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Lions break through vs. Tigers

It took four years, but Covington finally got the better of Holy Cross in the season opener. Covington turned a one-point halftime lead into a 31-21 non-district victory at Jack Salter Stadium on Friday.

The Lions (1-0) held the Tigers (0-1) scoreless in the second and third quarters and collected three interceptions t from Holy Cross star quarterback Sean Santos. Santos was held to 7 of 25 passing for 87 yards and one touchdown pass.

"It's outstanding," Covington coach Darryl Graham said. "To lead the season off with a win for the first time in now four years, it's great."

While Holy Cross' offense sputtered in the second half, Covington caught fire. Patrick Henry rushed for 232 yards on 33 carries and scored on runs of 31 and 52 yards. Josh Graham kicked field goals of 43 and 23 yards. His 23-yarder sealed the game with 1:42 remaining.

It was the first time Covington held Santos to less than 100 passing yards. Cody Bruhl, Michael Allen and Shayne Magee had interceptions. The Lions had a one touchdown lead over Holy Cross with six minutes remaining. But the Lions pushed the Holy Cross defense back on a drive, and two minutes later Graham's kick put the game out of reach.

Covington overcame a 14-3 deficit in the first half. The Lions went ahead by one point with 3:15 remaining in the first half for their first lead. Covington quarterback Corey Leonard scrambled away from the pass rush and heaved a pass to Shayne Magee, who juggled the ball, but pulled it in to give the Lions 15-14 lead. Leonard was tackled short of the goal line on the two-point conversion run, but Covington never trailed after the score.

Santos marched Holy Cross down the field on the opening possession, a 12-play 80-yard drive. He completed a touchdown pass to Cass Hargis for the early 7-0 lead. Later in the first quarter, Moncell Allen, who ended with 177 yards on 16 carries, broke away for an 82-yard touchdown run and Danny Hrapmann's kick gave Holy Cross the 14-3 lead.

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Tammy Nunez can be reached at tnunez@timespicayune.com or (985) 898-4861.

Allen carries Tigers

When Holy Cross needed Moncell Allen on Friday night, he took the team on his shoulders and ran with it.

Allen, a junior running back, rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns, as the Tigers outlasted Baton-Rouge Catholic 38-34 at Tad Gormley Stadium.

"Moncell is an apple," Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson said. "He's a great kid, he's a hard runner, he's tough. Thank God I have him. He makes the difference and helps out (quarterback) Sean (Santos). With the (opposing defenses) bailing, expecting everybody to go deep, he has to run for us to be successful."

After trailing 24-13 at halftime, Catholic made a big charge. The Bears went on three consecutive 80-yard scoring drives to take a 34-31 lead.

And following a 76-yard scoring pass from Santos to Lance Lacoste, the Bears had one last drive to try and regain the lead. But on fourth-and-one, Austin Thomas stuffed Catholic quarterback Austin Worley for a 1-yard loss with 4:25 remaining. From there, Allen ran the ball on eight consecutive plays, getting two first downs, and the Tigers ran out the clock.

"Our defense hung in there, and all we asked for was one stop," Wilson said. "They gave it to us."

Despite the halftime deficit, Catholic had its chances to make it closer or take the lead. Two touchdowns were called back because of penalties, and the Bears had to punt on both possessions. Both negated touchdowns were more than 30 yards.

Jim Derry can be reached at jderry@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3839.

Tigers stage fierce rally to nip Owls

Down by 15 points at halftime Sunday, Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson looked at his team and felt confident.

He had good reason.

The Tigers' defense shut down Chalmette's potent running game, and the offense scored on three of their four drives in the second half to take a 24-21 victory at Bobby Nuss Stadium.

Holy Cross (2-1) avenged a 41-7 loss to Chalmette last season. It was the first regular-season loss for the Owls (2-1) since losing to Bogalusa on Nov. 8, 2002.

Chalmette dominated the first half, gaining 10 first downs and rushing for 199 yards. In the second half, the Owls gained two first downs and had 34 total yards. Chalmette quarterback Seth Edwards sprained his left foot on the next to last play of the game, and he likely is out for next week's District 11-3A opener against Booker T. Washington.

"We were sleepwalking the first half, and I told the kids that if we just came out and played our game, we'd be all right," Wilson said. "I said not to panic, and they didn't. We played really good defense in the second half, and offensively, we did what we had to do."

When asked what he changed at halftime, Wilson said, "Attitude. That was it."

