SE-WCA In Rematch
BOBBY ARDOIN
St. Landry Now.com Editor
SE, WCA In Rematch
BOBBY ARDOIN
St. Landry Now.com Editor
There won’t be much that is unfamiliar Friday night when St. Edmund returns to the Opelousas-area for a Division IV-Select Quarterfinal playoff game with Westminster Christian Academy.
The two District 4-1A teams met at Westminster on Nov. 6.
Westminster (11-0) won that game 37-22 and the winner of the rematch moves on to play either Ascension Catholic or Catholic High-Pointe Coupee in the semifinal round next week.
While St. Edmund (10-2) reached the quarterfinals against state champion Vermillion Catholic last year, it’s been awhile since Westminster has arrived at that pinnacle.
The Crusaders were football quarterfinalists in 2016, but lost in that playoff round to Central Catholic-Morgan City.
Ninth-seeded St. Edmund opened the playoffs with a 62-18 win over Lincoln Prep and eliminated Covenant Christian (44-36) last Friday night, while WCA beat Opelousas Catholic (48-35) in order to advance.
St. Edmund head football coach James Shiver said the Blue Jays are looking forward to playing Westminster again.
“This is the matchup (with WCA) that our kids have wanted since we lost to them. The last time we played (Westminster) I thought they had a good plan and their big running back (Kyle Horde) had a great game.. We felt we were right there (against WCA),” Shiver said on Monday.
Westminster head football coach Byron Porter said he expects the Blue Jays to arrive ready to play.
“St. Edmund is an excellently-coached team and they bring a lot to prepare for. We know that they are going to come in with everything they’ve got,” Porter said.
Both teams used their running games to move into the quarterfinals.
St. Edmund ran 47 times for 408 yards and five touchdowns in the win over Covenant Christian, while WCA rushed for over 200 in the victory over OCS.
The Blue Jays’ Wyatt Dubois ran for 231 on 15 attempts and Nathan Driggs rushed for another 131 on the same number of carries against Covenant Christian.
Dubois scored five TD’s as the Jays rebounded from a 30-16 halftime deficit.
“We actually felt comfortable (at halftime). We didn’t think (Covenant Christian) could stop our running game, so we used the run to get back in it. I thought we made some good adjustments. We talked about wanting to score on our first drive of the second half and we were able to do that,” said Shiver.
The Crusaders had to beat OCS again last Friday after defeating the Vikings in the regular season, said Porter isn’t surprised that his team meets another district opponent as the playoffs proceed.
“Like I’ve said all year, this is probably the toughest 1A district in the state. That’s obvious since so many of us are in the playoffs and there are three of us left now in the quarterfinals,” Porter added.
Westminster compiled 384 total yards against the Jays in the regular season game earlier this month, while St. Edmund was limited to 150 rushing yards and another 144 passing.
Horde however did most of the offensive damage, running for 191 on 21 carries, while quarterback Stephen George completed 8-of-14 passes. Wide receiver Damien Thomas caught three throws for 47.
