Running game, defense propel Hahnville to victory at Destrehan

For the first time in five seasons, Hahnville can lay claim to bragging rights in their heated rivalry series with Destrehan, after holding off a Wildcats rally to earn a 20-13 victory at Wildcat Stadium.

Anthony Williams’ 50 yard touchdown run in the third quarter pushed Hahnville ahead 20-3 and proved to be the winning points on a night the Tigers’ running game took charge. Williams rushed for 235 yards on 28 carries and added a 44 yard reception. He scored two touchdowns on the night.

“It’s my senior year and we beat them. That’s a big accomplishment,” said Williams. “I was so happy because that’s all I wanted. Everyone came out to play tonight. When our line comes out and does what they do like they did tonight, then I’ve gotta hold up my end, and tonight everyone came through.”

It was Destrehan’s first district loss since 2012.

Meanwhile, for Hahnville (2-2, 1-0), the win all but wipes away the discomfort following a two-game losing streak, including a 21-6 home loss to Brother Martin last week in which nothing clicked offensively. But at Destrehan, the Tigers were able to run the ball early and often.

“That wasn’t the same team that took the field last week,” said Hahnville coach Nick Saltaformaggio, who earned his first victory over Destrehan since taking the program’s helm in 2014. “I can’t even describe the feeling … (Williams) is the best football player in the state of Louisiana. That’s just how I feel about it. And our defense was off the charts tonight.”

Hahnville drove the ball down the field on its first possession of the night, scoring in seven plays on a Williams 6-yard run.

The Tigers answered a 28-yard field goal by Destrehan’s Phillip Stratton when Tigers quarterback Jha’quan Jackson found a seam and raced for a 64-yard touchdown to push Hahnville ahead 14-3 in the first quarter.

“Never give up. That’s our motto,” said Jackson, referencing his team’s ability to shake off two straight losses. “Yes, no doubt about it … this can launch us to something better. We doubted ourselves last week. This week, we made our mark.”

Destrehan (2-2, 0-1), meanwhile, found success moving the ball into Hahnville territory, but the Tigers defense stiffened in the redzone. DHS drove to Hahnville’s 30, 10 and 22 yard lines on its first three possessions, but came away with just the one field goal, the other drives ending in a turnover on downs and an interception by Lloyd Jones.

“You can’t kick field goals, you’ve gotta score down there, obviously,” said Destrehan coach Stephen Robicheaux. “We had some drops here and there … we need to get better. And we will get better. Our kids are working hard and I have no doubt we’re going to bounce back. But my hat’s off to Hahnville. They did a great job.”

After Williams’ long touchdown run early in the second half, HHS stopped Destrehan yet again in the redzone, this time forcing a Stratton field goal attempt from the Tigers’ 7 that he made to make it 20-6.

With 7:36 left in the fourth quarter, DHS finally punched in its first touchdown of the night on a 3-yard run by J.R. Blood.

But it would be the only score of the night. Hahnville drove the ball down the field to kill more than six minutes of time before Destrehan stopped a fourth and one run with just over a minute left. The Tigers defense held from there.

 

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