In a game of missed opportunities, the season debut between Covington and
Holy Cross at Jack Salter Stadium came down to the final pass on Friday night.
After driving 55 yards in the final two minutes, Lions quarterback Corey
Leonard launched a pass from the Holy Cross 25 yard line into the left side of
the end zone. Lions receiver Shayne Magee and Tigers cornerback Lennis
Finister leapt into the air to pull down the ball. If Magee would have caught
it, Covington would tie the score with the chance to win on the extra point
kick. But Finister came down with the ball for a game-sealing interception,
preserving Holy Cross' 13-7 victory. "That was the play of the game right
there," Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson said. "They had their best
guy, and we had our best guy."
The Tigers left the door open after missing an extra point earlier in the
fourth quarter after Moncell Allen's 7-yard touchdown run that broke the tie
game. Allen's run gave Holy Cross a 13-7 lead with 7:17 remaining. Covington
could not answer, punting away the ensuing possession.
Then Holy Cross missed a chance to take a decisive lead when it could not
score after driving down to the Lions 30-yard line with 3:33 remaining. The
Tigers drained nearly three minutes before punting back to Covington with the
six-point lead and 1:55 left.
Leonard, who finished with 119 yards rushing on 13 carries committed his
fourth turnover of the night with the interception. Leonard, who fumbled three
times, also helped the Lions out-gain Holy Cross' yardage 326-187. Holy Cross
did not score in the first half on offense, but the Lions didn't push ahead in
the second quarter either. Josh Graham missed a 32-yard field goal moments
before halftime that would have broken the 7-point halftime tie. But the Lions
did score first.
Patrick Henry, who led all with 133 rushing yards on 19 carries, scored on
Covington's first drive. Henry ripped around the left side for a 2-yard
touchdown run and Andrew Newman's kick gave the Lions a 7-0 lead with 5:34
remaining in the first quarter.
It took 17 seconds for Holy Cross to tie. Richard Lyons returned the
ensuing kickoff 95 yards, eluding several tacklers to score the Tigers' first
touchdown. Cody Bemius' kick tied the score at 7 with 5:17 remaining in the
first quarter.
"The first half killed us," Covington coach Darryl Graham said.
"Time and time again, the defense put us in position to win, and we
didn't take
advantage."
BATON ROUGE -- Holy Cross defensive end Scott Wattigny had the best seat
in the house for some late-night drama.
The setting: third-and-18, deep in the fourth quarter in a two-point
game. The lead character: a dinged Sean Santos, who minutes earlier was
unable to put weight on his injured left leg, and was re-entering in an
obvious pass situation. The ending: a happy one for Wattigny.
After avoiding a diving defensive lineman, the Holy Cross junior
quarterback hooked up with Lance Lacoste on a 27-yard crossing route,
allowing the Tigers (2-0) to work the clock and score an insurance touchdown
in the Tigers' 26-17 victory against Catholic-Baton Rouge on Friday night.
"When we're dealt with adversity, we overcome it and this is the guy
that leads us through it," Wattigny said while looking at Santos.
"I watched him wait, and make that play. I love this guy."
Santos went 12 of 21 for 228 yards and three touchdowns. He also
showcased his poise, directing the Tigers on a scoring drive to start the
second half. That touchdown -- an 8-yard fade to Lacoste -- increased the
Tigers' lead to 19-10.
Holy Cross missed an opportunity to score late in the first half when the
Tigers did not score on fourth down from the Catholic one-yard line.
Catholic(1-1) scored midway through the fourth quarter on a 43-yard pass
from Austin Worley to Jeffrey Hastings to make it 19-17. The touchdown set
the stage for Holy Cross' final drive.
"That drive showed our toughness," Santos said of the
six-minute-plus fourth quarter backbreaker. "We knew we could get it
done."
Even though Santos' gusty throw stole the show, Coach Barry Wilson didn't
forget to mention an entertaining side act -- the Tigers defense. In the
second half, the Bears gained one yard on the ground.
