By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

East St. John Coach Larry Dauterive knew things wouldn’t get any easier after his team’s second week loss to John Curtis.

Two more state champions were on the horizon: Class 5A champion Acadiana, and Class 4A champion Bastrop.

And although the East St. John offense moved the ball statistically as well as the opposition, penalties and turnovers did them in. Acadiana prevailed, 36-19.

&#8220Believe it or not, I feel like we made improvements,” said Dauterive. &#8220We never punted, we moved it well. But we allowed ourselves to be snake-bitten. 12 penalties, drive killing ones, cost us 132 yards. It hurt us tremendously.”

Junior running back Alex Singleton continued a breakout year with 18 carries for 136 yards and a touchdown. Receiver David Hampton caught five passes for 91 yards. Running back Reynaldo Young rushed six times for 77 yards.

But Acadiana (3-0) was able to score 12 points off East St. John (1-2) turnovers, including a 23-yard interception return and a safety.

Another advantage the Rams had was in time of possession, where Acadiana dominated – they held the ball for 29:08 of the game.

While Dauterive believes the team made strides against a tough opponent, he has no illusions – this team, he says, is no finished product.

&#8220We’re a team in transition,” he said. &#8220We hope some good comes out of this tough schedule. Bastrop next week might be the best team of all.”

Acadiana scored the first nineteen points of the game, giving East St. John a hill to climb from the outset. Young put the Wildcats on the board with a 6-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.

Acadiana then scored 17 straight points, giving themselves a commanding 36-7 lead.

East St. John rallied to cut the lead down in the fourth quarter, after a 1-yard Singleton touchdown run, and a 70-yard fumble return by Jordan Hunter.

The Wildcats defense stiffened in the second half, only allowing three points to the high powered Rams in the second half.

Dauterive was proud of the team’s effort as a whole, and in particular praised quarterback Kalen Henderson for what he deemed a breakout night. Henderson was able to move the ball through the air against an elite defense when called upon, passing for 116 yards.

But if East St. John is to bounce back, the penalties must be cleaned up.

&#8220Two weeks in a row, over 100 yards of penalties. It’s tough to win that way,” said Dauterive.