Raiders edge Panthers in key district matchup

Pine Prairie and Northwest came into the game Friday night with both teams needing a district win. However, the victory went to Northwest Raiders with a final score 12-6.
Northwest would win the coin toss and select to receive the ball to start the game. On the first play, Chris Lee ran the ball for 12 yards and a first down. The next three plays would total zero yards and force the Raiders to punt. Pine Prairie would take over at their 23 yard line. On the first two plays, Dylan Doucet would run for three yards and on third and seven, Doucet would fumble the snap and Northwest’s Brian Broussard would recover. The Raiders would take over at the Panther’s 34 yard line. Pine Prairie would then force Northwest to turn the ball over on downs. Both defenses would come to the line and force several three and outs. The Panthers would find some offense and take things over at the Raider’s 47 yard line. Douglas Fontenot would run the first two plays for 25 yards. Now, Pine Prairie had first and 10 at Northwest’s 22 yard line. Doucet would throw two incomplete passes and Clint Graser would run the ball twice with zero yards and force a turnover on downs. Both teams would trade punts.
After a 10 yard punt by the Raiders, the Panthers would start the drive with excellent field position at the Northwest 27 yard line. Two running plays by Joshua Fontenot for one yard would bring up third and nine for the Panthers. Doucet would drop back to pass the ball, and the Raider’s McKensie Roberts would jump in front of Allen Myles for an interception. Northwest would put a long drive together starting at their 20 yard line. Lee would run two straight plays for 12 yards. Then Lee would find Christian Bradley on a long pass down field for 27 yards. On the next play the ball would be fumbled and recovered by Keenan Roy of Pine Prairie. The Panthers would take over at their 40 yard line. Doucet would get sacked on first down for a four yard loss. On second and long, Doucet would throw a deep pass to Myles where Bradley of the Raiders would jump and intercept the pass. Northwest would take over at the Pine Prairie 30 yard line with 54 seconds left to play in the second Quarter. Lee would run four plays for 30 yards and a touchdown with five-seconds till halftime. The extra point by Brandon Lamonde was no good, giving the Riders a 6-0 lead at intermission.
Pine Prairie would start the second half with the ball. They would go three and out for negative 10 yards on the drive. Doucet would get sacked on third down. Northwest would take over at their 19 yard line. Lee ran three plays for 18 yards. The Raiders would now have first and 10 at their 18 yard line. Before having to punt, the Panthers would take over at Northwest’s 45 yard line. On first down, Joshua Fontenot would take the hand off for two yards for a Panther first down. Douglas Fontenot would get the ball on the next two plays totaling two yards. On third and eight, Doucet would run a quarterback draw around the right side breaking three tackles and springing off another defender for 29 yards and a Panther touchdown. The extra point would be no good because of a bad snap. With 4:05 remaining in the third quarter, the Panthers and Raiders would be tied 6-6.
After a short kickoff, Northwest would start their drive at the 43 yard line. The Raiders would run the ball nine straight plays capped off by a two-yard rub by Lee for a Northwest touchdown. The extra point by Lamonde would be blocked by Douglas Fontenot, giving the Raiders a 12-6 lead with 11:56 remaining in the ball game. Both teams would then force three and out.
Pine Prairie would take over at their 38 yard line. With the game on the line, Doucet would take the snap for nine yards. Ray would then take the next play for three yards and a Panther first down. With the ball resting at midfield, Joshua Fontenot would take the handoff for four yards. The next play would include Douglas Fontenot running the ball for nine yards and another first down. Joshua Fontenot would then take the next play for two yards, and Douglas Fontenot would follow that with 35 yards of his own and a Panther touchdown. The play would be called back for an illegal shift on the Panthers. The ball would now be at the Northwest 40 yard line. Doucet would hit Myles for three yards, and Douglas Fontenot would take the next two runs for 11 yards. Javon Ardoin would take his turn with the ball for nine yards. Doucet would then call his own number on the following play for four yards. The Panthers would have first and 10 at the Raiders’s 12 yard line. Roy would take the hand off down to the two yard line when a controversial call happened. The ball would then go back to northwest. The referee would blow the whistle then change the call to a fumble on Roy to end the drive. The Raiders would then take a knee on the next three straight plays to give them a 12-6 victory of Pine Prairie.
After the game, Head Coach Yves Prince would say that his team needed to play four quarters and not just two. Also, he talked about the bad calls at the end of the game. He was proud of his team overall. He went on to say that his team was in every game this year, but cannot seem to get any key breaks.
The Panthers will now be looking for a victory when they travel to face Livonia next week for Friday night lights.