MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / October 25, 2000

Forget the Subway Series between the Mets and the Yankees this week. TheRiver Parishes will have their own version of intra-area rivalries Friday night.

It does not get much better, or more intense, than St. James-Lutcher andDestrehan-Hahnville. Especially not late in the season with so much on theline.

St. James and Lutcher have dominated the local Class 3A district for mostof the last decade. For the last seven years, either one of these teams hasbeen the district champion. The teams shared the title in 1995. In 1998,the teams came within one game of meeting for the state championship, both falling in the semifinals.

Both teams were inexperienced going into the season. Both were startingfirst-year quarterbacks – Chris Hymel for St. James and Risley St.Germain for Lutcher. Because of that inexperience, both teams got off toslow starts. Lutcher lost three of its first five games and St. James lostto Donaldsonville in the District 9-3A opener, the first loss by the Wildcats to a district opponent other than Lutcher since the early 1990s.

But with Tim Detillier and Rick Gaille at the helm, you knew the Bulldogs and Wildcats would not be down for long. Lutcher has won three straightand St. James has defeated St. Charles Catholic and E.D. White in districtplay.

Friday’s game will again be for first place in District 9-3A. It will alsohave a big impact on playoff positioning. St. James currently sits on thebubble for a first-round playoff game at home. And of course, there arebragging rights in the parish for the next year.

The same is true down the River Road in St. Charles Parish. Like Lutcherand St. James, Destrehan and Hahnville have been state as well as districtcontenders for most of the last decade. The teams combined for four statechampionship game appearances and two state championships in the 1990s. Destrehan closed out the decade with four straight districtchampionships. In each of those years, the Wildcats defeated the Tigers.This year’s game might be the best in a long time. Both teams are amongthe top 20 in the state in Class 5A. Both possess potent offenses, capableof breaking off a big play at any time. But both have done it with defenseas well, ranking one-two in points allowed in the district. This is a gamethat could quite likely come down to the last possession.

While not an intra-parish rivalry, Riverside-Newman has become an intense rivalry as well over the last decade. For the second straight year,first place in District 9-2A will be at stake when the teams meet Friday night. Last year, it was Newman ending Riverside’s 20-game regular-season winning streak in New Orleans. This year, the Rebels get theGreenies at home.

St. Charles Catholic-Christian Life has also become an intriguing matchupin recent years. Last year, the Comets upset then-11th-ranked ChristianLife at home. This year, the Comets have to travel to Baton Rouge to facethe third-ranked Crusaders. Getting to watch the Crusaders’ MichaelClayton perform may be worth the price of admission in itself.

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