Holy Cross also suffered an injury. All-Metro running back Moncell Allen took a blow to the chest midway through the second quarter, and he was sent to Chalmette Medical Center for precautionary measures. According to Wilson and Athletic Director Greg Battistella, it is believed Allen will be fine.

Chalmette took some big gambles in the first half, and they all paid off. Lined up in a punt formation on a fourth-and-two from their own 21, the Owls snapped the ball directly to up back Kelly Dier, who ran for 45 yards to the Holy Cross 34. On the next play, Russell Turnage ran left, then cut back across the middle and broke away from the Tigers' defense for a touchdown.

On their next drive, the Owls converted on two more fourth-down attempts, including a fourth-and-goal from the Holy Cross 3. Edwards scored on an option to the right side that gave Chalmette a 21-6 lead.

But the Tigers set the tone for the remainder of the game on the first drive of the third quarter, holding the Owls to minus-1 yard on three plays.

With Allen out, Wilson turned to sophomore Logan Ryckaert. The Tigers started with their best field position of the game at Chalmette's 49, and Ryckaert rushed three times for 28 yards on the five-play drive. He finished it off with a 2-yard plunge up the middle to cut the Owls lead to 21-13.

After a field goal on their next possession, the Tigers held Chalmette to a three-and-out, and Sean Santos hit Cass Hargis for a 31-yard scoring pass on the drive's eighth play.

"I think we just ran out of gas," Chalmette coach Nick Saltaformaggio said. "Holy Cross just did a real good job defensively, but we've just got to find some receivers who can run the right routes. I mean, we have a good offense. (In the second half), we started running the ball sideline to sideline, and we should have continued to run power and run down the field."

Jim Derry can be reached at jderry@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3839.

Improving Tigers down De La Salle

After its first drive Saturday, Holy Cross had little trouble moving the ball. Conversely, after De La Salle quarterback Kyle Walker was injured on the team's eighth play, the Cavaliers chances for an upset were all but over.

The Tigers gained 467 yards of total offense, and running back Moncell Allen scored four touchdowns as Holy Cross defeated the Cavaliers 38-13 at Tad Gormley Stadium in a matchup of former Catholic League foes.

Since losing to Covington in the first week of the season, Tigers coach Barry Wilson said he is most excited about the weekly improvement he has seen in his team.

"The kids played hard, they came out and they focused in on it, and I think we picked up where we left off against Chalmette (a 24-21 Tigers' win last Sunday)," he said. "I feel real good about where we are right now. . . . We're anxious to get started with district play. Naturally, that's where we feel like we have to be at our best. I feel like our kids took a giant step last week, and they took another one this week."

The Tigers came on strong after their first possession. After Holy Cross took over on downs, the Tigers went on a 10-play, 69-yard drive that culminated with a 6-yard touchdown pass from Sean Santos to Cass Hargis.

From there, every time the Tigers (3-1) got near the goal line, Allen found the end zone for a touchdown.

He scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards in the second quarter and from 1 and 7 yards in the third quarter. The final touchdown gave Holy Cross a 35-6 lead.

The Cavaliers (1-3) may have lost more than the game. Walker went out with an injury to his knee, and his coach and father, Richard Walker, is hoping it's not season-ending.

"The (doctors) think it may only be a (medial collateral ligament) sprain," Richard Walker said. "They're not sure just yet. . . . (Kyle) has worked all week and then the backup (Campanella Kent) hasn't worked as much. That took a lot out of us."

De La Salle didn't have much success moving the ball for the rest of the half and the third quarter. The Cavaliers gained 16 yards during that span, and their only touchdown before the fourth quarter came on defense. Santos fumbled when he was hit while trying to pass, and Paul Bode ran it in from the 7 to cut Holy Cross' lead to 28-6.

But the Tigers came right back and drove 64 yards in four plays.

Holy Cross completed three passes of more than 50 yards, including a halfback pass from Allen to Lance Lacoste in the Tigers' second scoring drive.

Lacoste caught four passes for 154 yards. Hargis caught four passes for 110 yards.

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Jim Derry can be reached at jderry@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3839.

Game Keys: Holy Cross quarterback Sean Santos completed 12 of 16 passes for 299 yards and four touchdowns.  The Tigers surprised Bonnabel with an onside kick after a second quarter touchdown run by Logan Ryckaert, and Santos threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Nick Uhle to make it 21-0 three plays later.

