'Jacks hold off Ville Platte for 21-16 win

No. 4 Patterson needed a defensive stand in the final minute to escape No. 29-seed Ville Platte, 21-16, in the opening round of the Class 3A playoffs Friday at the Sugar Dome.
Patterson led 21-8 at the start of the fourth quarter when Ville Platte forced a three-and-out and a Lumberjack punt.
The Bulldogs took over at their own 34 with 10:25 left in the game. They went on a 12-play, 66-yard drive that quarterback Terez Alfred capped with a three-yard touchdown run. The Bulldogs added the two-point conversion with 5:02 left to make it a one-possession game.
The Ville Platte drive took more than five minutes off the clock.
“We went all the way back and watched their tape from the Catholic High-New Iberia game and we saw that you could run an 18-wheeler up the middle of their defense,” Ville Platte coach Jorie Randle said.
Patterson went three-and-out again, giving the ball back to Ville Platte with 3:30 remaining in the game.
The Bulldogs took over at their own 30 and marched down to the ’Jacks’ 37-yard line with 1:00 to play.
“We had to take away their passing game and make them run. We were able to do that and that made it a competitive game,” Randle said. “We couldn’t let that high-flying offense get going, so we slowed down the game. We got what we wanted, a chance to win late.”
A Ville Platte run gave the Bulldogs a first-down at the Patterson 30 with 50 seconds to play.
Patterson’s Tristen Ausama broke up the first-down pass, while standout Nehemiah Augustus sacked Alfred on second down, setting up a third-and-13 at the Patterson 33 with 22 seconds left.
Patterson defensive back Shay Ragas knocked the ball away on third down to set up one last play with 15 seconds remaining.
Ville Platte had a special pass play on fourth down, and the Bulldogs’ receiver got behind the Patterson defense. But Ragas recovered, jumping at the pass, and the VP receiver dropped the ball in the end zone.
“We called our play, and the ball was there,” Randle said. “We thought the kid came down with the ball, but he didn’t. The ball just didn’t bounce our way.”
With the win, Patterson moves on to the second-round of the playoffs.
“It was a playoff game,” Patterson Coach Chad Blanchard said. “Those guys didn’t want their season to end either. They’re a tough matchup for us, and we knew that going in. They’re big upfront on both sides of the ball and very physical, but we have to play better if we want to continue playing.”
Ville Platte started the game with an 80-yard kickoff return and a two-point conversion to take an 8-0 lead with 11:45 left in the first quarter.
Patterson answered with a 30-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sirbatian Charles to D.J. Jones with 8:28 remaining in the quarter. Christian Soria added the extra-point kick, and Patterson trailed 8-7.
Charles was 10-of-19 passing for 127 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.
Charles and Augustus hooked up early in the second quarter for a 6-yard score, and Patterson carried a 14-8 lead into halftime.
Mykel Jones was Patterson’s top receiver with five catches for 43 yards.
Patterson extended the lead to 21-8 with 2:38 left in the third quarter on a backside screen from Charles to Brennan Gouaux for 12 yards.
Patterson will host No. 13 West Feliciana (7-4) Friday in the regional round. West Feliciana beat No. 20 Jennings 62-38 in other Class 3A opening round action.

PHS VP
First downs: 17 16
Rushing yards: 191 197
Passing yards: 127 14
Total yards: 318 211
A-C-HI: 19-10-1 5-2-0
Fumbles-lost: 0-0 0-0
Penalties-yards: 8-45 4-25

Score By Quarters
PHS 7 7 7 0 — 21
VP 8 0 0 8 — 16

Scoring Summary
First Quarter
VP: Terez Alfred 80-yd. kickoff return (run good) 11:45
PHS: D.J. Jones 30-yd. pass from Sirbatian Charles (Christian Soria kick) 8:28
Second Quarter
PHS: Nehemiah Augustus 7-yd. pass from Charles (kick good) 8:10
Third Quarter
PHS: Brennan Gouaux 12-yd. pass from Charles (kick good) 2:38
Fourth Quarter
VP: Alfred 3-yard run (run good) 5:02

Patterson stats
Passing
Sirbatian Charles, 10-19-1, 127 yds., 3 TDs
Rushing
Augustus, 2-25 yds.; D.J. Jones, 4-20 yds.; Mykel Jones, 1-1 yd.; Charles, 9-88 yds.; Ausama, 10-57 yds.
Receiving
Gouaux, 2-20 yds., TD; Augustus, 1-6 yds., TD; D.J. Jones, 1-30 yds., TD; Mykel Jones, 5-43 yds.; Ausama, 1-28 yds.