Bearcats dominate Blue Jays to go 3-0

If you asked Basile Head Coach Kevin Bertrand about playing long-time rival St. Edmund’s, he probably would have told you it was important for his team to play well. Little did he know that the Bearcats would dominate the Blue Jays for the entire game. Basile out-gained St. Ed’s 473-256 in yardage on the way to a 42-20 victory Friday night.
The Bearcats scored first in the contest on a Gabriel Fontenot 49-yard run with 8:41 left in the first quarter. The Blue Jays were able to take the lead when Alex Hunt caught a 20-yard touchdown pass from Drew Brown. The two-point conversion was good and with 5:14 left in the first quarter, St Ed’s took the lead over Basile 8-7.
The lead would be short-lived as the Bearcats added to their score just one minute and three seconds later. Kendrick Ceasar pushed the ball across the goal line from 11 yards out. Ceasar then ran the ball for the two-point conversion and Basile led 15-8 with 4:11 left in the first quarter. From that point on, the Bearcats never looked back.
The second quarter would see both teams exchange possessions until the Bearcats would strike again. With 5:00 left in the half, Fontenot punched the ball into the end zone from four yards out. The extra point was good from Mark Ledoux and Basile would go into the half with a 22-8 lead over the Blue Jays.
The third quarter was owned by the Bearcats, as they scored 14 unanswered points. Basile wasted little time tacking on to their lead. It took only one-and-a-half minutes for Jared Belle to take a Mark Ivory pass 89 yards to pay dirt. Ledoux split the uprights and Basile held a 29-8 lead with 10:30 left in the third quarter. Four and a half minutes later, Ceasar took the handoff from Ivory and scampered 39 yards for the touchdown. Ledoux once again tacked on the extra point and Basile led 36-8 with 5:00 left in the third quarter. The Bearcats now had a commanding lead.
St. Ed’s tried to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, scoring twice. With 10:28 left in the game, Ross Lafleur fought his way into the end zone from three yards out. The two-point pass fell incomplete and the Bearcat lead was cut to 36-14. The Blue Jays added to their total with 6:03 left to go in the game. Brown was able to score on a five-yard run.
Once again, St. Ed’s went for two, but the pass failed. The score was now down to 36-20 in favor of Basile. The Bearcats sealed the win with 3:56 left in the game when Fontenot knifed his way across the goal line from one yard out. The extra point was wide; however Basile now led 42-20. St. Ed’s could not manage any more offense and the score stayed the same as time ran out.
“This was one of those games that really let you breathe easy until the game was over,” said an elated Bertrand. “Even when we were up 36-8, I never felt at ease. They have a really potent, quick-scoring offense. Their quarterback is the real deal. I don’t know if I have seen a quarterback that good in a long time. This includes all classes.” Bertrand had a lot of praise for his offensive line. “Our guys up front on offense did a tremendous job tonight,” said Bertrand. “We had a couple more chances to score but killed ourselves. Our offense was inside the 10 yard line twice and fumbled once and threw an interception in the end zone. It was a great offensive performance.”
On the night, Basile rushed for a total of 384 yards. Ceasar led all Bearcat ball carriers, gaining 185 yards on 27 carries. Fontenot added another 154 yards on 22 rushes. Ivory completed one of three passes for 89 yards. Belle made the one reception for 89 yards.
Defensively, the Bearcats were able to control the high-powered St.Ed’s offense for most of the game. The Blue Jays were limited to 45 yards rushing and 211 yards passing. “Our defense has had that bend but don’t break mentality all season,” stated Bertrand. “I am very proud of those guys for holding St. Ed’s most of the game. Their offense is very good and I knew they couldn’t be held for the whole game. Still, our defense was able to slow them down long enough for our offense to get going.”
Basile will host Merryville next Friday in the first district contest for both schools. The Panthers are 1-2 on the year, losing to Vinton 42-12 Friday. If the Bearcats can continue to run the football efficiently, it will be hard for an opponent to stop the Basile offense. Yet, as much success as the offense has had this year, the defense will have a lot to say in how the Bearcats finish the season.