Panthers fall to Bearkats in bi-district play

Out of all the teams that Pine Prairie could have faced in the first round of the playoffs, the Bossier Bearkats were probably not on the top of the Panther wish list. Since 2009, the Bearkats had been to the Top 28 six years in a row, even winning the state title in 2011.
With that said, Pine Prairie took to the road with all the confidence of a district champion. Unfortunately for the Panthers, tradition overcame confidence, as Bossier used a solid second half to take a 67-42 win.
If the Bearkats were thinking of putting the game away early, Pine Prairie had other thoughts. The Panthers battled from the opening tip and exchanged buckets with the home team in the opening quarter.
Sylus Carson netted five points to lead Pine Prairie to a seven-point first period. Bossier responded with 10 points of their own to take three-point advantage as the first quarter ended.
Needing to keep pace with the Bearkats, Pine Prairie leaned on all of their offensive weapons in the second period. The Panther had five different players register points, led by Douglas Fontenot’s five points.
However, Bossier was able to outscore Pine Prairie 17-13 in the quarter. The Bearkats went into the locker room with a seven-point advantage, 27-20.
The third quarter turned out to be a critical one for both squads. Each team ramped up the offensive effort, as the two opponents combined for 38 points in the period. The Panthers hit three shots from behind the arc to help propel them to a 15-point stanza.
Bossier answered by ripping the nets for 23 points. As the third period came to a close, the Bearkats had extended their lead to 50-35.
With their season on the line, Pine Prairie looked for a repeat comeback experienced in the final regular season game. Unluckily for the Panthers, it was not in the cards.
A combination of a suffocating Bossier defense and an ice cold Pine Prairie offense prevented the response the Panthers were hoping for. Pine Prairie could only manage seven fourth quarter points and yielded 17 points to the Bearkats to close out the game.
Leading the way for the Panthers on offense was Carson, who netted 10 points in the contest. Pine Prairie finishes the season with an overall record of 26-6 and the district 5-3A crown.
Head Coach Chris Guillory said after the game, “I want to thank all of the fans that followed us to Bossier tonight. We had a great crowd.”