John Burson
OPELOUSAS – The Eunice High Bobcats took an early lead against the Opelousas High Tigers and continued to put pressure on the Tiger defense and offense to claim a 53-24 victory.
The game was interrupted for 50 minutes by a lightning delay in the second quarter.
Prior to the delay, the Bobcats appeared to be in control as they held off an offensive threat by the Tigers with 8:02 left in the first quarter.
Coach Paul Trosclair’s Bobcats got on a roll, with Jordan Ledet running 25 yards and Deon Ardoin following up with a three-yard carry to go deep into Tiger territory.
Deon Ardoin got a yard and quarterback Simeon Ardoin topped off the drive with a one-yard touchdown run.
Avery Lee kicked the PAT to give the Bobcats a 7-0 lead with 5:04 left on the clock.
But Opelousas took advantage of a 15-yard kickoff to pull themselves back into the game. Runs by Jaquin Nelson and Marvion Young put the Tigers deep into Bobcat territory.
A Devin Nicholas pass to Nelson covering 43 yards put the Tigers inside the five-yard line. Frazier scored on a two-yard run with 1:28 left in the quarter.
The Bobcats blocked the PAT kick to maintain their 7-6 lead.
The Bobcats responded quickly to the Tiger touchdown as Jordan Ledet returned the ensuing kickoff 25 yards to give the Cats decent field position.
The Cats converted a first down on a 10-yard run by Deon Ardoin that ended inside the 30-yard line of the Tigers. The Bobcats added to their lead with Simeon Ardoin completing a touchdown pass to Traelyn Cooper to give the Cats a 14-6 lead with seven seconds left on the clock.
The Tigers were unable to overcome mistakes, losing a fumble to the Cats which gave the Bobcats great field position.
The Cats used the run to advance the ball, with Keshawn Guillory gaining 16 yards and Isiah Darby getting 15. Devin Richardson addd nine yards on a carry to set up the Cats inside the Tigers’ 40-yard line.
Deon Ardoin scored on a 28-yard run and Avery Lee kicked the PAT for a 33-12 lead. Simeon Ardoin later added a touchdown with a one-yard run but Lee missed the PAT attempt.
The Tigers got a drive going after the kickoff, but the Bobcats managed to hold the Tigers at bay. The Cats used the passing game to advance against the Tigers. Simeon Ardoin completed passes to Ledet for 10 yards and added a 13-yard pass to Cooper as they advanced deep into Opelousas territory. The Cats used a 50-yard pitch to Ledet to set up a touchdown. Lee scored with 3:32 and added the PAT to buiild their lead to 47-12. The Tigers added a score late in the third quarter, but Ledet returned the ensuing kickoff with a 75-yard return. Lee added two touchdown runs before the Tigers scored on a run by Frazier in the fourth quarter. The Cats added to their lead with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to extend their lead to 53-18.