MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / November 15, 2000

RESERVE – Riverside, coming off a 28-7 victory over Loyola last Friday, travels westward this week to face North Vermilion in the Class 2A regional playoffs.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.Riverside, seeded second, enters the game with a 11-0 record. NorthVermilion, the 18th seed, is 7-3. The Patriots upset 15th-seeded JewelSumner, 27-20, in the first round last week.

Riverside’s lead against Loyola was never seriously in doubt thanks to a dominating performance by the Rebels defense. After Riverside scored on itsfirst two possessions to take a 14-0 lead, Loyola used a blocked punt and an interference call on a fake punt to cut the deficit to 14-7.

But that would be it for the Flyers. Riverside held Loyola to 107 total yardsin the game and did not allow the Flyers to cross the Rebels’ 45-yard line in the second half. Loyola’s Jon Alston was held to 82 yards on 25 carries andthe Flyers completed just two passes for 23 yards.

“We were ecstatic with our defensive effort,” Riverside head coach Mickey Roussel said. “The outcome wasn’t in doubt because of the way our defensewas playing.”The Riverside offense again got the job done, rushing for 258 yards. DamianMelancon and Brandon Delaneuville both scored twice on the ground. BrittWaguespack led the way with 107 yards on 16 carries. Delaneuville had 73yards on 16 carries and Melancon 61 on nine attempts.

North Vermilion also got the job done on the ground in its win over Sumner, rushing for 249 yards. Quarterback Bud Dubois ran for 93 yards and threwfor another 117 yards and two touchdowns. Joe Duplichan caught both of thetouchdown passes. Trey Seaton had another 71 yards and Ray Boudreauxhad 69 yards, including an eight-yard touchdown run.

Sumner was able to pass on the Patriot defense as Jeff Stokes threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns but North Vermilion limited the Cowboys to 34 yards on the ground.

North Vermilion got off to a hot start, winning its first five, but struggled in a tough District 5-2A. The Patriots lost to top-ranked Iota and fifth-rankedWelsh and finished 2-3.

Like Riverside, North Vermilion uses the wing-T on offense although the Patriots do not run as many plays out of it as do the Rebels. Boudreaux wasone of the leading rushers in the state this season with over 1,350 yards and 18 touchdowns in the regular season. He had a 266-yard, three-touchdown game against Westgate in the third week of the season.

Boudreaux will be joined in the backfield by Dubois, a three-year starter at quarterback. Seaton will also get carries. The receivers are Nick Hunter, KyleSavant and Duplichan. The line is big, led by tackles Albert Granger and MattArabie.

The defense also mirrors the Rebels in that both use the 50. The lineconsists of Blaine Mire, Adam Riddle, Lursie Bourque and Doug Daly.

Linebackers include Nick Duhon and Stephen Broussard. Nine starters returnon defense on a team that went 4-6 in 1999 and lost at Welsh in the bi- district playoffs.

Riverside has played well on the road this season, winning at both West St.

John and E.D. White.”Offensively, we have to keep playing like we have been doing,” Roussel said.

“We need to get a few points on the board and see what happens.”The winner advances to the quarterfinals to meet the winner of St. ThomasAquinas and McCall.

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