Notes: Holy Cross (4-1) running back Moncell Allen left the game after his first carry.  Tigers Coach Barry Wilson said he bruised an already injured hip pointer and was kept out for cautionary reasons.  Wilson expects Allen to play next week.  Four different Tigers receivers caught touchdowns.  The Tigers defense allowed one completed pass by Bonnabel (4-1) and their special teams also blocked two field goal attempts by Jose Santiago

Crusaders outslug Tigers

It lived up to its billing, and then some.

In the Catholic League opener for both teams, Brother Martin's Brent Robertson scored on a 4-yard run to cap an 11-play, 81-yard drive with one minute remaining, and the Crusaders outlasted Holy Cross 34-31 at Tad Gormley Stadium on Friday night. The winning drive was the fifth straight between the teams that ended in a score.

Before Brother Martin (5-0, 1-0 in District 10-5A) rallied, Holy Cross (4-2, 0-1) went down the field in seven plays and scored on a 3-yard run by Moncell Allen with 5:38 remaining. But the Tigers' defense couldn't hold the Crusaders on two critical third-down plays, nor could it stop Brother Martin's potent running attack all night, allowing 297 rushing yards.

Holy Cross didn't have much trouble moving the ball, either. The Tigers started the second half by handing off to Allen 11 straight times, and he finished the drive with a 1-yard run to give them a 21-10 lead.

Allen rushed 25 times for 186 yards and three touchdowns. Sean Santos completed 16 of 26 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown.

"It was a great high school football game between two great teams," Brother Martin coach Wayde Kaiser said. ". . . What do you stop with these guys? I mean Sean Santos is one of the best in the state. I told Sean after the game that I tell every college recruiter that comes by my office that we have some of the best quarterbacks in the state in our district, and one of the best is right down the street in No. 3."

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Jim Derry can be reached at jderry@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3839.

Tigers' late rally falls short against Rummel

It was a typical Rummel-Holy Cross game -- close until the end, with the Raiders coming out on top.

Rummel quarterback Josh Tolbert outshined Holy Cross' Sean Santos, and the Raiders held off a late rally by the Tigers to hold on to a 24-21 victory in a District 10-5A game Saturday at Tad Gormley Stadium.

Trailing 17-7 entering the fourth quarter, Holy Cross cut its deficit to three on an 11-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in a 17-yard scoring pass from Santos to Cass Hargis with 10:18 remaining. But Rummel (4-3, 1-1) came right back, and Tolbert found Wes Laurendine for a 61-yard touchdown pass after Raiders' cornerback Joshua McClelland slipped.

The Tigers (4-3, 0-2) only used up 2:08 to score on their ensuing possession to close to within three again with 4:20 remaining, but Rummel kept the ball for more than two minutes before punting deep into Holy Cross territory.

From there, the Raiders sacked Santos three times on the Tigers' final drive.

"For four straight years, it's come down to the end," Rummel coach Jay Roth said. "What was even more important tonight was the winner goes on to play for a (district) championship, and the loser has to just try and pick themselves up and get back into the playoffs. That's why we wanted to come out on top."

The only difference from the past three games in the series was that Rummel did not have to overcome a deficit. Tolbert, who completed 14 of 19 passes for 224 yards, made sure of that.

"It's tough to score against our defense," Tolbert said. "Practicing against them every day, I get much better. So coming out here, playing against other defenses, it makes it a little bit easier. A typical Holy Cross-Rummel game is Holy Cross jumping out on top and Rummel having to come back. It was kind of strange being on top from the beginning. We almost didn't know what to do."

The Raiders got a big boost from running back Chris Jones, who was playing for an injured Rashad Brown. Jones rushed 27 times for 123 yards and two first-half touchdowns.

Rummel held Holy Cross' potent offense to 62 yards, including five rushing yards, in the first half. Running back Moncell Allen, who entered the game with nearly 800 yards in his first six games, had no yards on five carries in the first quarter. Allen finished with 27 yards on 15 carries.

The Raiders blitzed on almost every down early, shutting down Santos, who completed four of his first 10 passes for 57 yards. The Tigers' lone score in the opening half came on a 17-yard pass from Santos to Lance Lacoste that cut Rummel's lead to 14-7.

Santos threw for 206 yards and three touchdowns on 17-of-34 passing. He also threw two interceptions, including one in the end zone that killed the Tigers' opening possession of the second half.

"It was hard fought, but we just didn't make plays in the beginning," Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson said. "We were really sluggish, and then suddenly, we found ourselves. . . . Our defense figured it out, but it was a little too late. Rummel did a great job of defending us in the first quarter. We'll keep plugging away. We're going to be the upset-special team from here on out."

