For the final Vermilion Parish Game of the Week of the 2022 Louisiana high school football season, Vermilion Catholic battled it out with the Ouachita Christian Eagles for the state title. Undefeated Vermilion Catholic made it all the way to the Select Division IV state championship in the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana by taking down teams like Southern Lab and St. Martin’s Episcopal. The Screaming Eagles of VC didn’t take care of the football and tried to make an epic comeback. It wouldn’t be enough as they fell 28-14 Thursday evening.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Ouachita Christian won the opening coin toss but deferred to the second half. Vermilion Catholic received the opening kickoff and got near midfield.
Zachary White intercepted Jonathan Dartez’s pass which was initially called down at the 47-yard line of VC. After the replay, they corrected the spot and called the Eagle of Ouachita Christian down at their own 35.
Quarterback Landon Graves kept it himself and ran the ball into the endzone from 12 yards out for the game’s first touchdown with 7:54 left in the first quarter. OCS led 7-0 at the end of the first.
At the 10:40 mark of the second quarter, Dartez responded with a scoring run, this one from two yards away as he got to the pylon to tie the game.
Following a few drives resulting in punts by both Eagles teams, Vermilion Catholic got the ball back with 4:39 left in the first half at their own 44-yard line. Dartez threw his second interception of the game, this time the pick was by Broc Hogan and downed at the 11-yard line of Ouachita Christian.
After the turnover, OCS drove down the field, and Graves connected with Drew Dougan for the 23-yard touchdown with 10 seconds left. The Eagles of Ouachita Christian led 14-7 over the Screaming Eagles of Vermilion Catholic at the intermission.
Into the third quarter, the Screaming Eagles turned the ball over for the third time on the night, this one via a fumble. The regular Eagles drove down the field and scored their third touchdown of the game as White found pay dirt from 16-yards out and extended their lead to 21-7 midway into the third quarter.
Ouachita Christian intercepted Dartez for the third time of the contest and put up another touchdown as Graves connected with Dougan for their second score. Eagles led by 21 points with 4:35 left in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles of VC cut their deficit to two scores as Allen McClain III got a 65-yard scoop-and-score with three minutes to go. OCS would hold on and beat Vermilion Catholic 28-14 and become the 2022 Select Division IV champions.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: LANDON GRAVES
Graves and this Eagles offense produced points Thursday night as he threw two touchdown passes and ran one in himself as Ouachita Christian defeated Vermilion Catholic 28-14.
BIG NUMBER: 4
It was a tough night for the Vermilion Catholic Screaming Eagles as the offense turned the ball over four times. The turnovers led to all of Ouachita Christian’s points as the Eagles are the 2022 LHSAA Select Division IV champs.