Bobcats win district title

PINE PRAIRIE – The Eunice High Bobcats claimed the District 5-3A title here Friday night with a 49-6 victory over Pine Prairie.
The Bobcats finished the regular season with a 9-1 record and a district record of 5-0. Pine Prairie finished its season with a 3-7 overall mark and a 0-5 district record.
Coach Paul Trosclair’s Bobcats received the opening kickoff, starting at their own 42 thanks to a 12-yard return by Travis Godfrey.
Darin Serie broke away for 11 yards on first down and Terryl Poullard a 22-yard reception from Alex Richard to start what proved to be a 58-yard touchdown drive. Passes by Richard of 10 and 14 yards to Poullard and Dashawn Vigers set up a one-yard touchdown run by Nick Powell. The PAT kick failed, but the Cats led 6-0.
The Panthers were forced to punt on their opening possession and the Cats put together a 78-yard, 7-play scoring drive. Key plays on the drive included a 31-yard pass from Richard to Logan Manuel and a 28-pass from Richard to Dashawn Vigers. Serie added an 11-yard run.
Powell bulled into the end zone from the one-yard line for the touchdown and Serie added the PAT run to put the Bobcats ahead by a 14-0 margin with 5:57 left in the first half.
The Bobcats would score two more times in the first half, with Richard teaming with Poullard on a 12-yard scoring pass and Avery Lee running for the two-point conversion.
With 1:24 remaining, Serie highlighted a 63-yard drive with runs of 28 and 19 yards, the latter ending in a touchdown. Austin Manuel kicked the PAT to give the Cats a 35-0 halftime advantage.
On the first play of the second half, Panther quarterback Dylan Doucet ripped off a 61-yard touchdown run to put his team on the scoreboard. But the game remained 35-6 with a missed PAT kick.
The Bobcats struck right back, however, as Nick Powell took the kickoff and raced down the right sidelines for a 80-yard touchdown. Manuel nailed the PAT kick as the Cats took a 42-6 lead.
The Panthers executed their best drive of the night following Powell’s touchdown. Pine Prairie drove from their 38 to the Eunice 17 in nine plays before being stopped by the Bobcat defense.
After the stop, the younger Bobcats drove 83 yards in eight plays for a touchdown. Freshman Avery Lee had runs of 12 and 15 runs and sophomore Ian George added runs of 12, 20, and four yards during the drive. Lee capped the drive with a six-yard run. Manuel kicked the PAT to end the scoring.
The playoff brackets will be released today.