By RYAN ARENA
L’Observateur

PLAQUEMINE — St. John-Plaquemine hung tough early, but West St. John rode three Lamore Boudoin rushing touchdowns and a dominant defensive effort to a 30-6 District 8-1A victory on the road, setting up a district championship showdown next week between the Rams and White Castle.

WSJ and St. John were tied after a quarter, but the Rams exploded for 18 second quarter points to take control of the game. West St. John scored its 30 points unanswered, with St. John scoring its lone touchdown in the game’s late stages.

Jemoine Green got the Rams (7-2. 4-0) started with a touchdown on a 7-yard quarterback keeper. Anfernee Lumar kicked a 23-yard field goal for WSJ in the second quarter, and Boudoin scored his first touchdown of the night — before the game was through, he collected scoring runs of 6, 23 and 25 yards.

“He’s patient and consistent,” West St. John coach Robert Valdez said of Boudoin. “He waits for his number to be called and when it is, he makes the most of his opportunity. He’s really playing good football for us.”

Clay Payne’s 10-yard pass to Collin Crockett accounted for St. John’s touchdown.

Though St. John dropped to 1-8 overall and 1-3 in district play, Valdez offered respect for his opponent after the game.

“They’re much better than that record indicates,” Valdez said. “They lost some key players early this season. They run a very good system. We knew we’d be in for a challenge in terms of stopping their running game. They had 58 plays and they ran it on 53 of those, so we saw a heavy dose of that. We knew we’d get their best, tonight.”

Two turnovers stunted WSJ’s first two drives of the night, and St. John held the ball for most of the first quarter.

“It blew by,” Valdez said of the opening period. “They set out to control the ball. It’s what they do.”

Green completed 15 of 28 pass attempts as the Rams threw a bit more than usual, and as the game went on, it loosened up the St. John defense.

As for the Rams defense, Valdez was pleased, and said the night was a good sign.

“We’ll see that kind of offense again,” he said.