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Jim Derry can be reached at jderry@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3839.

Botched snap gives Tigers win HOLY CROSS 38, SHAW 31

Holy Cross football coach Barry Wilson hated to admit it, but he figured his Tigers were headed for yet another disappointing District 10-5A loss as the seconds ticked to a close Saturday night.

Shaw had the ball lined up at the 1, preparing to break the tie and the hearts of the Tigers' faithful with four seconds remaining.

Then the unexpected happened. The Eagles botched the snap, sending the game into overtime, where Holy Cross running back Moncell Allen scored an 8-yard touchdown run, giving the Tigers a 38-31 victory at Hoss Memtsas Stadium.

"I assumed it was over," Wilson said. "But you never know in football. This is a big win for our team."

The victory was sealed in overtime when Holy Cross safety Austin Thomas recovered a fumble by Shaw running back Daryl Doris. The win also marked the first victory of the season in Catholic League play for the Tigers (5-3, 1-2), while Shaw (5-3, 1-2) watched as its hopes of a district title were dampened.

"This was a hard-fought game," Thomas said. "It could have gone either way. But luckily, we pulled it out in the end."

The Eagles had fought back from a 31-17 fourth-quarter deficit behind the play of Doris, who rushed for 164 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns, and quarterback Darold Hughes, who passed for 172 yards.

Allen led the way for the Tigers, rushing for 204 yards on 23 carries and scoring on runs of 71, 24 and 8 yards.

Throughout the first half, neither team could gain much separation, and the score was tied at 10 at the break.

Shaw didn't take long to get on the scoreboard, taking a 7-0 lead on Doris' 8-yard touchdown run on the game's first possession.

But the Tigers answered quickly, tying the score at 7 on a 6-yard run by Sean Santos.

Eagles kicker Chad Gervais figured he had given his team an advantage heading into halftime when he made a 25-yard field goal, pushing Shaw ahead 10-7 with 1:13 remaining.

But, again, the Tigers responded, as Danny Hrapmann made a 54-yard field goal as the half ended.

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Nakia Hogan can be reached at sports@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3405.

Knights crush Tigers

This was the game St. Augustine coach Tyrone Payne and Purple Knights fans had been waiting for. It's just too bad for Payne and St. Augustine that it took the Purple Knights eight games to turn in their most dominant performance of the season.

St. Augustine snapped a three-game Catholic League losing streak and kept its slim playoff hopes alive with a 55-7 victory against Holy Cross in a District 10-5A game at Tad Gormley Stadium on Friday.

"I guess the kids were disappointed in the way things were going and how they hurt themselves this season," Payne said.

And as a result, St. Augustine (3-5, 1-3) took out its frustrations on Holy Cross.

Holy Cross (5-4, 1-3) plays Jesuit in both teams' regular-season finale next Saturday and can secure a Class 5A playoff berth with a victory.

"We've got to win to get in, and we've got a tough one coming up," Holy Cross coach Barry Wilson said.

Holy Cross quarterback Sean Santos completed three of 13 passes for 25 yards and three interceptions before leaving the game in the third quarter. Wilson said Santos left the game with a bruised shin but should be fine for next week's game.

St. Augustine senior running back James Gathright rushed for 115 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries. Senior Justin Williams started at quarterback in place of starter Rashaad Kaiser and completed three of four passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns.

"We wanted to give the other guy a shot (at quarterback), and he did a good job," Payne said.

The Purple Knights (3-5, 1-3) scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions and led 28-0 at halftime.

"We knew (St. Augustine) had the potential to have this kind of game anytime, and we just caught them at their best," Wilson said.

St. Augustine drove 80 yards on nine plays for a touchdown on the opening possession of the game to take a 7-0 lead. Freddie Jones had a 2-yard touchdown run off right guard. The team rushed for 72 yards on eight running plays, averaging nine yards per run.

The Purple Knights increased their lead to 14-0 on its second possession when Williams threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to receiver Albert Richardson, who was behind the Holy Cross secondary after a play-action fake. The score capped a four-play, 55-yard touchdown drive set up by an interception by St. Augustine defensive back Brian Quinn, who picked off a tipped ball on the first pass of the game by Santos.

St. Augustine defensive end Jarryl Jefferson increased the Purple Knights' lead to 21-0 when he intercepted a screen pass by Santos and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown with 7:11 remaining in the first half.

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Pierce W. Huff can be reached at phuff@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3809.

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