Woodlawn Overcomes Slow Start To Top St. Amant 48-13

Written by Kyle Valdez

The Woodlawn High Panthers fell behind 13-7 after two quarters, but giveaways from the St. Amant offense led to a second-half where Woodlawn reeled off 35 straight points to take their second District 5-5A victory of the season. Woodlawn's defense forced two fumbles, three interceptions, and 7-25 throwing for quarterback Cole Poirrier.

Alongside Woodlawn's defense, quarterback Rickie Collins completed 11-15 passes for 215 yards for three touchdowns. Receiver Clayton Adams caught six balls for 61 yards and a touchdown. Lanard Harris played both sides of the ball for the Panthers: picking off a pass and finishing with three receptions for 107 yards.

"The offense just took a while to get the momentum going. I talked to them at halftime, and asked 'who's going to be the guy to get us going?" head coach Marcus Randall said. "We know we can score in bunches, but we're still looking for the consistency. I got on them and they came out with a different fire. Defense made big plays that gave us momentum, and the offense carried it out."

After a slow start to begin the third quarter, Harris picked off a deep pass and returned it inside the St. Amant 10-yard line. Collins scored on a 2-yard keeper to give Woodlawn their first lead of the game. The next drive was capped off by a Harris 33-yard touchdown reception to extend the lead to 21-13. Woodlawn shutout the Gators in the second half to win 48-13.

"We challenged the defense all week to get turnovers. We challenged them, they stepped up to the plate and made a lot of big plays for us," Collins said. "I love them dudes. They're obviously a big part of our team and they worked all night. Next week, we need to come out fast; and offensively, we need to play a full four quarters."

Woodlawn looks to string together three straight victories in Gonzales against East Ascension next week. St. Amant plays at home next week, but the schedule doesn't ease up as they prepare for Division 1 powerhouse Catholic High.