Holy Cross had no problem pounding the ball as sophomore Moncell Allen
(152 yards on 24 carries) surpassed his entire week one rushing total with
70 yards on the Tigers' first possession, which ended with a 3-yard
touchdown pass from Santos to Richard Lyons.
As he stood in the shadow of a scoreboard posting a see-it-to-believe-it
outcome, Chalmette defensive back Kelly Dier didn't feel any pain. Not on
this night.
The concussion-like syndromes that kept him out of practice for days were
temporary relieved and cured for at least this Friday night.
"I did this for ya'll," Dier said to two senior teammates.
"I did this for ya'll."
Dier -- the "quarterback of the defense" according to
coordinator Dominic Saltaformaggio -- intercepted two passes as Chalmette's
defense frustrated the Holy Cross aerial attack in the Owls' 41-6 win. On
offense, senior running backs Ryan Collins (140 yards) and Karl Bartholomew
(159 yards) combined for three touchdowns. The Owls buried the Tigers under
a second-half avalanche of points, ending a five-year losing streak to their
neighborhood rivals.
Chalmette outscored Holy Cross 28-0 in the final 24 minutes.
"Ryan is a 215-pound runner," Owls coach Eric Collins said.
"He keeps running at them and running at them. That gives Karl the
opportunity to break the long one. That's us at our best."
Bartholomew ended the competitive phase of the contest with a 56-yard
touchdown followed by a 46-yard touchdown -- both in the fourth quarter.
While the All-Parish duo caught its breath, the Owls' defense continued
to harass Tigers quarterback Sean Santos, who finished his hurried night
11-of-24 for 144 yards and three interceptions. Kentucky verbal commitment
Richard Lyons caught one pass for 43 yards.
"The way we played, offensively and defensively, just reminded me of
the Salmen game last year," Ryan Collins said. "We didn't make a
lot of mistakes."
Special teams gems set up Chalmette's first and final scores of the first
half.
Bartholomew quickly brought the capacity crowd at Bobby Nuss Stadium to
its feet -- at least those fans wearing maroon -- with his 51-yard return on
the opening kickoff. Quarterback Seth Edwards punctuated a short drive,
scoring from 29 yards on a quarterback option to put the Owls up 7-0 with
less than four minutes expired in the first quarter.
Near the end of the half, sophomore Russell Turnage made up for a muffed
punt that led to Holy Cross' only touchdown by wiggling for 78 yards on what
turned out to be the sixth-longest punt return in school history. Penalties
pushed Chalmette out of the red zone, but kicker Justin Pereira still
provided points with a 39-yard field goal as the horn sounded, pushing the
Owls' advantage to 13-6.
Holy Cross' first drive, which started in Chalmette territory thanks to
Richard Lyons' 61-yard kickoff return, ended in the arms of Dier (who
doctors cleared to play Wednesday) at the 7-yard line. Dier stepped in front
of Santos' intended flare pass to Danny Dysart for the interception.
"That might be the play of the game," Saltaformaggio said.
"You could tell that took away their momentum, sucked it out, and gave
it to us."
Seven nights after its humiliating loss to Chalmette, Holy Cross (3-1)
returned to its winning ways against De La Salle (2-2) on Friday.
But, the Tigers were more opportunistic than dominant in their 42-7
non-district victory at Tad Gormley Stadium.
Two long punt returns by Richard Lyons and three short punts by Paul Bode
set up four Holy Cross touchdown drives, none longer than 41 yards. Three of
the scoring possessions ended on passes from Sean Santos -- two to Cass
Hargis and one to Lyons. The other two scoring series ended on runs by
Moncell Allen.
"We just tried to play our game tonight," Holy Cross coach
Barry Wilson said. "We were handed a big-time loss last week. We had to
see if we could recover. I thought we did well."
Santos passed for four touchdowns, but the Holy Cross passing game was
not in sync. After completing three of his first four pass attempts, Santos
was 7-of-21 for the rest of the game. Allen was effective running the ball
as he finished with 134 yards on 19 carries.
