Tom Dodge
It was a crucial sweep for St. Edmund Tuesday night as the Lady Jays and Blue Jays both earned District 5-1A wins over Westminster Christian Academy.
It was a defensive struggle early in the girls’ game before the Lady Jays rolled to a 54-15 win.
Samantha Turnage scored the game’s first points for WCA (10-16, 1-3), but the Lady Jays answered with a 6-0 run aided by three free throws from Savannah DeVillier, a layup by Mary Beth Lafleur and a free throw by Anna Belle Fontenot.
St. Edmund outscored WCA 8-2 in the second period to take a 14-4 lead into the locker room.
DeVillier opened the scoring with a free throw and finished a trey at the buzzer to excite the home fans.
Tanzy Miller and Fontenot also added buckets for the Lady Jays in the quarter.
St. Edmund exploded for 19 points in the third period, sparked by an 11-3 run.
Tanzy Miller and Rebecca Benoit began the third frame with back-to-back jumpers and then Miller added a lay-up for a 20-4 Lady Jay advantage.
After three points from WCA, St. Edmund’s Greta Miller scored off a rebound and Deviller drilled her second trey of the game.
The Lady Jay run continued with buckets by Rebecca Benoit, Lafleur and DeVillier.
Hannah Benoit hit two free throws to push St. Ed’s ahead, 33-9 before WCA added a bucket to close the gap to 33-11 heading into the final quarter.
The Lady Jays sealed the win with a 21-4 fourth quarter showing, begun when Fontentot scored twice in the lane, Mary Helen Miller drained a trey and Julia Zaunbrecher scored on a put-back bucket.
Hannah Benoit hit a jumper and Mary Helen Miller twice scored in the lane as St. Ed’s moved ahead, 44-12 midway through the quarter.
Rylie Johnson added a put-back and Helen Brown scored inside to increase the Lady Jays’ final to 54-15.
DeVillier led St. Edmund with 12 points, while Fontenot chipped in nine points.
The Lady Jays (11-1, 2-1) travel to Catholic High of Pointe Coupee (15-11, 0-4) on Friday.
SEH 80, WCA 60
In the boys game, St. Edmund jumped out to a 30-12 first quarter advantage and never looked back as the Jays cruised to an 80-60 win over Westminster Christian Academy.
St. Edmund set the tone early as the Jays drained six three pointers in the first eight minutes including two each from Alex Dupre, Henry Brown and Easten Coleman.
Dupre scored 12 points in the first quarter, while Coleman pushed in 10 points.
WCA regrouped in the second period, outscoring the Jays, 14-10.
Kieran Davis scored twice in the lane and Luke Trahan added two free throws to push the Jays ahead, 35-14.
WCA then went on a 12-4 run to close the halftime margin to 40-26.
Brown scored twice in the lane for the Jays during WCA’s push to make the game closer.
St. Edmund broke the game open with 23 points in the third period.
The two teams exchanged buckets early before the Jays went on an 14-1 run.
Davis scored on a three-point play and Alex Fontenot hit a bucket before Dupre pushed in six points.
Brown’s trey in the clsoing minute increased the Jays’ lead to 28 points.
WCA scored before the buzzer as the Jays took a 63-37 advantage into the fourth quarter.
St. Edmund began the final period with a 12-2 run, including two drives in the lane by Davis to go with five points from Coleman.
Avery Heinen hit a free throw and Ian Dupre drilled a trey to close the Jays’ surge to push ahead 76-39 midway through the period.
WCA scored four straight points before St. Ed’s Garrett Dubois, Ian Dupre and Coleman scored to to give the Jays a 80-48 advantage.
The Crusaders finished the game with an 11-0 run to close the final to 80-60.
Alex Dupre led the Jays with 18 points, while Coleman added 17 points.
Brown and Davis both finished with 13 points.
St. Edmund (9-9, 2-1) travels to Catholic High of Pointe Coupee (12-10, 1-3) for a district battle on Friday.