Hahnville aims for 4th win in a row

Hahnville’s on a roll, winners of three straight games after an 0-2 start: the arrow has been pointing up for the Tigers.

And it’s a fourth straight win Hahnville seeks this Friday night as it welcomes Central Lafourche to Tiger Stadium.

It’s been a trying season for Central Lafourche, which fell to 0-5 last week with its 44-8 loss to Thibodaux.

The Trojans bring a very young team into the matchup, the starting lineup peppered with underclassmen. Over the years, the program has developed a reputation for presenting a tough matchup even when outmatched in personnel. But the team has seen major struggles over the past year-plus: in 2020, it went 0-8, including a 52-6 loss to Hahnville. Central has lost its last 18 games since beginning the 2019 season with a 5-1 mark.

But Central (0-5, 0-4) does boast playmakers. While CLHS trailed all night in a 56-6 loss to Destrehan three weeks ago, running back Ceontrey Raymond tallied well over 100 yards on a stiff Wildcats defense, and got free for several explosive runs. Quarterback Carson Orgeron directs the offense.

“The strength of our defense is up front, so for us the biggest thing is continuing to play the style of football we’ve been playing … gang tackling, pursuit to the football and recognizing and identify where (Raymond) is. If we can do that, we should be OK defensively,” said HHS head coach Daniel Luquet.

However, these days the Hahnville defense is making life hard for any offense. Last week’s shutout of H.L. Bourgeois was the team’s second of the season, and the Tigers (3-2, 2-2) have allowed just 21 points over the past four games.

Offensively, the results have been more inconsistent than head coach Daniel Luquet would like, and he wants to see a step forward this week.

“First down is key for us,” Luquet said. “We just need to put four quarters together, keeping our defense off the field … getting ourselves to second, third down and manageable is the biggest thing.”

Donovan Friloux has been coming along in his first season as starting quarterback. He’s tallied 754 yards and three touchdowns through the air while adding 79 yards and four more touchdowns as a runner. Following a season-ending injury to leading rusher Cole Villasenor, K’Jon Smith has shown explosiveness in his stead, averaging just over six yards a carry – he has 152 yards and a score on the ground. Troy Kendrick has continued to be the top target in the passing game, hauling in 22 receptions for 360 yards and three touchdowns.