"We had some dropped passes," Wilson said. "But I liked
what Sean did. I'm not going to say that I was upset with the way Sean was
throwing the football."
The Tigers' first touchdown came on an 8-play, 78-yard drive. Santos
threw a 27-yard pass to Lyons for the touchdown less than three minutes in.
Then, Holy Cross took advantage of De La Salle punts.
A 34-yard punt return by Lyons to the Cavaliers' 41 set up the Tigers'
second touchdown. Santos threw a fourth-down, six-yard scoring pass to
Hargis to give Holy Cross a 14-0 lead with 3:30 remaining in the first
quarter.
Holding a 14-7 lead in the third quarter, the Tigers capitalized on punts
of eight and three yards by Bode to score two touchdowns. Allen ran for four
yards at the end of a 20-yard drive and seven yards at the end of a 27-yard
drive.
In the fourth quarter, Lyons returned a punt 50 yards to De La Salle's
28-yard line. On the first play, Santos threw a touchdown pass to Hargis.
Minutes later, a 28-yard punt by Bode gave Holy Cross the ball at the
Cavaliers' 38, and Santos threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Lyons after two
plays.
De La Salle played without out its top rusher Van Taylor, who has an
ankle injury. The Cavaliers' touchdown followed an 8-yard punt by Bryan
Gendron. Kyle Walker scored on a 1-yard run to conclude a 39-yard drive.
De La Salle gained 128 yards, with 80 of those yards coming on two plays
-- a 47-yard run by Walker and a 33-yard pass from Walker to Gyasi Hargett.
The difference between a struggling team with one victory and a
dangerous team with one loss amounted to eight touchdowns Friday
night.
Led by quarterback Sean Santos and wide receiver Richard Lyons, who
each accounted for four touchdowns, Holy Cross routed Bonnabel 62-7 in
non-district play at Joe Yenni.
Holy Cross (4-1) scored seven touchdowns on offense to complement
the defense and special teams, which also scored once each.
Santos finished with an 11-for-21 passing performance for 187 yards
and three touchdowns, all in the first half. He also scored on an
8-yard run as the Tigers built a commanding 34-0 advantage at
halftime.
"It took us a while to get going," Tigers coach Barry
Wilson said. "I'm happy, because we showed we can play when we
need to. But we have to keep things going. It all begins next week for
real" when the Tigers open Catholic League play against Brother
Martin.
Santos hit Lyons from 7 and 17 yards for touchdowns, sandwiched
around a 22-yard scoring toss to Cass Hargis. On the first play
following the third score, Bonnabel (1-4) fumbled, and Holy Cross'
Jeremy Lane recovered after a scramble in the end zone for a 27-0
lead. An interception return of 34 yards by Lennis Finister led to the
scoring run by Santos with 23 seconds remaining in the half.
"We just got dominated," Bruins coach Larry Lala said.
"They scored three times just before half, and we went through
the motions after that."
Bonnabel managed to score when a Santos sack resulted in a fumble
recovery return of 15 yards by Nathaniel Holmes.
But Lyons returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a 41-7 lead.
Lyons then caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from Lance Lacoste, who
also threw a touchdown pass of 6 yards to Michael Bouche. An 89-yard
run by Logan Ryckaert with 6:14 remaining rounded out the scoring.
Ryckaert gained 111 yards on four carries, and Moncell Allen had 37
yards rushing in addition to receptions of 34 and 29 yards for the
Tigers, who committed four turnovers. Bonnabel punted 10 times and
gained 56 yards rushing on 35 attempts and passed for 37 yards.
