By Lori Lyons
Contributing Writer

It’s been six years since the Terrebonne Tigers have had to face a team from Destrehan, and eight since they played for district standings.
After Friday night, Terrebonne might have been willing to wait a little longer.
Destrehan went down the bayou with all of its offensive weapons at full force Friday night and left with a 42-17 victory in the District 7-5A opener for both teams, handing Terrebonne its first loss of the season.
For the second week in a row, Destrehan used a balanced attack behind a stout offensive line. Wildcats running back Will Mathews ran for four touchdowns and quarterback Donovan Isom passed for two. Together, the two combined for 356 of Destrehan’s 447 yards. Mathews finished with 161 yards on 15 carries. Isom was 12 of 22 for 195 yards.
And once again, Mathews credited the Destrehan offensive line for his success.
“Offensive line, they did what they do every week,” Mathews said. “They take care of me and I take care of them. I love my offensive line.”
And as they have all season, the Wildcats didn’t waste any time. Destrehan scored on its first four possessions on the way to a 21-3 lead in the first quarter. The Wildcats took the opening kickoff and marched 70 yards on eight plays. Just 2:12 into the game, Mathews scored his first touchdown on a 21-yard run. Cameron Walsh kicked the first of his six PATs to give the Wildcats a 7-0 lead..
Destrehan’s second touchdown came just 2:53 later, when Isom connected with Armstrong on a 44-yard touchdown pass with 7:15 remaining in the first quarter.
Terrebonne finally got going after that with a drive that began at its own 20. With some big runs by quarterback Colby Stewart, the Tigers got to the Destrehan 29 before stalling. With 3:31 remaining in the first quarter, Travis Manor kicked a 40-yard field goal to make it 14-3.
Destrehan came right back, however, needing just six plays to go 72 yards. Isom connected with Alfred Smith on a 33-yard pass, then with Kurk Merritt for 10. After a 21-yard run by Mathews got the Wildcats into the red zone, he scored from the 7 to make it 21-3 with 2:00 to play in the first quarter.
The Wildcats made it 28-3 less than two minutes into the second quarter with a five play drive. Isom connected with Alfred Smith on a 21-yard touchdown pass with 10:44 to play in the half.
Terrebonne responded with a 10-play, 80 yard drive led by Stewart and running back Justin Theriot. From the Destrehan 25, Stewart scrambled and outran Destrehan’s defense for a 25-yard touchdown run.
The Tigers managed to stop Destrehan’s next drive near midfield, forcing the Wildcats to punt. But Terrebonne’s hopes to swing the momentum ended when Allen Pittman intercepted a Stewart pass and returned it to the Terrebonne 24. From there, Mathews zigged and zagged his way into the end zone for his third score and a 35-10 Destrehan lead with 2:14 to play in the first half.
After a scoreless third quarter, Mathews scored his fourth and final touchdown with 9:10 remaining in the game. He got the Wildcats from their own 15-yard line to midfield with a 33 yard run. Isom helped move things along with his own 29-yard run, and a 14-yard pass to Merrit. Mathews then capped the Wildcats scoring with a 7-yard run.
Terrebonne responded with a seven play, 80 yard drive. With 5:49 remaining  in the game, Blake Verret broke free for a 29-yards and the final score of the night.
Terrebonne finished with 302 yards of offense. Stewart passed for 110 yards and rushed for 39. Theriot rushed for 99 yards. But even though the Wildcats appeared to be on a roll, Destrehan coach Stephen Robicheaux said it was not his team’s best effort.
“It wasn’t a Destrehan game today,” Robicheaux said. “We scored 42 points and we just didn’t play well. We had a lot of penalties. (That’s) just not characteristic of our team.  Will did a good job. The offensive line was key, giving him some nice holes to run through. He had a big night. We needed that. When Donovan’s not throwing the ball well, we need to run the football. He’s  better than what he did tonight. We just got to keep working on it.”