Farmers over power Bulldogs

The third seeded-ranked Farmers plowed under the Ville Platte Bulldogs, 54-6, Friday night to win the opening round of the state 3A playoffs.
Next week, Union Parish High (10-1 on the season) will travel to #19 Brusley for the regional round. Brusley upset #14 Jewel Sumner Friday night.
Ville Platte finishes the year on a four game losing streak to fall to 3-7.
“I’m very proud of this team, especially this group of seniors,” said Bulldog head coach Tracey Jagneaux. “In every game they play – no matter the opponent or score – they worked as hard as they could. It is a true sign of character to give everything you’ve got, to give your best, even when it looks like the outcome is decided.”
Jagneaux also congratulated the senior class on an accomplishment that not many players can boast of.
“These seniors went out on a loss,” Jagneaux said, “but they need to keep in mind what they’ve done throughout their whole body of work. These seniors have gone to the playoffs in each of their four years of high school.
“There are not many seniors around the state, let alone in the history of Ville Platte High, who can say that.”
Friday night, except for one brief moment midway through the opening quarter, the Farmers were firmly in control of the tractor, driving up-and-down the field at will.
In a sneaky move, Union Parish successfully recovered their own on-sides kick-off to open the game. From there, the Farmers marched 39 yards to score.
In a sign of things to come, they converted two fourth downs on the drive, including the three yard Jermarius Williams touchdown run. Casey Spatafora nailed the Point-After-Try for a 7-0 lead.
Midway through the first quarter, the stars seemed to align, and Ville Platte looked like it might just make this a much closer contest than some expected. The Bulldog defense stiffened up and plugged up leaky holes, shutting the Farmers down on fourth-and-13.
When the Dogs took over on downs, Jermarcus Jones popped off a 77 yard scamper right through the heart of the Farmer defense for a touchdown. Although the two-point conversion failed, suddenly the Bulldogs were within one point, 7-6, of the third-ranked team in the state.
Alas, the euphoria quickly dissipated.
Union High adjusted its offense, attacking the edges of the Bulldog defense and looking for mismatches in the receiving corps. Defensively, Union High overwhelmed the Bulldog blockers with extra men on blitzes. It was too much for Ville Platte to handle.
Following the Bulldog touchdown, the Farmers promptly drove 66 yards to extend their lead. Williams hit Deandre Elliot on a 17-yard strike for the score. Spatafora’s PAT made it 14-6 as the first quarter ended.
Union Parish then scored six more touchdowns in the next two quarters. By the time the fourth quarter rolled around, the score was 54-6, and the two teams agreed to play running time.