Destrehan did not allow the Hahnville loss to carry over into its next game two days later – and as a result, the Wildcats earned the District 8-5A championship.
Destrehan defeated Thibodaux at Destrehan on Friday night, resulting in a tie atop the standings between the two teams as each team had just one loss in 8-5A play. Carrell noted that the district determines head-to-head record as the tiebreaker for the district crown – which made last Friday’s game between DHS and THS a winner-take-all battle.
“I had to make sure to clarify that myself,” said Destrehan head coach Khary Carrell. “But it goes head-to-head, so we’re the champs … it was just an exciting game all the way through. Coach Tony Clark (of Thibodaux), he and his team came in with a great plan. They jumped out hot on us … but we got it done.”
Thibodaux led 16-8 after the first quarter, but Destrehan turned the tide from there. The Wildcats held THS to 26 points in the second half and took control in the fourth quarter.
It is Destrehan’s first district championship since the 2021-22 season.
Keenan Brown led Destrehan with 15 points. Kolby Payton scored 13, Trevez Walker 12 and Caden Coleman scored 10.
All four players are seniors who have been vital to a program that went from two wins in 2023-24 to capturing a district championship two years later.
Last week, Carrell said a district championship would be especially sweet for this group, and the Wildcats made it happen.
“I’m just so excited and so happy for these kids, who bought in and have worked so hard,” Carrell said. “And what a game. We played tough defense and that gave us the opportunity to make a run and ultimately get back in the game. Just a real good win for us. That was pretty thrilling for us because winning district was one of our goals that we set out for.”
Another goal for the Wildcats was to secure a home playoff game in round one – mission accomplished there, too. Destrehan earned the No. 13 seed in Division I non-select and will host New Iberia, the 20 seed, Friday night at 6 p.m.
New Iberia enters with a record of 14-12, playing a tough schedule along the way.
“It’s do or die,” said Carrell. “To keep playing, you’ve got to win. And we know we’ll be getting their best shot. It’s playoffs, everybody’s going to come in with intensity.”
Hahnville, meanwhile, has also turned its attention to its postseason draw. The Tigers earned the No. 25 seed in Division I non-select and will travel to face 8th seeded St. Amant (26-5).
The Gators had a 14-game winning streak broken near the end of the regular season, then split its final four games. It will be a rematch of a regular season game between the two teams, a 69-54 St. Amant victory in Boutte on Dec. 11. A now more-seasoned Tigers team will look to avenge that loss and, more importantly, advance to round two on Friday night, with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
