Hahnville must cut miscues to avoid upset by Vanderbilt

After a heartbreaking, double-overtime loss to Lutcher, the Hahnville Tigers were able to bounce back for a 39-8 win over O.P. Walker. And while the Hahnville offense came out smoking in the first half, it was the defense that carried the team to the victory.

The Tigers only gave up 69 yards of offense to Walker, which was important due to Hahnville's inability to get much going offensively in the third quarter.

“I thought we played better, but we bogged down offensively in the third quarter and we put the ball on the ground too much,” Hahnville head coach Lou Valdin said. “We did play really well defensively and on special teams, and it was good to bounce back against a big, physical team like O.P. Walker.”

Though Hahnville had problems on offense in the third quarter, they were impressive overall. Quarterback Brian Ensminger passed for 177 yards and three touchdowns, with all three TD passes going to receiver James Butler. Running back Alfred Blue also had a strong outing, rushing for 76 yards and three touchdowns.

The win moved the Tigers to 3-1 on the year and has set the stage for their last non-district test of the regular season.

Vanderbilt Catholic is 2-2 on the year, with wins over White and Assumption. Their two losses have come against St. Charles Catholic and South Lafourche.

“Vanderbilt runs multiple offenses and uses the option,” Valdin said. “They are very well coached and they don't beat themselves. They make you pay for your mistakes.”

On defense, Valdin said that Vanderbilt will bend, but usually does not break.

“They are very sound on that side of the ball,” he said. “They don't take any chances - they just try to force your offense to make mistakes.”

But as long as Hahnville doesn't have many miscues, they should be able to take control early.

“We just have to play our game,” Valdin said. “We have better athletes than they do, so if we don't make mistakes, we should win the game.”

Hahnville and Vanderbilt are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. in Houma.