HC Lyons 7 pass from Santos (Hrapmann kick)
HC Hargis 27 pass from Santos (Hrapmann kick)
HC Lyons 17 pass from Santos (Hrapmann kick)
HC Lane fumble recovery in end zone (kick failed)
HC Santos 8 run (Hrapmann kick)
Bonn Holmes 15 fumble return (Santamaria kick)
HC Lyons 38 pass from Lacoste (Hrapmann kick)
HC Bouche 6 pass from Lacoste (Hrapmann kick)
Ryckaert 89 run (Hrapmann kick)
Holy Cross is not just a pass-happy team, with quarterback Sean Santos
being counted on to deliver strong-armed strikes all the time. The Tigers like
to run the ball, too.
Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson emphasizes that, and his team proved the
point Saturday in the second half, breaking open a close game.
From
Our Advertiser
Moncell Allen rushed for 250 yards -- 141 and three touchdowns in the
second half -- and the Tigers defeated Brother Martin 51-31 in a District
10-5A game at Joe Yenni Stadium.
"We knew what their defense was doing to us (to take away the pass) in
the first half, and we made a decision to run the football," Wilson said.
"You know, we don't have to throw the ball all the time."
Santos completed four of 16 passes with a touchdown and two interceptions
in the first half. . Holy Cross (5-1, 1-0) and Brother Martin (4-2, 0-1)
combined for 323 yards, and both scored 17 points in the first half.
Holy Cross did not throw a pass in the second half. After an 80-yard
kickoff return for a touchdown by Holy Cross' Richard Lyons to start the
second half and a 52-yard touchdown run by Brother Martin's Robert Smith, the
score was tied 24-24 in the third quarter before Allen took over.
Allen carried on six of seven plays in the Tigers' next drive and scored on
a 2-yard run. After a Brother Martin punt, Allen needed only two carries and
43 yards on the ensuing drive to put Holy Cross ahead 38-24. His touchdown run
covered 40 yards.
Jacob Boe, who rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns, led a balanced
running game for the Crusaders, who rushed for 229 yards. Brother Martin came
in averaging more than 30 points.
"The kickoff return to start the second half really set the tempo for
us, and Moncell (Allen) is really starting to get his feet under him and ran
well," Wilson said. "When you don't have to pass all the time, it
takes pressure off Santos."
Even Santos was running. After Brother Martin had cut Holy Cross' lead to
seven in the fourth quarter, Santos scooted 23 yards on a bootleg for a
touchdown. Allen scored his final touchdown after Jason Dorcey intercepted a
Brother Martin pass and returned the ball to the Brother Martin 4-yard line.
Trailing 20-0 in the third quarter, Rummel
rallied for three touchdowns and scored the winning touchdown and extra
point with three seconds remaining in a 21-20 thriller before 6,000 fans at
Joe Yenni Stadium.
The Tigers held a 20-14 lead that seemed
secure when Lennis Finister intercepted a Raiders pass in the end zone with
3:26 to play. Holy Cross (5-2, 1-1 in District 10-5A) picked up a first down
before punting. Rummel (5-2, 2-0) took over at its 45-yard line with 36
seconds to play.
Quarterback Josh Tolbert, who threw three
interceptions and did not complete a pass in the first half, completed three
passes to Brad Oestriecher, the last covering 11 yards to the Tigers' 6-yard
line.
Tolbert then passed to Andre Chategnier on an
out pattern for the tying score. Oestriecher kicked the winning extra point.
"He was my primary receiver all the
way," Tolbert said. "It was a counter pass. I threw it to the
biggest play-maker on this team. Even after I threw that last interception,
I did not think we were through."
Rummel threatened in the first quarter,
driving to the Tigers' 21-yard line, but safety Jacob Dorcey intercepted
Tolbert and returned the ball 51 yards to set up a 1-yard scoring run by
Moncell Allen. Rummel later reached the Holy Cross 2-yard line, but Alex
Phillpott was stopped for a 1-yard loss on fourth down by the Tigers' Justin
White.
The 7-0 halftime lead increased in the third
quarter when Holy Cross scored twice within a 51-second span. Quarterback
Sean Santos hit Richard Lyons with a 19-yard touchdown pass. On the next
play, Phillpott, who gained 137 yards on 22 carries, fumbled and John
Butkovich recovered at the Rummel 14. Two plays later, the Santos-to-Lyons
combo clicked for a 5-yard touchdown and a 20-0 lead.
