Caesar rushes for 144 yards, scores four TDs in 48-7 win

RESERVE — Riverside’s Jarid Caesar set the tone of last night’s Rebels-St. Martin’s Episcopal game in the very early going.

The first time Riverside touched the ball, Caesar fielded a punt and returned it 58 yards for a touchdown as the Rebels cruised to a convincing 48-7 victory.

Caesar finished the game with 144 yards rushing and had a total of four touchdowns to pace the offensive attack.

With the win, the Rebels improve their record to 6-1 on the season and they sport an unblemished 3-0 district record.

Riverside got off to somewhat of a shaky start last week, but that was certainly not the case this time around.

The Rebels scored 13 points in the opening quarter and by the end of the first half, they increased their advantage to 27-7.

“We did a good job of controlling the line of scrimmage,” Riverside head coach Mickey Roussel said. “Last week against Buras it took us a quarter-and-a-half to get things going, but tonight, we came out and played with playoff-like intensity.”

While Caesar propelled the Rebels on offense, he was certainly not the only standout they had on offense.

Lee Haydel carried the ball five times, gained 52 yards and scored two touchdowns, quarterback A.J. Delaneuville rushed for 75 yards, threw for 19 and had one touchdown through the air and teammate Cavin Richmond tallied 51 yards rushing on 10 carries.

For St. Martin’s, Chas Richard rushed for 39 yards on nine carries and Harris Diano added 26 yards on eight carries. Aaron Hyatt scored the lone touchdown for the visitors, that being a one-yard run in the second quarter.

Hyatt’s run was set up by a Chris Saporito interception. After making the pick, Saporito returned the ball 58 yards down to the two-yard line to help get his squad back in the game. After Hyatt’s score, St. Martin’s trailed 20-7 midway through the second period, but the club would come no closer the rest of the way.

Kevin Bourg had a stellar performance to anchor the Riverside defense as he recorded four sacks and had one interception.

“Kevin’s our go-to guy on defense,” Roussel said.. “He makes things happen, and he’s been doing that for us all year.”

After Caesar put his team up with his punt return for touchdown, Haydel followed with a 20-yard score with just under three minutes left in the opening quarter to give his club a 13-0 advantage.

Thirteen seconds into the second quarter, the Rebels found themselves with a 20-point lead.

Caesar took a handoff and used his blistering speed to race 60 yards for another touchdown, and after Lance Simon booted the extra-point, Riverside held a commanding 20-0 lead.

Hyatt’s touchdown and Ben Bologna’s extra point made it a 20-7 contest, but with time running out before the end of the first half, Caesar added a 23-yard touchdown run to help his club regain its 20-point advantage.

Caesar added his final touchdown of the night when he broke numerous tackles and found the endzone on an 11-yard run with 10:32 left in the third quarter as his team took a 34-7 lead.