Sacred Heart faces another challenge against W. St. Mary

It may be just what the doctor ordered for the Sacred Heart Trojans (2-5, 1-3), as they travel to Baldwin to take on the West St. Mary Wolfpack in a District 5-1A contest tonight. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
After taking on some of the toughest competition in the district, probably in the state, the last three weeks, the Trojans find themselves in a position to get back in the win column against a West St. Mary team that is 1-6 on the season and 1-3 in district play.
Sacred Heart has also been battling the injury bug all year long, something that has been on the mind of Trojan head coach Josh Harper the last few weeks.
“It has been tough not only in the games but at practice,” said Harper. “Not only do we have a number of starters out, but also scout team players. It is hard to get a good look at our game plan at practice when you only dress out 28-30 players at practice.’
A Trojan staple this season, the running game, has not produced a whole lot the last few weeks. In their first four games, Sacred Heart accumulated 1209 yards of rushing on 183 carries, an average of 6.6 yards per carry.
However, in the last three games combined, the Trojans have only gained 128 yards on 77 carries, a meager 1.7 yards per carry.
This is something that Harper is hoping to correct tomorrow night against the Wolfpack.
“We are definitely looking to get the ground game going this week,” stated Harper. “We have to go back to what we were doing well at the beginning of the season, controlling the clock and eating up yards on the ground.”
West St. Mary comes into the game averaging 8.1 points per game and has been blanked in three contests this year. The Wolfpack are giving up an average of 41 points per game on defense.
The only common opponent between the two squads is Jeanerette. Sacred Heart blasted the Tigers 62-12 and West St. Mary squeaked past Jeanerette 36-28 in week five.
Still, Harper is concerned about a team that is desperate for another win and has a plethora of athletes at their disposal.
“They remind me of Jeanerette,” commented Harper. “They have some good athletes and big kids up front. But, I think we match up well against them. I really believe our running game will get back on track this week.”