MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / March 17, 1999

RESERVE – What’s the old cliche about making a good first impression? The Reserve Christian Eagles made quite a one in their first season in the Louisiana High School Athletic Association. Not only did Reserve Christianshock many people by winning their district in their first season in the LHSAA but went on to make history by advancing to the Class B semifinals last Wednesday.

By doing so, the Eagles became the first St. John Parish school to make theTop 28 tournament since Second Ward in 1973 and the first River Parish school to do so since St. James in 1986.”It felt great,” Eric McClain, one of the team’s leading scorers, said of making the Top 28 tournament. “All the other teams around were knockedout and had ended their seasons. It felt good to be there.”Entering the Cajundome in Lafayette for their practice session Wednesday morning was quite an experience for the Eagles. Having played in theLouisiana Christian Schools Athletic Association before this season, the Eagles were used to playing in much smaller arenas even for championship games.

“It was exciting,” junior guard Aaron Vogel said. “We had never played inanything bigger than our own gym.”Reserve Christian had advanced to the state finals in the LCSAA last season but junior guard Edmond Weathersby said it was nothing compared to this year’s game.

“It was way more exciting (this year),” Weathersby said. “It was waymore competitive and the team seemed to be more into it.”Reserve Christian did not have an easy road to the Top 28. In its thirdgame, the Eagles faced a Family Christian team that would eventually play for the Class C championship. The Eagles also played Riverside and St.Charles Catholic as well as Parkview Baptist, the two-time defending Class 3A state champions.

One thing that helped the Eagles get ready for the long and tougher schedule in the LHSAA was attending camp during the summer.

“Going to team camp really helped us,” coach Timmy Byrd said. “We knewwe would be competitive and be able to compete.”Reserve Christian opened District 13-B action by shocking Mt. Hermon onthe road, ending the Yellowjackets’ winning streaks in both district and in their home gym.

“That was when I knew we could do it,” Byrd said. “We went into a hostileenvironment and didn’t play well and we still won. That is when I knew wecould play for a state championship. But we had to play well.”The Eagles continued to play well in district, wrapping up the title in another hostile environment, on the road at Maurepas. Reserve Christianadvanced to the playoffs as the top seed in District 13-B and went on to capture wins against Georgetown, Episco-pal of Acadiana and Bethany Christian.

The Eagles’ opponent in the semifinals was Gibsland-Coleman, the top- ranked team in the state with a 41-3 record. The Bulldogs were led bysenior forward Bernard King, a Texas A & M signee who averaged over 28 points per game this season.

The Bulldogs had a long tradition of playing in the Top 28, having played in six previous tournaments and winning titles in 1983 and 1984. TheBulldogs had also played in the semifinals a season ago, losing on a buzzer beater to Mt. Hermon.But it was Reserve Christian that looked like the experienced team in the beginning. Baskets by Vogel and McClain and a free throw by JaredSimoneaux gave the Eagles a 7-0 lead.

“Everybody was pumped up,” sophomore forward Matt McGee said. “Wecame out with a lot of confidence at the beginning.”King then showed what the hype was about, draining a 3-pointer from the top of the key for the Bulldogs’ first points at the 5:16 mark. That shotstarted a 11-2 run for Gibsland-Coleman.

Simoneaux scored inside to tie the score but Starwisky Hampton scored with a second left to give the Bulldogs a 13-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The Gibsland-Coleman press then took over in the second quarter as the Bulldogs held the Eagles to within a field goal in the quarter. Gibsland-Coleman out-scored the Eagles 26-8 during that period to take a 39-19 lead into the break.

But even being down 20 at halftime, the Eagles believed they could come back in the second half.

“We were a little down but we were ready to go out for the second half,” Weathersby said. “We were ready to play the game. We were sure we weregoing to win, it just didn’t come out that way.”King and the Bulldogs quickly ended any chance of a comeback, extending the lead to 30 in the third quarter. Reserve Christian continued to battle,pulling to 22 before the Bulldogs ended the game on a 7-0 run for a 84-55 victory.

Despite the loss, the Eagle players realized that playing in the game will help them next season. Reserve Christian did not have a senior on itsroster this year, meaning that every player will have an opportunity to return.

“People don’t know Reserve Christian yet,” Vogel said. “We didn’t comeout to play. We were out of sync. Next year they will really know who weare. We know what it is all about, how the other teams play and what thereferees call.”But Vogel realized that making a return trip to Lafayette will not be easy.

“It will take a lot more hard work over this summer,” Vogel said. “Thissummer when we don’t have games, we have to work harder, stay in shape and shoot baskets at our houses. A lot of people will be out to get us.”Byrd agreed but said this team knows what it has to do to become winners.

“They put personal glorification aside and came close to realizing a dream,” Byrd said of the 1998-99 season. “We won a lot of games off ofheart and guts. To get back, we have to dig deeper and pay the price. Wehave to get bigger and stronger and work on the weaknesses each individual has in their game.

“I was disappointed that we played one of our worse games in the final game but I recognize that we did a lot of good things to get there. Eachseason we have been here we have had a better season and hopefully we can continue that trend.”And with the goals that his team obtained this season, Byrd said what he will remember most about it is the effort the players gave.

“People will remember this team as a bunch of guys who went out there and left it out on the floor,” Byrd said. “They played hard and they playedunselfish basketball and I think the fans appreciated that. What I willremember most is 11 guys laying it on the line for each other.”

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