Southern Lab knocks VC out of playoffs

There were no secrets when Vermilion Catholic faced a much larger and speedier Southern Lab team.
The Screaming Eagles realized the scope of their Division IV state semifinal challenge and despite a number of uncharacteristic mistakes, were breathing down the necks of the Kittens until one final miscue sealed their fate.
VC (10-3) cut Southern Lab’s lead to 28-12 on William Nogel’s 1-yard run at the 10:20 mark of the fourth quarter and place-kicker Emile Trahan recovered his own onside kick at Lab’s 20-yard line.
With the Eagles threatening at the Kittens’ 6-yard line strong safety Damone Clark stepped in front of quarterback Hunter Frith’s third-down attempt for an interception with 8:50 remaining.
Sixth-seeded Southern Lab (9-3) went on to add another touchdown with 5:16 remaining on a 2-yard run from Darbbeon Profit for a 34-12 victory Friday over second-seeded Vermilion Catholic.
“It seemed like it was a momentum changer,” VC wide receiver Emile Trahan said of the onside kick recovery following his team’s TD. “We made some mistakes and kept fighting until the end. Our team had a lot of heart and I wouldn’t want to play with anybody else.”
The scouting report on Southern Lab, which returns to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for the a second straight season to face St. Mary, was a powerfully-built offensive line that led the way for Profit and a defense that was equally big, backed by a talented secondary.
Southern Lab (9-3) was as good as advertised, opting to try and control the clock behind its power running game, while its defense intercepted Frith a season-high five times.
Profit led the way with 23 carries for 167 yards and three touchdowns, giving Lab leads of 8-0 in the first quarter, 16-6 early in the third quarter before his finale capped his team’s scoring.
The Kittens rushed 47 times for 248 yards and wound up with 438 total yards on 64 plays.
By comparison, VC ran 37 plays for 258 yards with all but yard one coming on the left arm of Frith, who completed 26 of 53 passes for 257 yards and a touchdown.
“They’re a good team and we made a lot of unforced errors,” VC coach Russell Kuhns said. “They had a lot to do with it with their talent level. We hadn’t seen anyone that could cover like that or cover ground like that when the ball’s in the air.”
Trahan finished with nine catches for 85 yards to lead the Eagles. Devren
Constantine had seven catches for 68 yards and Tyler Derouen five grabs for 75 yards.
“They definitely had some good DBs and we did a good job of getting open,” Trahan said. “They just made plays on the other end.”
Despite four first-half interceptions, VC only trailed 8-6 at halftime when Frith connected with Trahan on a 20-yard scoring strike with 12 seconds before the break.
The four interceptions suffered by Frith, who was 8-of-17 for 108 yards at halftime, all came in Southern Lab territory with Tulane commitment Jonard Robinson getting three of them.
“We had our chances,” Kuhns said. “We turned it over many times inside (Lab territory) and this could have been a different game plenty of different times. Am I disappointed in the loss? Yeah. I’m proud of my kids. They fought hard.”
Lab scored on three of its first four series in the third quarter, extending its halftime lead to 28-6 with 14 seconds left in the third quarter on the second of 240-pound fullback’s Shannon Forman’s touchdowns.
Frith got VC back into contention, driving the Eagles 61 yards in six plays, with the big play coming on a 44-yard completion to Derouen that set up Nogel’s 1-yard score.
Trahan recovered his perfectly-placed onside kick down the middle of the field and gained yardage to Lab’s 20 when VC faced a second-and-goal from the 2-yard line when Noegel was whistled just short of the end zone.
A false start penalty moved the Eagles back to the 6-yard line when Clark picked off Frith in the flat and raced 66 yards to the Eagles’ 30.
Frith, whose previous high for interceptions in a game was three, had only suffered two interceptions in his last 102 attempts before Friday’s game.
“You can’t do that in a semifinal game against a team like that and expect to win,” Kuhns said. “I’m proud of my seniors, I’m proud of my kids for a great year. If you can get a game away from the Dome you ought to be pretty happy.”