Bridge was called for pass interference in the end zone as time expired.
On the un-timed down, Simeon Ardoin ran six yards to the end zone.
The PAT helped the Bobcats close the gap to 21-15 as the game moved to the fourth quarter.
Breaux Bridge answered with a 60-yard drive, capped by a 14-yard scoring strike from Courville to Girod.
The PAT increased the Tigers’ lead to 28-15 with 9:39 left in the game.
The Bobcats moved the ball near midfield on their next possession before a fumble recovery by Breaux Bridge’s Menard stopped the drive.
Again the EHS defense forced a punt and the Bobcats attempted to get back into the game with an 11-play drive to get into Tiger territory.
On third-and-eight at the Tiger 40, Simeon Ardoin broke loose but an early whistle by the officials stopped the play.
On fourth down, Ardoin scrambled but his pass fell inconplete in the end zone and the Tiger defense held with 2:18 left in the game.
An taunting call pushed the Tigers back and Breaux Bridge was forced to punt.
Tyrese Martin recovered a muff punt and the Tigers then ran out the clock.
‘We have a lot of games left and we will crank it up and get back at it,” Trosclair said.
“We have a chance to win the rest of our games.”
“We knew they will be tough,” Breaux Bridge head coach Terry Martin said. “Forcing turnovers and being able to throw the ball well against them proved to be big.
“We have things we need to clean up, but tt was a good win for us.”
Eunice faces Abbeville for homecoming this week , while Breaux Bridge visits Teurlings Catholic.