It doesn’t matter what classification, the Knight Train keeps on rolling with Lafayette Christian Academy getting their third straight state title on Saturday at Cajun Field in a 41-14 victory over St. Charles.
The Knights wasted little time getting out in front with quarterback Errol Rogers finding Ethan Laing on a 49-yard pass on the opening drive before Sage Ryan punched it in from seven yards out to take a 6-0 lead after a missed PAT.
The offense for LCA took advantage of a bad punt by the Comets with Rogers connecting with Dane Wallace for a 21-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the drive. The Knights defense came up huge late in the second quarter with a sack-fumble from Princeton Malbrue setting up a four-yard touchdown run from Logan Gabriel to make it 20-0 as both teams headed to the locker room at halftime.
St. Charles finally got on the board to start the second half thanks to a great kick return by Phillip Tran to the Knights 32-yard line. Just a few plays later, Zack Vicknair took it to the house off of a wildcat snap to cut into the lead. Lafayette Christian Academy then responded with a methodical 12-play, 78-yard drive that ended with Gabriel getting his second touchdown of the evening with a five-yard jaunt into the endzone.
The Comets needed something big to stay in the Division II State Title Game and they got just that when Justin Dumas converted a fake punt on 4th-and-9 to extend the drive and Vicknair rolled into the endzone from 31-yards out to make it 27-14 with 1:23 left in the third quarter.
That big drive by St. Charles was rendered meaningless just 22 seconds later when Rogers putting on the jets with a 51-yard touchdown run, making it 34-14.
Gabriel helped drive the stake in the hearts of the Comets fanbase with four minutes left in regulation with a one-yard touchdown run that was set up by a 66-yard fake punt run from him earlier in the drive.