Rummel scored on a 35-yard touchdown pass
from Tolbert to Oestriecher, and later on a 1-yard sneak by Tolbert after
Holy Cross' lone turnover of the night, a fumble recovered by Corey Cortez.
"This was a great game between two great
teams," Tigers coach Barry Wilson said. "My team did not do one
thing poorly tonight. They just beat us."
Sean Santos threw for 393 yards and four touchdowns as Holy Cross spoiled
Shaw's homecoming game at Hoss Memtsas Stadium.
Santos completed 15 or 18 passes.
Shaw (1-7, 0-3) had made it 7-6 in the second quarter on Eric Abadie's
57-yard touchdown pass to Nicholas Carter.
Santos answered on the next play with a 63-yard touchdown pass to Ross
Chiapetta. Chiapetta had three catches for a game-high 148 yards.
Moncell Allen had two one-yard touchdown runs and caught a 34-yard touchdown
pass for the Tigers (6-2, 2-1). Richard Lyons caught six passes for 129
yards and a touchdown and returned a kickoff 76 yards for a touchdown.
Richard Lyons scored two touchdowns, including one on a 95-yard kickoff
return, to lead Holy Cross to a 34-13 District 10-5A victory against St.
Augustine on Saturday afternoon at Joe Yenni Stadium.
The Tigers (7-2, 3-1) led 14-0 late in the second quarter. The Purple
Knights ( 4-5, 1-3) cut the margin in half when Joe Brown scored on a
83-yard run late in the quarter.
But Lyons returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown to increase the
Tigers' lead to 21-7.
Danny Dysart caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Sean Santos midway
through the third quarter to extend Holy Cross' lead to 28-7.
Moncell Allen scored his second touchdown of the game, on a 23-yard
run, to make it 34-7.
Ryan Montague caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Renell Thomas to
culminate a seven-play, 65-yard drive by St. Augustine with 9:34 remaining
in the game.
The Tigers scored on their first two possessions. Allen scored on a
25-yard run to give Holy Cross a 6-0 lead, and Lyons scored on a 7-yard
pass from Santos.
Santos completed 15 of 31 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns.
Lyons caught six passes for 58 yards, and Dysart caught four for 64
yards for Holy Cross. Allen led the Tigers with 86 yards on 17 carries and
scored two touchdowns
St. Augustine rushed for 235 yards, including 140 by Brown.
The Eagles advanced to the second round of
the playoffs with their upset of Holy Cross at Joe Yenni Stadium.
"We practiced hard all week, and the
guys believed they could win," Eagles coach Wayne Reese said.
"The school has really been supporting us."
Both offenses looked out of sync in the
opening quarter. McDonogh 35 (8-3) punted on its first three
possessions, and Holy Cross turned the ball over three times in the half,
including a lost fumble and two interceptions of Sean Santos.
In the second quarter, McDonogh 35
capitalized after recovering a fumble by Holy Cross (7-4) when Edward
Robinson ran 49 yards for a touchdown.
Richard Lyons returned the kickoff to the
Eagles' 38-yard line. The Tigers scored seven plays later on Moncell
Allen's 5-yard run to even the score at 7.
McDonogh 35 took a 15-7 lead at halftime,
going ahead on a Robinson touchdown of 4 yards with 2:47 remaining.
On the first play of the third quarter,
Santos connected with Lyons, who broke free for a 49-yard touchdown.
(Santos) threw for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
The Eagles responded on their next
possession with an 11-play drive that ended with Adrian Darby's 1-yard
touchdown run.
On the Eagles' next possession, Darby hit
Darren Martin for an 8-yard touchdown to put (the Eagles) ahead for good
29-21.
"I think our tough regular season
schedule helped prepare us for games such as this one," Reese said,
"We are gonna prepare for next week's game like all of the
others."
From
Our Advertiser
