Lafayette – The St. Martinville Senior High Tigers played well but a tough call against Lafayette High on Friday helped the Mighty Lions escape with a 23-19 home win over the Tigers.
“I’m pleased with the way our guys played,” SMSH coach Garrett Kreamer said. “They battled all the way through. We did some really good things on both sides of the ball. We ended up coming up just a little short.
“It was an unfortunate call at the end. We get an interception and the ball is placed on the one-inch line. I thought he was tackled in the end zone and it should’ve been brought out to the 20, but sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce your way, so it is what it is now.”
Kreamer said the Lions got a safety after that, then double-dipped and scored again after the free kick to put the game away.
Quarterback Khyrie Francisco completed 14 of 22 pass attempts for 191 yards with two interceptions and rushed for 54 yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries.
K.J. Fontenette had a team-high 84 yards on six catches and Jamion James had three receptions for 57 yards and three rushes for six yards.
Julien Stewart add 18 yards on two runs ad Ky’Lun Skipper had three carries for 15 yards.
Kristian Bernard had one catch for 18 yards and Ja’Korey Blanchard had one reception for 15 yards as the Tigers amassed 284 total yards against their 5A opponents.
“I thought we made some big plays in the pass game that I was very pleased with,” Kreamer said. “The quarterback was throwing it well and the receivers were making plays. We were able to have some success running at times, and at times it was a stalemate, but it was just one of those games where we just came up short at the end.”
The Tigers play host to parish rival Breaux Bridge on Friday at 7 p.m.
“They’re a good team,” Kreamer said. “They have a good team running that split back, that veer. They can run it right at you. They also play some good defense and they’re wellcoached, so we know it’s going to be a test that we’ve got to be ready for.
“It’s going to take physicality and we have to win in the trenches.”
